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I was looking through old threads about new wiring. My harness was messed with a lot over the years by previous owners and my panel is old and crumbling. I'm pretty sure I'm going with a Ron Francis, although I'm going to look into EZ wire today.

For the guages, I want to convert them, ot just the alternator?, to voltmeter from ammeter. Is there an easy way to do this? I can get a local shop to do it I assume. I see a lot of people online take the alternator guage out and put in a new one. What have you guys done?

68swep wrote: ↑

Thu Jan 25, 2024 8:08 am

I see a lot of people online take the alternator guage out and put in a new one. What have you guys done?

I have mixed opinions on this one. The volt meter tells you how the alternator is doing in keeping up. The ammeter tells you more about the impact of high-current draw operations. The volt meter can measure separate systems easily if one has a dual battery setup with an isolator (as I plan to do). So I'm still wrestling with all that.

i would like to have a more modern amp gauge so i don't have to run all my amps threw the dash
but i'm most likely not going to add many accessories

nutz wrote: ↑

Tue Feb 06, 2024 9:46 pm

i would like to have a more modern amp gauge so i don't have to run all my amps threw the dash

There's a good way to do that but it sure as hell isn't the way Dodge did it:
https://www.bluesea.com/products/2201/T ... 5BBlack%5D

i don't like the thought of running my full alt out put anywhere but to the battery
would like an inductive amp gauge ...but still have the oe look

In another thread there’s a factory specified modification that allows you to keep your ammeter and eliminate the troublesome bulkhead connectors in the alternator circuit which are prone to overheating. Most ammeter problems are caused by either loose connections or corroded connections there. I also wanted to change it out but decided to keep it after cleaning everything up and making sure everything is nice and tight. For a voltmeter, just get one from Amazon that you can plug into the cigar lighter.

charleypete1957 wrote: ↑

Thu Feb 15, 2024 6:38 pm

In another thread there’s a factory specified modification that allows you to keep your ammeter and eliminate the troublesome bulkhead connectors in the alternator circuit which are prone to overheating. Most ammeter problems are caused by either loose connections or corroded connections there.

I like the Packard style connector block but for the ammeter lines. They are easy to add or remove accessories and rugged. 30+ years ago, I haunted wrecking yards for molded connector bodies from the service ends of the harness. Still have them. Last time I looked, the main firewall connector for 69-71 trucks was still available new on eBay.

Hmm, I’ll have to look for one.

Well EBay didn’t have a listing for our trucks, but they had three for 1972 and up. They want over $220 for them!! And they look like NOS, so they didn’t even have to go salvage them!

They're still selling them. eBay searches leave a lot to be desired.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/145596751716?f ... R6api4W3Yw