Wiring harness
Tuned
Joined: May 2010
Posts: 281
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From: Benton City, Wa
Lead Driver
Joined: Jul 2017
Posts: 9,617
Likes: 1,185
From: San Jose, CA
I almost feel that you can’t use “wiring harness“ and “easy“ in the same sentence.
i’m sure some could be easier than others, but I think a full re-wire is a big hassle no matter how you look at it.
And I actually am one of those that enjoys Wiring Projects!
from a wire quality standpoint they are all fairly equal. All the ones that I know of use high-quality GXL, or TXL type wires. And everyone of them has the functions printed along it’s full length.
so you never lose sight of what wire is what, even with different color codes.
Speaking of which… Most manufacturers use General Motors color codes, with all of their generic/universal offerings using GM color codes.
The only company I know that regularly offers Ford wiring color codes is Painless.
i’ve heard Centech does, but I’ve never seen one of their harnesses in Ford colors. I have several of them, even the Bronco-specific model and they are all GM color coding.
some even go to great lengths to make the wiring job easier.
Ron Francis makes theirs so that you plug in the business end (headlights, ignition switch, etc.) and then run the wires as you see fit to the fuse panel.
Once there you cut and terminate them at the fuse panel with a screw down terminal. Easy peasy in theory and mostly practice.
That’s a great way to ease the wiring chores, but it means that each of their fuse panels is overly large and very hard to find a mounting space for except perhaps on a full custom build.
painless uses TXL wire for their‘s, which has a thinner outer jacket with a higher temperature rating. This gives a given gauge of wire a smaller overall diameter for smaller bundles and easier routing.
but the GXL that others use is very good, slightly less expensive, and perfectly fine for most.
from my own personal experience I would say the printing on the larger GXL wire is typically better than the TXL wire.
It’s just bigger and easier for my tired old eyes to read!
But I’m still a fan of Painless and that’s what I’m putting in my bronco next.
I have a couple of generic Centech harnesses (their GV-16) that I also like a lot.
Simple and less cluttered, but with a more standard fuse panel rather than the weather resistant type often included in truck harnesses from companies like Painless and AAW.
no matter what though, you’re gonna have to be up to snuff on crimping, soldering, shrink wrapping, clamping, and otherwise cleanly routing wires.
It’s not all that technically difficult, but it’s a bit of a learning curve the first time.
Better to use good quality tools and take a few practice runs on scrap wire!
i’m sure some could be easier than others, but I think a full re-wire is a big hassle no matter how you look at it.
And I actually am one of those that enjoys Wiring Projects!
from a wire quality standpoint they are all fairly equal. All the ones that I know of use high-quality GXL, or TXL type wires. And everyone of them has the functions printed along it’s full length.
so you never lose sight of what wire is what, even with different color codes.
Speaking of which… Most manufacturers use General Motors color codes, with all of their generic/universal offerings using GM color codes.
The only company I know that regularly offers Ford wiring color codes is Painless.
i’ve heard Centech does, but I’ve never seen one of their harnesses in Ford colors. I have several of them, even the Bronco-specific model and they are all GM color coding.
some even go to great lengths to make the wiring job easier.
Ron Francis makes theirs so that you plug in the business end (headlights, ignition switch, etc.) and then run the wires as you see fit to the fuse panel.
Once there you cut and terminate them at the fuse panel with a screw down terminal. Easy peasy in theory and mostly practice.
That’s a great way to ease the wiring chores, but it means that each of their fuse panels is overly large and very hard to find a mounting space for except perhaps on a full custom build.
painless uses TXL wire for their‘s, which has a thinner outer jacket with a higher temperature rating. This gives a given gauge of wire a smaller overall diameter for smaller bundles and easier routing.
but the GXL that others use is very good, slightly less expensive, and perfectly fine for most.
from my own personal experience I would say the printing on the larger GXL wire is typically better than the TXL wire.
It’s just bigger and easier for my tired old eyes to read!
But I’m still a fan of Painless and that’s what I’m putting in my bronco next.
I have a couple of generic Centech harnesses (their GV-16) that I also like a lot.
Simple and less cluttered, but with a more standard fuse panel rather than the weather resistant type often included in truck harnesses from companies like Painless and AAW.
no matter what though, you’re gonna have to be up to snuff on crimping, soldering, shrink wrapping, clamping, and otherwise cleanly routing wires.
It’s not all that technically difficult, but it’s a bit of a learning curve the first time.
Better to use good quality tools and take a few practice runs on scrap wire!
Lead Driver
Joined: Jul 2017
Posts: 9,617
Likes: 1,185
From: San Jose, CA
Oh, and going with the least expensive generic harness is not always the best way for a beginner to start.
They typically leave a lot on the table and the more knowledge person has about wiring systems and how the vehicles work, the better.
Especially since they often change how things are done compared to the factory.
But the most important piece of advice for anyone during a rewire. DONT THROW ANY OF THE OLD HARNESS OUT UNTIL THE WHOLE JOB IS FINISHED!!!
if you think I shouted needlessly and stressed too much, you probably haven’t done a full rewire before. 😁😉😩
They typically leave a lot on the table and the more knowledge person has about wiring systems and how the vehicles work, the better.
Especially since they often change how things are done compared to the factory.
But the most important piece of advice for anyone during a rewire. DONT THROW ANY OF THE OLD HARNESS OUT UNTIL THE WHOLE JOB IS FINISHED!!!
if you think I shouted needlessly and stressed too much, you probably haven’t done a full rewire before. 😁😉😩
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telmoff
1967 - 1972 F-100 & Larger F-Series Trucks
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Mar 29, 2006 04:10 PM
