[lumberjacknooj]

Hey all-
My dad is currently rewiring his '36 Ford, and I'm gonna give him a hand. I was hoping someone could provide some clarification/ approval of how I was planning to wire the trunk mounted battery and alternator, etc.

In the pic below I've drawn basically how I plan on doing it. I looked at Horvath's website, and MAD electrical, and different posts on here.

Does it look right? If I need to explain anything on my diagram, let me know.

TIA
Nooj

[powerrodsmike]

That looks pretty good to me, it'll work the way it is.


If it were me though, I'd not bother running the field wire all the way from terminal 1 back to the alt..it isn't necesssary, you can jumper from the bat terminal on the alt and then over to your field terminal. Takes about 3" of # 12 wire, also you don't need a fusible link at that wire.

On the other wires that you have fusible links, I'd consider a breaker or a maxi fuse.
Fusible links are messy if they burn up.

You don't really need one going from terminal 2 to the fuse block, you have fuses there.

Also, I usually run the ground all the way from the battery to the engine block, the ground the frame and body from there. You can never have too good of a ground between the block and battery.

Also, your fusible link in the battery feed line over to term 1 should be at the battery. It will keep the wire from cooking in the harness if something shorts..


Later, mikey

[LS-57]

The diagram looks good to me but I question 2 of the fuse links.
I would move the one that is at the 1st terminal block to as close to the battery as possible. My concern is that wire is unprotected all the way from the battery to the terminal block. I usually use a breaker/switch in that location so I can disconnect the battery for winter storage.
In my opinion the fuse link between the 2nd terminal block & the fuse box is redundant. That wire is already protected by fuse links in all 3 directions.
In your drawing you show the remote solenoid close to the battery. I like keeping the it as close to the battery as possible aswell so you don't have a long unprotected wire with live power.
Best wishes on your project.

[lumberjacknooj]

Thanks for the responses. I see what y'all are saying about the redundant fuse link going to the fuse box. I'll omit that one.

I know that MAD, and the article that Malc recently posted, said to put the fuse link for the power wire (from the battery to the terminal block) at the battery. I didn't like the idea of that fuse link being inside the interior of the car in case it happened to burn out (it's going in a 36 Ford slantback- thus, no trunk); But I understand now why it should be closest to the battery.
If I used a circuit breaker there instead- how would I determine what amp rating to use? I guess I could use one that is just below the rating for the 8ga wire it'll be on, right?

I agree on running the ground cable back to the engine block.
Thanks again for your input!

Nooj

[S10Fan]

Originally Posted by powerrodsmike

On the other wires that you have fusible links, I'd consider a breaker or a maxi fuse.
Fusible links are messy if they burn up.

This brings up a question for me. What size Maxi Fuse would you suggest for a typical under the hood power circuit? I'll be using a system much like the diagram above. I did use a fusible link for the heater blower motor relay but would really rather use a Maxi for the other main feed.

Thanks!

[trees]

As others have stated, why you have will work but there are some things to consider when you have the Battery longer distances from the high energy consumer/provider. As Mikey said, your ground from the battery MUST go to the engine block and you want to ground from there to the frame and the body. Next, you want the Positive lead to go the shortest distance to the starter. I would place the inline Solenoid as close to the starter as possible, which reduces the total Amperage draw through this link. I would recommend the Batt terminal of the alternator go directly to the Positive lead on the starter. If you are running a large Amp alternator, I would make this a #6 or 8 wire lead since it is "pushing" the recharge load a much longer distance than the normal under hood battery.

Over the years, there has been a lot of info shared on this subject right here on HR.com so you may want to do a search and pick up a lot of good ideals.

Trees

[lumberjacknooj]

Thanks for the input, Trees.
I will surely run the negative battery cable back to the engine block, etc. And I'll try to mount the remote solenoid between the battery and starter, to reduce the distance b/t them.

I'm not sure if I understand the reasoning behind running the "batt" wire from the alternator to the starter though...
Since the remote solenoid will keep the main positive cable (from the battery to starter) "dead" when not starting- the length of travel from alt to the battery would be shortened by going directly to the #1 terminal block, which is wired to the battery positive post. If I ran it to the starter, it would end up going back to the terminal block anyways, then back to the battery. Right?

I think that's why I originally wanted to put the fuse link closest to the terminal block on the wire from battery- since it will be the charging wire when the engine's running.
Make sense, or am I missing something?

Nooj

[Deuce]

I never run a battery in the trunk ...
I always find room under the floor ... like Ford did for many years. Even early 50's Chevrolet AD 1/2 ton pickups had the battery under the floor. Less wire to run. If you look closely ... you can see the KILL/Cutoff switch also. I always use a Optima Gell battery if I can ... a group 24 ...



On my 32 ... I can just remove the lower seat cushion and then a few screws to remove the cover ... and the battery can be lifted straight up ... and out.

Not a lot of room in a 32 trunk ... especially a rumble seat coupe like mine.

[lumberjacknooj]

That's not a bad idea, Deuce... I don't think we've finalized where we plan to put the battery; So, I may just do something similar. I'd much rather have the piece of mind of having the battery sealed outside of the cab.

Thanks for the idea

Nooj

[malc]

My trunk mounted battery is grounded to the body at the rear and I have a good ground cable up front, body to motor no problems.
Fusible links are best and as stated do not belong inside the vehicle.
With the MAD diagram and the link in this thread you should be just fine.

To quote MAD;
Installation and function of a Fusible Link is similar to the “cartridge type,” in-line fuse. But the Fusible Link does not deteriorate or have meltdown problems with constant use in heavy-duty systems, as the cartridge type fuse is famous for. (Chevy began installing Fusible Link wires in the main-power circuits with ’66 models, and of those old cars that are still in use, most of the original Fusible Link wires are still in place. If a Fusible Link burned out then it saved the car!)