Taurus power box install help.

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May 19, 2013 | 05:07 PM

#16

rustywheel68

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looks great to me- way better than random relays all over the engine compartment.

Jun 3, 2013 | 08:10 AM

#17

turbogus

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From: Albany, Good Ol' USA

Another Power Distribution Box question

Greetings from Oregon, the shower me state.
I'm invoved in a project using one of these Ford Power Distribution Box under the hood of I think was a '93 F150;

I'm needing to modify some wiring coming out of the back of this box to 10 gauge, taking the new wiring right to the terminals and I have a couple of questions.

1. Is there an easier way to remove these terminals from the PDB than just using the needle nose to yank 'em out? and,
2. Is there a resource for these terminals so I can 'roll my own'?

Thanks and a lift of the lynch lid for your responses.

Gus

Jun 3, 2013 | 01:07 PM

#18

54Hydro

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From: Malheur Co. OR

If you yank on them with pliers you may break off the plastic retaining tabs inside. There are electical terminal tools that slide down in along that connector to release it without damaging the box. Also, those red plastic pieces need to be released and pulled up to unlock the relay terminals.

Jun 3, 2013 | 02:20 PM

#19

GOVTMOD

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From: Southeast Salt Lake, UT

I don't know if this applies to the box you have but for the Taurus box;

If you take the colored trays out of the top of the box you will see that most of those connectors have little retainer tabs that hold the connectors in. If you are like me and you don't have the tool I reached in with a very small screw driver and pushed the tabs out of the way while gently pulling the wire from the bottom. If you do break some of the tabs you can just silicon them back in if you have to. The biggest connectors have a retaining tab as well going the opposite direction. You have to push this out of the way before doing so on the box tab.

As for spares or extras, get another one for parts or rip one apart for what you need next time you are at the self serve yard. They probably wont even charge you for a nasty bundle of random wires and they don't care that you tore the crap out of the box. It's just going to the crusher in a few weeks and most folks aren't interested in the power boxes anyway.

Jun 3, 2013 | 05:40 PM

#20

turbogus

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From: Albany, Good Ol' USA

Thanks GOVTMOD, As it happens I have a friend at NAPA that used to work for the Ford dealership here in town and with a personal reference I spoke to the right guy and he found a connector that may work from a miscelaneous parts bin they had in the back. May get to it next week and see if it fits.

Jun 23, 2013 | 04:15 AM

#21

joewelds

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Nice job. Thinking of doing this as well.

Jun 23, 2013 | 05:28 PM

#22

turbogus

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From: Albany, Good Ol' USA

Well since I wanted to adapt some of the other relays for higher amps (40 amp, not like the graft I did for the 70 amp relay though). Upgrading from 16 to 12 gauge wire but since these connectors

were going back into the Ford PDB, I had very limited space to get them into their nacelles.

Luckily NAPA had available what they call Parallel Connectors

..that slipped over the ends of the connectors nicely and using my trusty racheting crimpers

...I was able to get a nice clean crimp, ready for solder and fit into the PBD nacells with a perfect 'click' of the holdfast

Next step is to solder these connections, then install and test all of the circuits and switches.

Edit: Done, and leave it to me, I oriented the wiring wrong on two of the 9 relays the first go, Pin 30 and 87 to where 85 and 86 should've gone. Sometimes you can just feel those donkey ears spring up!

Aug 4, 2013 | 06:19 PM

#23

turbogus

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Joined: Oct 2001

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From: Albany, Good Ol' USA

For removal of these connectors I found a small depression tool but even it was clumsy in the Ford power box environment. Ultimately I had to epoxy some of the connectors in place when it came to the relays as, despite being as careful as possible I broke tabs and a couple of connector frame retainers.

Does anyone know of a Ford specific depression/extraction tool or a better method?

I'm about to go to the boneyard and get a 2nd box but don't want a repeat performance of this hassle.