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I recently ordered new parking light pigtails for my truck. The company I ordered them from said they were original replacements, but I'm not convinced. They do not look heavy enough for 6 volt. Does modern day wire, with PVC coating, hold up better that the original wire? Do I need to be concerned? Thanks for any advice.
Even on 6 volts, those bulbs will draw very little current - a couple amps per filament at the very most. 16 AWG wire is more than sufficient and 18 would be just fine too. I can't tell from looking at the picture what size that is, but it's probably 16 AWG. You don't have anything to worry about. The old wire just looks much larger because the old cloth insulation was thicker. And yes, modern wire insulation is light years ahead of the OE stuff.
Thanks for the quick replies guys I guess I was a little concerned because of the wire size and the insulation missing on the old wire. The wire is really old so should not expect it to look the same. I also have looked all over to find a pigtail and a boot to fit over the existing socket. All I could find is the pre-made wire with the boot and socket as one piece. To get it to fit I will have to 1'drill out the existing hole 1/16" to get the socket to fit. Other wise it is to tight and the bulb will be to tight. Not unless you guys have some other suggestion. I could use the existing boot and wire but it is a though the boot was shrink wrapped on the socket/wire. If I could only find a boot that would fit
Thanks for that wiring diagram Joe. It is very user friendly! The wiring is still the most intimidating to me on this project.
I have diagrams for all sections of the truck. I decided to hand wire the truck and I wanted to make sure everything was correct.
I took the main wiring diagram and then created these drawings for each section of the truck. I worked on it forever, but I wanted to be absolutely sure I got it correct.
Of course I did a terrible job of routing wires and have a rats nest under the dash. One of these days I want to create a wiring harness for the gauge cluster and clean that all up. I will probably do that when I get to the point of body and paint work. I will have to take all the wiring out then anyway.
I don't have suggestions on the boot. I got all new taillight hardware. My housing were all beat up.
I don't have suggestions on the boot. I got all new taillight hardware. My housing were all beat up.
Problem solved I was able to gently get a screw driver under the boot and slide it off of the socket. I can now use the original socket, with this boot, which fits the bracket so much better.
Joe that's the best laid out schematic I've seen. Are your drawings available on line?
Thanks. No they aren't available online except what I have posted here.
I did them in visio. I just made a pdf of all the drawings and put them in google docs. You should be able to see them here. https://drive.google.com/file/d/1n-8...ew?usp=sharing
This is the first time I have tried this, I hope it works. If not you can PM me and I will email them to anyone who wants them.
Hey! I just noticed a Manage Attachments thing below. I think I attached the pdf to this post. We will see if it works.
I would be glad to work to improve them as well if anyone has suggestions.
Remember, I did these all for 6V positive ground.
Thanks. No they aren't available online except what I have posted here.
I did them in visio. I just made a pdf of all the drawings and put them in google docs. You should be able to see them here. https://drive.google.com/file/d/1n-8...ew?usp=sharing
This is the first time I have tried this, I hope it works. If not you can PM me and I will email them to anyone who wants them.
Hey! I just noticed a Manage Attachments thing below. I think I attached the pdf to this post. We will see if it works.
I would be glad to work to improve them as well if anyone has suggestions.
Remember, I did these all for 6V positive ground.
Thanks Joe. I was able to view the PDF files just fine. That had to take a lot of work. You did such a great job I'm not going to mess with the Visio program. I'm sure I would screw it up. LOL
Dave,
When I was doing the wiring on my tonner I ran my wires & connected everything the way that seemed correct, but some lights worked and some did not. I kept messing around trying to see what I had missed or hooked up wrong. Almost every issue was the ground. After painting and having it looking nice it was hard for me to scrape away the new paint. That was a mistake. Good luck,
Grant
Dave,
When I was doing the wiring on my tonner I ran my wires & connected everything the way that seemed correct, but some lights worked and some did not. I kept messing around trying to see what I had missed or hooked up wrong. Almost every issue was the ground. After painting and having it looking nice it was hard for me to scrape away the new paint. That was a mistake. Good luck,
Grant
Thanks for the advise Grant. It will be hard decision to "scrape" new paint but if it makes a difference it will be done. I know when ever I have issues with my 2012 F150 and trailer lights, it is almost always a grounding issue. It will be a "good" problem though cause I know everything will be clean and purddy when done. Any updates on your truck? Haven't seen any unless Iv'e just missed them!
Dave,
I do a lot more reading than posting and I don't post many pictures. Last summer our tonner was basically completed (they are never done). I said OUR tonner because my wife was very hands on involved as we did much of the restoration work together. I have enjoyed following your project because of lots of similarities in trucks and the stories behind them.
Grant
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I guess I was a little concerned because of the wire size and the insulation missing on the old wire. The wire is really old so should not expect it to look the same. I also have looked all over to find a pigtail and a boot to fit over the existing socket. All I could find is the pre-made wire with the boot and socket as one piece. To get it to fit I will have to 1'drill out the existing hole 1/16" to get the socket to fit. Other wise it is to tight and the bulb will be to tight. Not unless you guys have some other suggestion. I could use the existing boot and wire but it is a though the boot was shrink wrapped on the socket/wire. If I could only find a boot that would fit
I was able to gently get a screw driver under the boot and slide it off of the socket. I can now use the original socket, with this boot, which fits the bracket so much better.
