hi my name is chris i jus bought a 65 f100 pickup with a 400m in it an im havin all kinds of trouble the po converted to electric choke an put a new ingnition swith in it well i had to put an altornator in it and now im getting nothing. I was lookin at the wiring an there is all kinds of wires running through the engine the headlights are ran through the ignition an its all a mess if anyone can help me fix my problem i would deeply appreciate it thank you

 

wiring on a truck or car can be a nightmare and not seeing it in person makes it impossable. fine someone in your town to help. if it is to bad it my need to be rewired.

 

Best bet is to locate a wiring schematic for the truck and go from there. Sounds like a lot of "Political Correct Engineering" (see no profanity) went on.

The wiring is fairly simple in nature once you look at the schematic.

There are a few here that have the diagram in PDF can help you out.

At worse case if the wiring is a total toast you can put an aftermarket harness in it wiht all modern upgrades.

Garbz

 

im new what is PDF an where can i find the diagram on here cuz iv been lookin for like a week now an cant find anything anywhere so i joined on here cuz i kno there are people on here that has already done it

 

From your description, your truck has obviously been messed with and it sounds like pretty severely. If you can't get a schematic on line, Jim Osborn Reproductions makes a wiring diagram manual sold by most of the parts suppliers like National Parts Depot or LMC Truck for about $7.50 that will help you see whether the correct color coded wires are going to the right locations. I don't know what the manual part number is for a '65 truck, but for a '66 truck it is MP0366. So maybe for a '65 truck it would be MPO365. I doubt if there is much difference between the wiring in a '65 and a '66, but I could be wrong. Obviously an electric choke (or a 400M engine, for that matter) was not optional in '65 so that won't be in the manual anyway. Get the manual, and if you are not comfortable with what it tells you, go find a qualified auto electrician. Good luck.

 

If it were me, personally, I would rip all or most of it out, and put in a good basic harness. I had a 54 Chevy pickup in high school that had the rats nest wiring in it, and the thing actually caught on fire on the way home from school one day.

I got it put out, but it burned up my gauge panel and scorched my dashboard pretty good.

There are good, basic wiring harnesses with around 18 circuits that will do the essentials on something like a 60's era Ford truck for around $200. One company that I've had good success with is this one.

Wiring Harness Hot Rod Wires street rod wiring harness classic car truck harnesses 18 Circuit

And there are others out there as well....some probably cheaper. I have the one in the link in my 54 Ford tudor and was impressed by the very high quality and ease of installation. Plus, the owner is always at the Texas swap meets that I go to and has answered several questions for me.

I know that $259 is a lot of money....but it's amount that can be saved up fairly quickly, regardless of your income. And, once it's carefully and correctly installed, you'll have a more reliable vehicle and some piece of mind.

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All of the above having been said, there's a chance that you may just have a really sloppy wiring job that might still be somewhat effective. If that's the case, then someone who knows a bit about wiring might be able to help you clean it up, route it correctly, redo some connections and make it more attractive and functional.

Without a few good photos however, it's impossible to diagnose.....and even then, wiring is something that is best addressed in person.

One way to get to know capable hotrodders and old car guys is to start going to the local rod runs or cruise nights. Go frequently and hang out with these guys...get to know them....show some interest in their stuff and ask good questions. It won't take long to find a guy or three who will be willing to take a look at your situation and give you some advice.

 

I went with the EZ wire Harness and it costs less than $200 most places. Email me if you want to know where I got mine. I also have a pretty good colorized schematic of the under the dash stuff. (Thats where I had the only trouble.) I would be happy to send you a copy. It is to big to post here, and have it print out decent. I made it big enough to print on a plotter.

 

So it was running fine before you put the alternator in?

 

hey brromfieldbum i would deeply appriciate it you could send me the copy of the wiring diagram i cant figure it out on here but my email is chris4501377@yahoo.com

 

an mike yes it was running befor i put the altonator in it

 

Portable Document Format (PDF)


just incase nobody answered that question.

Welcome to FTE Chris!

 

Did you use a different style of alternator. You said it ran before you put an alternator in. Something else is going on. How many wires connect to the back of the alternator. You should have a Red wire - +(pos), Black -(neg), a green wire and a yellow wire if I remember right. ??? Even if you hooked up the green and yellow backwards or missed the black wire, it will start, just won't charge battery. They are basic. What else did you do. When you say nothing, do you mean it starts but won't fire or do you mean nothing that when you turn the key and there is absolutely nothing, no turning over, no dash lights, nothing as in dead. That makes a difference with what your problem is. More information is needed to narrow your problem down.

 

i have dash lights it jus wont turn over its like nothing is happening if anyone is close to hamilton, ohio i will pay them to help me figure this out i need it started asap

 

What you want to check is on your start solenoid. You will want to check the small single wire. Don't worry about the battery cable wires. I doubt there are 2 small wires. If you do have 2 small wires, then check the one with the "I" terminal. "I" means from ignition switch. Make sure you are connected/attached to the "I" terminal. That could also be your problem. Some solenoids have 2 terminal, 1 with an "I" and the other is a "S". The solenoid is the one that the pos (+) battery cable goes too, then goes to the starter. What you will need is a volt meter of some sort, a digital one is better. But anyone will do, just make sure it will read up to 12 volts DC. Most do. Remove or do what ever but connect the pos (+) red wire from the volt meter to that small wire from the "I" terminal. You can remove it or leave it on. Then ground the negative to the battery (-) negative or a bolt or something grounded. If you can have someone help you. Turn the key like you would to start it and take a reading from the volt meter. What does it read? 12 volts or nothing? That will tell you a lot. If it reads 12 volts then you have a 99% chance the solenoid is bad and you will have to replace it--$10 part. If there is no voltage then you will want to start with that wire and follow it back through the fire wall to the ignition switch. We know you have battery power since dash lights come on. You may have a bad ignition switch or a broken wire, bad ground. Something related to the ignition switch possibly. First thing, check voltage at that wire and tell us what you get.

 

Your wiring problem is beyond diagnosing over the web. You need a wiring diagram and spend a lot of time chasing wires.A cheap volt meter would be a valuble tool for your pegboard (you do have a pegboard ,don't you?).Once you get the hang of it,DC electric circuits are easy-1 wire going going from a hot wire to whatever and a ground path going from whatever to the ground.It may seem intimidating when the underside of the dash looks like a satchel charge went off in there.One wire at a time ,man.Get that diagram ,start at the battery.Witha volt meter start at the battery terminal to battery cable,thento the solenoid,and so on.Good luck-tellus when you get it.