DIRE need of help BLINKERS! wiring
 

I have a problem with my lights. i have a custom 55 f100 with ez wiring harness, flaming river column, LED tail lights. The problem i have is my blinkers are very very dim and they dont work with my running lights on, my brake light works correctly. Ive been over everything it seems and i just cant get them to work i also have a heavy duty led flasher.

Most likely problem is a bad ground somewhere in your light circuits. Go back and double check everything. Again.

besides the the tail lights is there any other grounds that im not thinking of?

You got me. I didn't wire it. I'm assuming you have the diagram or some knowledge of your equipment and wire routing?

also, my blinkers are getting 9.4 volts at the tail but the blinkers are getting 12, shouldnt they both be the same?

also whats the difference between B1 and B2 on the headlight switch?

You might want to send "Julie's cool f1" a PM (if allowed with 10 posts?)

Do you have the proper flasher, I thought you needed a heavy duty flasher for LED.

yes i have a heavy duty flasher installed, ive used a few different ones with the same resault

how my wiring is right now.... power lead from igition to b1 on headlight switch and running lights ran into R on the headlight switch, Then power from batt to brake light switch and ran into brakelight port on my flaming river column/wireharness

Really,no need.If it's electrical related,he'll sniff it out and will be able to help.

i hope so... im lost and have a car show in a few days.

Hi there,

Walla, here I am.

It's really hard to troubleshoot a non stock wiring job - especially over the internet - as Wayne elluded to.

But, I have some initial thoughts and some questions.

First, are you using a stock 55 headlight switch? The reason I ask is that it has two circuit breakers incorporated into it that are designed for 6 volt use. They may be affecting your power output on your lights.

On a stock 55 set up, power from the generator used to go directly to the "B" terminal of the headlight switch. It then flowed through those circuit breakers, then out to the "hot" items (things not turned on with the ignition switch).

From that "B" treminal on the headlight switch, there was a second that ran over to the "Batt/B" post of the ignition switch. And it powered all the "switched" items (things turned on/off when the ignition switch was turned on/off) out of the"A/ACC" post of the ignition switch.

From the "Batt/B" the wire continued up through the ammeter then on to the Starter Solenoid where the battery was connected (the negative battery cable on a 6 volt positive ground - the positive battery cable on a 12 volt negative ground.

Now, your headlights and running (tail) lights are powered off the headlight switch directly.

Your signal lights recieve power from a terminal on the headlight switch, but it runs down through the brake light switch, then back up to the signal switch and out to the brake/signal lights.

Two important points there: First the running(back)/parking(front) lights are on a completely different circuit than the brake/signal lights. And th esecond key point is that your brake lights and signal lights are the same circuit, powered by the same source, and use the same wires and light bulb filiments - the signal switch controls which blinks or stays lit.

So, with all that in mind, you probably have one of three problems:

1. Your grounds are bad ( with a voltage reading of 9.4 volts I don' think that is it);

2. You have a redindant ground/shorts someplace - on a wire or two items wired together where one is also providing a ground for the other - and in either case, voltage is grounding out andf bleeding off prior to getting to the lights; or,

3. Power is being routed through the 6 volt circuit breakers in the headlight switch (which on the EZ should be coming from your fuse block now) and they are causing an impedence and not allowing 12 volts to flow out to the lights.

Of course it could be a number of other things as well, but based on what we know so far, that's a good start.

Here is a color diagram of your 55 lights and signal lights as they were installed stock. I'm not sure how your EZ instructions had you route power, but maybe this will give you an idea of the original set up and it wil lhelp you trace a little and come back with some more specifics later - good luck!

PS: "Hot Bus" is hot power from any source; "Switched Bus" is power switched on by the ignition switch - as we talked about above. disregard the "56" labels....55-57 were wired the same (with the exception of voltage and ground):

Attachment 28121

Attachment 28122

Attachment 28123

not using the stock headlight switch.. the switch has b1,b2,d,h,p,r... im really consfused on the b1,b2.

Well, if I had to guess, and that's exactly what I'm doing without having a clue about how you have wired or what components you have used, I'd have to say your headlight switch is set up the same as the next earlier switch - like we use on the 51s thru 54s. It's almost impossible to know how to wire or trace with non standard parts. Again, "HOT BUS" is unswitched (hot all the time) 12 volt power in (from the battery/start solenoid; hot power fuse block; "BATT" terminal of the ignition switch) "SWITCHED BUS" is 12 volt power turned on with the ignition switch (from the "ACC" post of the ignition switch or the "switched-on power" fuse block). The extra terminal on your headlight switch - the "D" - is probably for the dome light.

Try this and see if it makes any sense:

Attachment 28136

This is where the bag of worms starts to crawl out on the table because we have to hope your brake light switch is then powered off your fuse box hot side (the signals flasher will be powered off the switched side - and yes the signal/brake light circuit recieves power in twice). And also with the headlight switch you describe, there's probably no circuit breakers - so your low voltage problem is probably a short in your wiring - wire to wire going to a redundant ground off the second wire, or wire direct to ground.

If you do have the earlier style headlight switch, and your brake light switch gets power in directly from a hot source (as I think you described above) then your lights wiring should look more like my generic diagram (except the wiring for the signal switch which is for a 7 wire "Everlasting" signal switch):

Attachment 28137

One more question: There must be two different circuits and two different Bulbs/LEDs - one for brake/signals and one for running lights - in the tail lights.....you said you have a heavy duty LED signal flasher. Are BOTH your running lights and the signal/brake lights LED?