Ok, I bit the bullet today and started in with the ron francis - have a problem with the ignition wiring?????

JMD, what did you do to wire in the ignition switch - the "ron francis IS-02 connector" doesn't plug into my switch? The pack also has 4 independent connectors so I was thinking to just wire the 4 connections with 1 connector each. Did you do each wire seperately into the back of the switch? Also, what did you do with the dash connectors- it looks like it says to use the original connectors (says they don't make them anymore - they are the ones that push onto a threaded screw)? Did you use the old connectors and splice them into the ron francis wires?

Now my problem - I don't know what the 4 connectors on the back of the switch correspond to - the 4 connections are battery, accessory, starter, ignition. A picture of the back of my ignition switch is below - can anybody tell me which connection is which?

Thanks!


[IMG]local://upfiles/34309/3D96E3B8BC864B768510FD3ADB449F42.jpg[/IMG]

 

Hello Bradley,,

For the ignition switch I did use a spade connector and hooked up each wire seperatly. I used a test light and a battery charger to figure out which post was which. Only thing I can remember about what goes where for sure is the accessory connection is the center threaded stud... You should be able to determine which post is the "in" wire by examining the old harness and finding the biggest wire, and/or tracing backwards to the ampmeter.

And,, upon review,, yes you can remove the terminals from the original plastic plug and replace them with newly wired terminals,, there should even be some extra terminal end left over from the wiring kit,,, it has just come to my attention that I am a dumb *** and didn't think of recycling this particular plug at the time,,,,, damn...

Which brings us to guages, and the ampmeter, the ampmeter will not function unless you wire it through, I don't advise this and neither does Ron.

I used a Dakota Digital dash, so it did not ocour to me to discuss this issue in previous posts,, sorry!! but you should be able to hook the guages up direct with the leads provided. On both of my previous installs of this kit I wired up the orig guages direct without issue.

I have not really checked out the stock dash, so I don't know if its design makes it difficult for direct connection, but I do seem toremember certain voltagerequirements (5V?) when using stock guages. Ithink I remember that the old voltage regulator was usedto provide this lower voltage to the guages,, (is that right,,, or do I have some of the specifics wrong? Help me out here someone!!)

I believe that there are "stepdowns"that would serve the same purposein the Ron Francis catalog. Keep in mind all of the "guage feeds" are "modulated grounds". Each gauge will need a common hot wire, loop "guage feed" wire from gauge to guage, and hook each sender return to apropriate gauge. you can make up your own harness here. Remember the voltage reduction needed for the stock guages, this reduction will apply to the wire looped to provide power to the guages.

I hope this helps,,,, Let me know if you need more detail....

 

So, the general thought here is that crimping wires together with connectors is better than soldering with shrink wrap on top, huh? Well, none of the wires I have soldered together have come apart. Take any appliance or electronic device apart and see how many of them have connections crimped.

 

Agree with Glen. Unless you've got a severalthousand dollarset of Mil-Spec crimpers, you're better off correctly soldering. Crimps made with thepliers style crimpers are just not strong enough and will eventually develop intermittant shorts. You'll be chasing gremlins in a couple of years.

Also agree that soldering, when done incorrectly would be a problem. If you cook the wires, melt the insulation, wick up the flux and solder away from the joint, then yes you'll have problems. If you solder correctly, applying proper heat to well prepared connections, it will last forever.

 

One thing I plan torestate aboutthe crimp vs solder controversy is to mention that in my examination of the 40 year old original harness from the Mustang, I did not notice any solder connections, but it was still working well when removed.

Beyond this I do want to draw a paraell from the two positions, the consensus is that if soldering is done right, thatit is good, if it is done wrong, then it is not so good.

Could it be possible that this may apply to crimp connections as well?

And even ifwe were agreed that soldering is better, just how good does it have to be? Will the solder connections last for 100 years? If they do will anyone really care?

Which brings me to my point, my crimp connections will never come loose, I contend that they are no more prone to contamination or corrosion than solder connections, the crimp connection is fast and simple, I dont ever worry about making the end of the wire brittle.

If everyone here is honest about the failure analisis that we often do when we see broken wires on somthing, most of the time the broken wire will break just beyond the connection, where constantmovement of the wire is exagerated and concentrated at a securement point, usually a connector.

Solder or no solder this is where we see most wire failures, this being the case, I dont really want to spend a lot of time soldering for what I see as limited benifits...

So what are the benifits of a novice builder solderingall of these connections? Who will make sure that it is done right? Is it easier to tell a novice how not to wick solder up a wire, or is it easier to teach them how to make a proper crimp connection?

I admire everyone who has taken the time to solder every connection on their car,,, I don't have thepatience to do that, and likely never will,,,, as I said earlier, sometimes good enough is good enough..... at least for me.

 

A point of interest - all the US Military branches, NASA, FAAand most of the commercial world uses crimped wire connections. The Military required the crimping tools to be certified often and none of them are the cheap type. Even wire strippers are certified. And to further the point, how many soldered wire connections are in any of the new Mustang? None. Soldering has its place on circuitry, but for wiring - no.
Jim

 

Aerospace uses solder and crimp, just depends on the application. Of course, we also epoxy connections for added strain release. For splicing wires, solder is always used. We crimp ground support lugs, but all wire termination not inside a connector is soldered. Connectors are crimped, but I don't think anyone here wants to pay for the tools or connectors we use (I havea scrapped one...cost about the same as a new Shelby GT500...and it's only a 37 pin vacuum connector).

I don't think the problem with crimping is the tool itself, you must have the proper sized lug as well. The ones you buy at local auto stores have a huge range of wire size they are meant for. The wire should be tight inside the lug before crimping to make a good connection. Then, heatshrink over the crimp after a pull test.

FYI, bad crimps will result in broken wire strands every time...especially a crimp that doesn't apply 360* of pressure. Proper solder technique will not wick solder beyond the connection, and definitely will not harm the insulation.

If you want top-notch wire, look for the stuff with Teflon insulation. It's best for engine bays as it will withstand the heat much better than pretty much anything else.

I've rewired a couple cars, but I always make my own harnesses, wiring the car one wire at at a time. Takes a bit more time, but the wiring is where you want it. For example, most stock vehicles have a harness that runs under the engine, susceptible to oil leaks that eat the insulation over time. I reroute mine across the top of the bay.

 

Thanks for all the great responses, it is the first time that I have re-wired an entire car and have to say it is a bit of challenge.

Here is a shot of the back of the dash - it has screws for each gauge and I was wondering why they didn't just screw a screw and use a flat connectore vs. the connector that pushes over the screw. What does everyone think on splicing into the original connectors? Or should I just use a flat connector and screw another screw over it to secure it.

I was planning to just crimp and shrink wrap the connections as I haven't soldered before and will probably screw it up. I do have decent wire cutters and crimpers - not the big dollar types but about $80.

Thanks again everyone, I can't tell you how much help this forum has been to me and my son!

[IMG]local://upfiles/34309/946E0F38E7C84E87AFED737C285FB878.jpg[/IMG]

 

You'll be OK with crimping. There's about 5 or 6 of us on here who nit pick stuff all the time. If you buy the already made up wiring harness, you aren't going to have to crimp much at all. It's just plug and play.

 

I just spoke with the Ron Francis guy and he said that I could use the washer type connector on the gauges - so no need to use the original connectors, wire off theron francis kit and screw onto the gauge screw in the back(the instructions were a little confusing for this novice). Now that I have the required wiring to start the car, I am thinking about putting the engine/transmission in the car and connecting everything before proceeding to the lights.