wiring a 4 door

[31 A4door]

Anyone actually know how many feet of each color of wire a guy needs to rewire a car? This would be a nice thing to know rather than buy a harness.

[Charles Coe]

I would recommend that you get a good quality harness.

[31 A4door]

Charles,, I like to do my own work and really don't care that much about originality on this car at this point. If you saw what the car had last night before I started pulling all the shorted wires you would see what I mean. Most of them looked like they were replaced or cut off loooonng ago.

This car will be a driver not show car in any way. Plus I'M CHEAP !

[Bob C]

Originally Posted by 31 A4door

Charles,, I like to do my own work and really don't care that much about originality on this car at this point. If you saw what the car had last night before I started pulling all the shorted wires you would see what I mean. Most of them looked like they were replaced or cut off loooonng ago.

This car will be a driver not show car in any way. Plus I'M CHEAP !

So is a wiring harness.

[31 A4door]

Okay I will look.

[Rock Hornbuckle]

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Originally Posted by 31 A4door

Okay I will look.

Come over to the shop, I'll show you the wiring that I bought, and you can decide.

[29ModelA]

Buying a harness was cheaper than buying a few spools of different color wire.

[Charles Coe]

31 A4door, I understand about doing your own work. I like to do my own work as well. For various reasons, I still think you will be happier in the long run with a wiring harness. And you should still have plenty of work to do on the A! As Rock said, check his out and decide for yourself. Above all, have fun!

[31 A4door]

You know I do Lot's of wiring here at work. MILES of it and you can buy the wire for 60 cents a foot. Ends are 6 bucks for 50 ... I wont have the wire wrap as a loom but who cares. I will take a few pictures of the work I do sometime. Meanwhile I looked at looms. They don't come a kit.. From what I saw you have to buy a few different things to make a kit and it looked like maybe a couple hundred for that parts?? That was through Snyders.
Do you recommend anyone else ?

[Purdy Swoft]

I use to make my own from wires that I stripped out of junk cars that I had on hand, not anymore. The new wiring harnesses that are available are low cost and color coded. I now like to make things as easy as possible, especially when it doesn't cost much. The headlamp wiring will be the most expensive and would be a real pain to try and make yourself.

[31 A4door]

Wholly moses I'm not that cheap! I just can buy all the wire and fittings much less that a harness and it doesn't take long to do a nice job if you have a plan in advance.

[Tom Wesenberg]

I have a pile of like new wires from an elevator, but wouldn't even think about making my own harness. You have the main lighting harness, then a few short ones behind the instrument panel. The last A I wired was only about $50 for all the wiring.

[31 A4door]

Yep your right again.. looks like all the parts are about 60 or so. Might go that route instead or later. I have been making a harness today anyway.

[Purdy Swoft]

Snyders lists the terminal box to dash wiring harness for $8.75 and the cut out to terminal box harness lists for $8.50 . The coil to terminal box wire lists for $2.25 The headlamp horn and tail lamp harness is just over fifty bucks. The headlamp harness has a right smart of wire and at sixty cents per foot you can buy the harness for less

[H. L. Chauvin]

Lesson in 1929 Depression Days Economics:

Often times I look at Model A items & think that this may be a silly way to look at it; however, just one way to look at it is:

Today, (2013), with the extremely ever increasing high cost of food, whether purchasing same in a grocery store or buying anything in any restaurant, in selectively buying things on sale in a grocery, or in ordering something differently & less expensive in a restaurant, over a short period of about one month, it is easy to save enough to buy a Model A harness or any other related Model A items one would like to have!

Hope this helps someone to place Model A items in perspective!

[Mike V. Florida]

If you already own all the different colors then you might be right but if you have to buy the wire by the foot it is way more then a completed harness.

[1931 flamingo]

If (when) things go wrong later, unless you've kept track of color codes or marked wires(diff colors I hope) you may wish you'd sprung for a correct color coded harness that an original wiring diagram can help you trouble shoot with. FWIW
Paul in CT
I'm frugal, wife and kids say I'm cheap............but I would spring for the harness(s).

[31 A4door]

The car had a book under the seat that was given to the grandfather in 95' It has all the diagrams in it with color codes. Just finished making the headlight switch portion. Looks like I only need tail light, Ammeter and under dash wiring now. I think I will eventually buy the harness but this gets me up and running electrically. I used all solid color wires and # 14 Ga. wires for most of it.. All soldered ends. Flag end fittings should be here tomorrow from McMaster Carr.

Fixed the Ignition switch problem today at lunch. Ended up this time being fried wire inside the heavy shield cable. It looked like it was just about where it entered the firewall.

Made a bet with a guy I would have it on the road and at our Model T meeting on Saturday but I forgot my windshield is no good. Cant change that by Saturday so I guess this months meeting I will drive my Model T again. Next month I will be ready.

[tdlmomowers]

If you buy a lighting harness, make sure you get a good quality one. If I was rewiring a Model A, I would get a 4 position push pull switch and mount it in a bracket under the dash. I don't like that light switch on the steering column. Some things are just made better today. I would make up my own harness and a matching diagram, for later reference. I spent 32 years as an electric truck mechanic, so making up a harness wouldn't be that hard.

[columbiA]

I dont think I would want to buy an A from you that had Mickey Mouse wiring.As for the light switch,there is nothing wrong with the original switch.Some repro switches are poor quality & dont work well.

[Rock Hornbuckle]

I saw the wiring harness that 31 A4door made. Very nice. Better quality than the one I bought.

[31 A4door]

Feeling a little nasty this morning. The car already had another push pull switch under the dash. not sure why other than maybe the guy didn't realize you could take the switch apart and clean out the handful of thick grease and it would work again??? I dont know but that us what I did. Then all the wiring is totally fried anyway so maybe that's how he fixed it on the farm.

Not sure if the next post was directed at me or not but if it was. It's not for sale anyway. Have a good morning Peeps.

[tdlmomowers]

Originally Posted by columbiA

I dont think I would want to buy an A from you that had Mickey Mouse wiring.As for the light switch,there is nothing wrong with the original switch.Some repro switches are poor quality & dont work well.

I'm sure that your comment is meant for me. I did not mean to offend anyone with my comments. I respect those of you that like to keep your car as close to original as possible. I see a lot of Model As at shows that have been greatly altered from original, what with changing them over to 12 volt, adding radios and other none stock add on. That's okay, whatever works for them. I don't even own a Model A, but I have spent a lot of hours working on the two Model As that my son in law owns. Doing a driver car and a points correct car are two entirely different things. When you by a car that is incomplete, sometimes it is just too expensive to redo everything back to stock, before you want to drive and enjoy the car. I could make up a complete wiring harness for a Model A, using modern products and get years of use out of the car, without any electrical problems. Some of us are doing this hobby on a budget. Again, sorry if I offended anyone.