Hello,

Well I have been getting things together lately for my 52 Ford project and have gotten a good start so far.

So far I have decided to go with a 302, with a 5 speed transmission and a 9" rear.

However, I have a question of which wiring harness to use. I have considered buying the 12 volt harness for a 53 ford.

What harness have you guys with a 302 went with? I am just trying to get some info on how much cash I'm gonna have to save up for the next purchase lol!

Thanks guys! I greatly appreciate all the input!

Jon Preston!

 

I guess it would help to let you know that I am keeping my stock steering column and not putting a newer steering column in.

Thanks,

Jon Preston

 

Check out painless wiring. There are a couple of other brands out there as well. All of these have modern fuse blocks and are available with extra circuits if you want to add any accessories like a stereo or electric wipers

 

Thank you very much! I'll check them out!

 

I went with a 21 circuit kit from EZ Wiring. No complaints really, however I am currently having an issue with intermittent power to the fuse block. I haven't had time to track it down yet; it may or may not be related to the wiring harness itself (could be an installation issue).

Good luck!
-DV

 

I've used Ron Francis and Painless wiring kits. Both are excellent but there are other less expensive ones out there that are just as good...

 

Thank you all very much! I greatly appreciable of the information!

 

https://www.gearheadworld.com/store/...A-P480C20.aspx
Nice kit and they also have a 22 circuit one. Wires are labeled every couple of inches and color coded. Instructions take a little getting used to. Painless and Ron Francis and others are just as good, almost all of them use GM color coding and are marked every few inches.

 

I used an F150 donor vehicle, so I ended up using the Ford 2G alternator. I had to buy a harness from Ron Franics just for the alternator. The Ron Francis parts are clearly batter made....don't get me wrong, the Painless kit is well made & I used it without any issues...but the quality really shows in the Ron Francis parts.

Dan

 

I also like the Painless,Ron Francis , and American Auto wire . Figure out what kit you need and then shop around .I chose a Painless universal kit , only 12 circuits but I don't have any options except a heater and a radio .

 

I highly recommend the EZ wire harness from easywiring.com: The Leading Wiring Site on the Net. It's a quality harness at 1/3 the price of a RF or Painless kit. They use OEM GM fuse blocks and plugs, as high quality as anybody else uses. I don't know what the issue Doraville is having, but I doubt it is the harness. I have heard of people having an issue when they installed high current draw accessories such as horns, driving lights, high intensity headlights, and/or sound system power amplifiers without using relays, but that would be a problem with any fuse block.

 

Wiring kits have been around for quite some time now so there aren't too many "innovations" to be made with the technology. Most employ common fuse designs and fuse block layouts. The wiring is rated for automotive use and is of the proper gauge for each circuit. Which basically brings the decision points for you the user down to; how many circuits will I need (today and in the future) and how much do I want to spend. Universal kits work great and will save you lots of money over those which claim to be form/fit/function exact replacements for the OEM. They also give you the flexibility to mount the fuse block where YOU want it, not necessarily where Henry Ford put it.
In today's market it's hard to go wrong with almost any vender...the biggest mistake that one could make IMO is buying a kit that leaves no room to grow. For instance, you have 8 circuits now so you buy and 8 circuit kit. Down the road you add power windows, A/C, an electric fuel pump, upgrade the sound system, etc...without having the spare circuits in the fuse block you will need a whole new setup or at least a auxiliary fuse block to handle the new circuits. Good luck on your project!

 

Thank you all so much for the advice! I greatly appreciate it all! I will take the advice and start looking at some different options!

Thanks again!

Jon Preston

 

One feature I like with the EZ wire kits is the ability to pop a circuit wire and connector out of the fuse block without damage and put it away for future use if you decide to add more accessories later. Technology is always changing who knows when the next "must have" device will hit the market, our you or your SO decide you want more creature comforts.
Direct replacement harnesses are aimed at the restoration purist, 6V positive ground for the 53-55, 12V negative ground for the 56, but they do not use a fuse block, Ford didn't use fuses in the mid fifty's trucks, just a couple self resetting circuit breakers protecting all the (minimal) circuitry. This makes it difficult to do any upgrading, even "modern" halogen sealed beam headlights, or alternator can overload the breakers, and forget running your smart phone or laptop off the cigarette lighter plug.

 

More on my intermittent power problem with my wiring harness. The symptom is that I lose all power. So far it has happened twice. The first time I was stranded in a parking lot. I had to hitch a ride to a nearby parts store to pick up a few tools (I know, I know, I should have had them with me).

First, I checked with a voltmeter and verified that I had power at the battery terminals. Then I checked the front side of the fuse block and verified that there was no power (at least on the front side). I verified that there were no splices between the battery terminal and the fuseblock (this would be an obvious place for a bad connection to occur).

I then unbolted the fuseblock from the firewall so I could lay it forward and check the connections on the back side. As soon as I laid the fuseblock forward, I had power again. I did a visual check and didn't see any loose connections. At this point I was so relieved that I wasn't going to have to tow it that I left it alone until I could get it home.

The next day I tried to make it do it again and couldn't, so I bolted it back to the firewall and went about my business.

The following weekend it happened again; exact same symptom. This time I just jiggled the fuseblock and got the power to return. At this point I still can't say conclusively what the problem is but I am starting to suspect an intermittent connection on the main bus inside the fuse block. I plan to call EZ Wiring tomorrow to see if they have any suggestions on how to narrow it down further. I'm an electrical engineer by trade so I'm pretty sure that I can track down simple electrical connection problems, but there could be some mechanical failure inside that fuse block that they can have me look for.

Sorry to cloud the issue here, but the purpose of this forum (as I understand it) is to share our experiences. One way or another I will get to the bottom of it and I'll give you guys an update.

Peace,
-DV