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 Posted: Dec 16, 2014 07:58PM
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For me, it seems like there are not enough hours in the day. At least at this time.

It's a no for me, when ready I'll be looking for a pre-made harness just to save time.

I like your idea though.

SxS

 

 Posted: Dec 16, 2014 07:37PM
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Jeff,

You're right. For most applications, Painless has almost all of the circuits I would need. But there are still quite a few that I don't need. And there are  bunch thet they don't have that I would still need to wire in. On top of that, the original color codes are lost for the most part. Not ideal. It's not a total deal breaker, because I'll be making my own wiring diagram. But still. I will be installing relay banks and a fuse panel as well.

Not really looking to get talked out of the idea, guys. haha. I really was just looking to see if anyone was going to want in on buying wire. I'll assume this whole thread is a big fat no.

 Posted: Dec 16, 2014 05:02PM
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Although it doesn't sound like you're asking for suggestions I'll provide my experience as food for thought.

In 2008 I bought a 'project' car that had a lot of electrical issues.  The first major project I tackled was replacing the entire wiring ... front to back.  I ended up buying a Painless Performance hot rod wiring harness kit (P/N 10102 IIRC).  Over a couple of weekends I was able to completely rewire the car.  Every wire is color coded and has printed circuit information every few inches.  I did as you are talking about - I replaced all the connections with soldered weatherpak connections.  I am also running aftermarket gauges and some non-standard things like a USB port for charging my phone.

It's certainly worth the time to replace all of the wiring.  I found that my lights are much brighter with the new wire, and every circuit has it's own fuse.  And there are relays for the big items.  The only circuits that were not part of the harness that I wanted were hazards and electric fuel pump.  I ended up installing a separate electric fuel pump relay harness.

Jeff

 Posted: Dec 15, 2014 08:32PM
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I appreciate all the suggestions. First, let me clarify that I won't be completely eliminatingthe bullet style connectors from the harness. Just getting rid of the old crappy ones. Barrel connections are actually a really good way to join multiple wires at one termination. And they can handle higher amperage loads thana spade connection can. I will; however, be removing the unnecessary ones and soldering anywhere that is possible.

Yes, I know that I can contract someone to make a harness for me, but generally those companies start around $400 for a standard harness. Which I would have to further modify for my needs such as weathertight connections, bulkhead connections, etc. And then I don't know how they did their connectors. Did they solder everything like I will be? Is the wire meeting various standards? Then there's the fact that I'm not running factory headlights. I'm not even running halogen. So I need to modify the harness for that. I'm adding a multiple fuse/relay bank that will use blade fuses... so there's another change. And to top all of this, I won't be running factory gauges, factory speedo, factory tach, factory fuel.... nothing factory. And if that wasn't enough, I'll be able to do data logging and I'm going to be converting to fuel injection.


So I hope you all can see that I'm not just trying to "freshen things up". haha. In fact, I NEED an  entirely new harness. And I need service loops, etc. So It may be a lot of work, and some may think it's overkill.. but I'm doing it. I didn't think that too many people here would need the new wires. Just figured I would offer.

 Posted: Dec 15, 2014 04:01PM
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I cannot recommend either Autosparks or the US agent British Wiring for a custom harness. This is based solely on my own experience. I did request a custom harness which may have complicated things.

They do supply the individual components as well which I have purchased with no issue.

Terry

 Posted: Dec 15, 2014 03:37PM
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I'm with Zippy on the connectors. If they're done right, you won't have a problem with them. Use di-electric grease on the connections after making sure the connectors are clean and corrosion free.

I've got 3 vehicles using them and those connections are the least of my worries. Bulb sockets with no spring tension and self destructing switches are higher on the worry list.

Spend the money on the crimp tool, the "closing tool" and packs of whatever crimp bullets you need. Pretty much set after that.

The color coded wire can be found at Rhode Island Wiring Service  , it where I got mine.

 Posted: Dec 15, 2014 03:37PM
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I have made 2 wiring harness myself. (2 different cars).  I got a sheet of plywood, laid the old harness out, on the plywood. and made a "map" of where the wires went.  I had some old harnesses and used all original color wires. It will make T / S  easyer.  As for the bullet terminals,  go to a sporting goods store and get a .17 cal brass  barrel cleaning brush, to clean the insides of the bullet connectors.  Add some dielectric grease when you assamble thr connectors.. Now would be a good time to "upgrade" to relays and more fuses.  Our host sells bullet connectors and the correct terminals ends, if needed.  Good luck.

 Posted: Dec 15, 2014 01:51PM
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Seems like an awful lot of work/expense to go through just to have current flow where it's supposed to.....

These folks will build whatever you want. //www.autosparks.co.uk/

And, there's really nothing "wrong" with bullet connectors. Most problems stem from attempts at repair or modification...
I replaced a 40 year old harness on the Moke not because of any issue beside being ugly from crappy repaint jobs.

 Posted: Dec 15, 2014 12:41PM
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GB

If you've got the dim-dip setup you may want to think about ditching it for a more traditional setup.

 Posted: Dec 15, 2014 06:17AM
 Edited:  Dec 15, 2014 06:00PM
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Car is a 1989. My loom is the same way everything aft of the doors is pretty much untouched, but almos all dash wiring is jacked up, and almost everything under the bonnet was touched... for better or worse. So the old brittle wires will be replaced with modern wire with midern insulation. I'll also be adding to my loom, so it definitely won't be stock when I'm done with it though.

 

 

To be clear, I'm not proposing that I'll be making anyone a harness. I'm simply looking to procure the raw wire itself and wondering if anyone is interested in purchasing along with me to reduce cost. 

 Posted: Dec 14, 2014 09:05PM
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I will need a harness coming up. The harness (if you can call it that) was cut, added to, was a real piece of crap, out of the race car.

It got tossed. What year is the car you're building the loom for ?

Not sure what route I'll take.

 Posted: Dec 14, 2014 08:40PM
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I'm building my own wiring harness and I want it to be easy to trace the factory options. I'm leaving a lot of the wiring how it was because it wasn't a roblem. But  want to replace every piece of wire because I have no idea what is good or bad judging from the small electrical fire thanks to the previous owners' ...um... crafty work. I also want to add weather tight connectors, get rid of the crappy bullet connections, and add in service loops where I can. There's going to be a few other little nice modern touches, but I'll leave that for a later post.

 

So with all of that said, I'm looking to either A) replace all the wires with a set of standard primary color wires and inevitably have some duplicates. or B) Pay the extra money to buy some wire from a top of the line manufacturer and have them make me my own custom insulation with spiral tracers. I really want to go this route, but it's expensive. Don't have a quote back yet, but it may even be cost prohibitive if I don't buy in a large enough quantity. So here's the million dollar question.

 

THIS IS JUST A FEELER AND I'M NOT COMITTING TO ANYTHING YET. but who would be interested in buying upgraded quality, modern wiring with all of the factory mini color/tracer codes?