Progress

Well, realized tonight that it has been a while since I posted any updates of the old rig.  While back I removed the heater from under the dash.  I disassembled and removed all the dust and dirt from inside, cleaned up the housing, and repainted.  Last night I re-assembled the unit and now it will find its way into a box and onto a shelf to be reinstalled at a later date. 

I also had the bright idea to clip the ends of the power and ground wire off about 8" from the motor, install a bullet wire end so that if it ever needs to be removed, I can simply unplug the wires near the heater rather than removing the entire wire from the switch and ground plug.

Which brings up the topic of wiring.  That will be the order of the next few weeks.  I have determined that before I start to disassemble the body to clean up and paint, that I want the wiring to be matched to the original, tested to keep gremlins out, and built in such a manner that the wiring harness can be detached and removed in "segments".  Effectively, I plan to have 4 harnesses - engine, front clip, under dash, and rear of cab. 

After pricing the wiring harnesses and univeral kits, I decided that for the same money I could buy wire and fuse panels and do it myself for the same money.  Without having extra unused circuits, still having to add a wire here and there cause they are not long enough, etc.  I also would have still invested in split loom or some other covering, zip ties, electrical tape, relays, junctions, etc.  So instead I purchased the components and will be building a brand new harness. 

In addition to the meat and potatoes wire and connectors, I plan to wrap all the runs in an assortment of diameters of "Fire Rated Braided Expandable Wire Sleeving" and secure the ends with silicone fusion tape, which several have indicated is far superior to standard vinyl electrical tape.  Add a few terminal junctions just for ease of installation/disassembly, some relays for high draw circuits such as headlights, fog lights, and eventually an electric fan to keep the rig from overheating on those long hot parade routes.    And just for fun, I will be adding a second horn circuit which will feature an oogah horn.  This one is solely for Emma, cause I know she will love it.  


My hope is that I'll be able to scrounge a little time over the long holiday weekend to get a little start on this project.  I'll be taking it a little at a time, and trying to not drive myself to baldness.  Until next time,
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