Slick 60's

Ok - somebody tell me I'm not crazy. Give me a pep talk. Boost my confidence! I'm about to get this rewire underway and I admit I am scared. I've never done anything remotely related to a project of this magnitude! Here's a couple pics. If anybody sees me starting out wrong, stop me!

What harness are you using? More than 12-18 circuits and you will have way to many wires to deal with. Keep as much of the original wiring (dash, heater, TS and 4 way flashers) as you can. Just connect these to a fused circuit at the fuse box. This is not difficult! Let the switches do the work and don't obsess about the project, just do one circuit at a time. I like to remove the seat cause I'm old and fat. I love Bosch relays. Learn about these little work horses and see how they can take the work load off your 50 year old switches. Do yourself a favor and get some ground straps between the core support and frame, between the cab and frame and between the bed and frame. Most of the most bizarre problems can be traced to bad grounding. Post back we can help.

I'm using a Rebel Wire 9 + 3. It's marked every 6 inches or so and has the circuits pre-wired as well as the fuse box. My fear arises primarily from my lack of basic skills and experience.

I'm going to start by running the rear section. That seems to be the simplest part, followed by the cab, then the engine, and finally the dash section. They don't make the connections anymore so I will recycle everything I can.

I don't even know what a Bosch relay is or what it's for but I will by noon tomorrow! I think if you know how to search, you can find just about anything on the internets!

Thanks for the encouragement. I will post updates.

im dreading this on mine.. im gonna put everything new in mine..

simply put Bosch relays take a switching signal that requires very little draw, to activate a switch that connects a much higher draw circuit.
For instance head lights or fog lights draw a lot of current and will eventually downgrade your wiring and switches., one of the reasons older cars have weak yellowish lights.
If you run a larger wire to your high draw circuits and use the original wire to activate the relay near the draw (fog/headlights), the thicker wire cannot down grade the rest of the circuit/switches.
We have members here that make these up and sell them, or can help you work these things out

63Slick wrote:I'm using a Rebel Wire 9 + 3. It's marked every 6 inches or so and has the circuits pre-wired as well as the fuse box. My fear arises primarily from my lack of basic skills and experience.

I'm going to start by running the rear section. That seems to be the simplest part, followed by the cab, then the engine, and finally the dash section. They don't make the connections anymore so I will recycle everything I can.

I don't even know what a Bosch relay is or what it's for but I will by noon tomorrow! I think if you know how to search, you can find just about anything on the internets!

Thanks for the encouragement. I will post updates.

You can indeed find just about anything on the internet. Just make sure to do a reality check and take your findings with a grain of salt.
A good example is the alternator; I assume you intend to run an ammeter or voltmeter.
Paul

Mission accomplished! The complete rewire only took a couple days and a couple calls to the very helpful techs at Rebel Wire. As noted, I'm no rocket surgeon when it comes to anything mechanical or electrical and this rewire was easy and fun! I can't say enough good about the Rebel Wire 9+3 harness and their support!

I have to bolt my seat in and put the weatherstripping on my doors, then it's ready to get inspected!

WOW! 63Slick,,,, I'm impressed! CONGRATULATIONS!!
You've got to tell us more about how your re-wire project went, where did you need/get help, etc.......!

BarnieTrk

I will be in the same place soon enough. Your posting is encouraging.

[quote][WOW! 63Slick,,,, I'm impressed! CONGRATULATIONS!!
You've got to tell us more about how your re-wire project went, where did you need/get help, etc.......!

BarnieTrk
/quote]

I just called the support line at Rebel Wire - I needed help with:

Ignition switch - I wanted to use a ford style switch and the re-pop I got at the parts store wasn't labeled (I didn't have an original in the truck at the time to look off of)

Light switch - the fuse box (what there is of one) sits on top of the light switch in our trucks and is integrated into it. I wanted to use the same type switch without the fuse box and needed help.

Flashers - on the '63 there is a hazard switch with an inline indicator light - just confusing for me (rookie) and I needed a little talking through to rewire that.

Four BIG recommendations if you have this project on your "to do" list:

1. Buy a labeled harness like the one from Rebel Wire with 9 or 10 per wired circuits and do the job a section at a time, engine first.

2. Buy an original wiring diagram. Even if you don't really know how to read it. It will help you with things like understanding which wire powers the right turn signal, which the left, etc, etc. saved lots of testing.

3. Consult this forum early and often. Reading multiple posts on the topic, even when the given problem isn't definitively solved teaches you a language to use to ask your questions more effectively and use the answers you get more efficiently.

4. Call the tech line. The guy I talked to was knowledgeable enough to know how to interpret my sometime confusing questions and to answer me in simple enough terms so I could actually do what he was telling me. (He was a ford guy too so that helped)

I cannot overemphasize either how unskilled I am/was. I have very little general mechanical skill and absolutely no electrical knowledge (I was a little worried about getting shocked!) Confidence and Ignorance are indeed two major ingredients in success...that and a willingness to ask questions and not worry about looking/sounding stupid!

Awesome, glad you got through it. I know just enough to give me a headache when dealing with electrical issues, I am in awe of people on this forum who understand it like its nothing.