The Camano Experience

[Gary Lewis]

Thanks Dane. Was working in getting the cb antenna wiring figured out so may be directing some questions your way

The factory hole in the cowl is too small for the Tri band antenna end so I unsoldered it from the splitter board today and will solder it back in after running it through the hole.

Grounding is an oft-overlooked problem. Many people don't realize that if current comes in it has to go out. (You sure wouldn't want it pooled around your feet. )

But there are grounds and then there are GROUNDS. In later years Ford got serious about grounds and ran several to the cab, fenders, etc. But not so on our trucks.

[ArdWrknTrk]

Grounding is an oft-overlooked problem. Many people don't realize that if current comes in it has to go out. (You sure wouldn't want it pooled around your feet. )

But there are grounds and then there are GROUNDS. In later years Ford got serious about grounds and ran several to the cab, fenders, etc. But not so on our trucks.

Interesting approach.

I'm sure I could scavenge one from an electric panel.

In fact, they make retrofit ones for sub panels to meet current code for keeping neutrals separate all the way to the main.

[kramttocs]

Interesting approach.

I'm sure I could scavenge one from an electric panel.

In fact, they make retrofit ones for sub panels to meet current code for keeping neutrals separate all the way to the main.

Good point - one could pull a neutral block from a panel, cut to length, and accomplish the same thing with even more screw points.

[Danny G]

Need to take some photos as I haven't added any in awhile.

Had some comp time so took the day off to work on some more wiring.

Took longer than planned doing the headlight relay but it's all done now and working great.

I ended up running the headlight wiring thorough the channel at the top of the core support. It's electrical tape wrapped and then ran through some nylon sheathing so should be protected. Had some grommets that fit in the holes on each end to protect against those edges. I think the factory connectors for the fuel pump harness that goes over the radiator are all too big to fit in the holes but may try it with the trailer one as it cleans it up a little.

Also installed the HVAC jumper that was spliced into and fused for the gvod module. I haven't ran all of the other wires for the gvod but I plan to run it in inactive 1:1 mode anyways for awhile so I can get some mpg values before I turn it on for some comparison.

While on the topic of wiring, I pulled a couple firewall grommets from some computer controlled trucks at the jy a few months ago and finally got to use one today. These are the grommets above the drivers side valve cover that have a mess of wires in them. I removed all the wires and am using this for any of my firewall penetrating add on wires. I am using some stainless steel harness clamps bolted to various bolts (like gas pedal or passenger side dash supporting bracket)that stick through the firewall to route the wires safely away from the engine to either side as needed. Will have to find a way to seal the grommet when done as I won't have as many wires as factory.

I installed it today because I ran the ground wire to my in-cab ground bar. The blue seas ground bar screwed to the center dash support base without any modifications - while it wasn't dead on, there were two factory holes close enough that the screws got started and could draw it in tight. This has given me a good solid ground point where I don't have to stack a bunch of ring terminals together. The bar was grounded already by the screws into the cab but I ran the dedicated ground wire anyways. I have several more grounds needed than factory with the gvod, led flashers, remote entry, automatic window module, brake controller, etc and since any removable metal (like the dash skeleton) where things were grounded previously was either painted or powder coated I didn't want to have to scrape it off.

This photo is from awhile back as all of the screws are about filled up now.

http://forum.garysgaragemahal.com/file/n52297/media-1582948367023-Feb_28_2020_9_52_PM.jpg

very nice.

We have a lot of salt and humidity in the air here. If I am running something like this I will need to take that down to bare metal then seal the joint between the ground bar and frame to keep it from rusting up relatively quickly.

On my Malibu i have had so many ghost electrical issues caused simply by corrosion in grounds. Like loosing AC on a 100F day because the computer lost temp sensor readings.

[kramttocs]

Need to take some photos as I haven't added any in awhile.

Had some comp time so took the day off to work on some more wiring.

Took longer than planned doing the headlight relay but it's all done now and working great.

I ended up running the headlight wiring thorough the channel at the top of the core support. It's electrical tape wrapped and then ran through some nylon sheathing so should be protected. Had some grommets that fit in the holes on each end to protect against those edges. I think the factory connectors for the fuel pump harness that goes over the radiator are all too big to fit in the holes but may try it with the trailer one as it cleans it up a little.

Also installed the HVAC jumper that was spliced into and fused for the gvod module. I haven't ran all of the other wires for the gvod but I plan to run it in inactive 1:1 mode anyways for awhile so I can get some mpg values before I turn it on for some comparison.

While on the topic of wiring, I pulled a couple firewall grommets from some computer controlled trucks at the jy a few months ago and finally got to use one today. These are the grommets above the drivers side valve cover that have a mess of wires in them. I removed all the wires and am using this for any of my firewall penetrating add on wires. I am using some stainless steel harness clamps bolted to various bolts (like gas pedal or passenger side dash supporting bracket)that stick through the firewall to route the wires safely away from the engine to either side as needed. Will have to find a way to seal the grommet when done as I won't have as many wires as factory.

I installed it today because I ran the ground wire to my in-cab ground bar. The blue seas ground bar screwed to the center dash support base without any modifications - while it wasn't dead on, there were two factory holes close enough that the screws got started and could draw it in tight. This has given me a good solid ground point where I don't have to stack a bunch of ring terminals together. The bar was grounded already by the screws into the cab but I ran the dedicated ground wire anyways. I have several more grounds needed than factory with the gvod, led flashers, remote entry, automatic window module, brake controller, etc and since any removable metal (like the dash skeleton) where things were grounded previously was either painted or powder coated I didn't want to have to scrape it off.

This photo is from awhile back as all of the screws are about filled up now.

http://forum.garysgaragemahal.com/file/n52297/media-1582948367023-Feb_28_2020_9_52_PM.jpg

very nice.

We have a lot of salt and humidity in the air here. If I am running something like this I will need to take that down to bare metal then seal the joint between the ground bar and frame to keep it from rusting up relatively quickly.

On my Malibu i have had so many ghost electrical issues caused simply by corrosion in grounds. Like loosing AC on a 100F day because the computer lost temp sensor readings.

Been terrible at updating this thread.

Have been making a lot of progress though. Actually ran the engine for the first time last weekend. That was exciting. Allowed me to get the fluids all taken care of also.

It wasn't without a couple hiccups though.

I first unhooked the starter and held the key on to let the fuel pumps fill the carb. Hooked the starter back up and it fired right up. Ran for a little bit and then died. With the Quickfuel bowl sights plus the clear inline fuel filter I could see that it wasn't getting any fuel. Did this a couple times before I realized I never grounded the fuel pump relay over by the brake booster.

Second one was after it had been warmed up. I was checking some things on it when [insert Old Faithful noise here] the bottom-most plug under the radiator cap flew off sending coolant everywhere. Guess I'd left clamping that thing off of my pre-startup checklist. :nabble_smiley_blush:What is that bottom port even for? On all my 400/460 trucks it has been capped. Update - did some googling and sounds like it's for the 300.

Now I need to tune the carb and swap out the recurved distributor from Scotty.

Then back to wiring. Hooked up the Cole Hersee smart battery isolator and ran the 1/0 power and ground wire from the passenger side fuse block. Before I can finish that wiring I need to make/install the aluminum plate that will hold the drivers side fuse block and the duraspark module.

Originally I was also going to mount my battery charger on it but after getting the charger in hand, the size and weight of it meant it had to go elsewhere.

The onboard battery charger I am using is a NOCO Gen2 Mini. Not kidding about the weight of this thing.

It is going to get mounted on the core support between the core support and the aux battery. I am making a mounting plate out of 1/8 aluminum sheet that will bolt onto the core support and then the battery charger will mount upside down to it - this is because there isn't anything on the core support that lines up with the charger mounting holes.

Originally I was going to just hook the two charger leads up to either side of the battery isolator since it would be right under it but with this new location, the two leads can reach each battery directly.

In addition to the battery charger, I also have the block heater that will need plugged in. Last winter I just ran it through the grill like a diesel but I picked up one of these (also NOCO) to see if it will work.

While I know to go around the front and unplug it, if my wife or anyone else ever needed to take the truck somewhere it wouldn't be something they would think of nor would it be visible from the drivers side.

The plan is to mount this thing in the plastic inner fender towards the front - somewhere in the turn signal area. This way it would be hidden when not used but also tough to miss when the cord is hanging there.

I also finished up installing the floor heat/sound mats which reminds me - since the exhaust shop routed the drivers side exhaust up and over the transfer case, the area under the drivers seat definitely got warm when the engine was running even with these mats installed. It wasn't routed this way previously so I have nothing to compare it to but I am assuming (hoping) the mats made it better than it would have been on the interior side than if they weren't there. Will have to see if the mass backed carpet makes it less noticeable.

Speaking of, I took that out of the box yesterday to get some of the wrinkles out and hope to get it in tomorrow although the weather may not cooperate.

I was reading up on the various ways to cut the holes for the seat/seatbelt bolts.

Seems like cutting x's, heating a socket to burn a hole, or using a soldering gun to burn a hole were the common ways.

TheScatch - you used the soldering gun right? Happy with how that turned out? I don't recall - did you just poke it through or did you use a flat tip to cut a circle? And was your carpet mass backed?

 

[Gary Lewis]

Been terrible at updating this thread.

Have been making a lot of progress though. Actually ran the engine for the first time last weekend. That was exciting. Allowed me to get the fluids all taken care of also.

It wasn't without a couple hiccups though.

I first unhooked the starter and held the key on to let the fuel pumps fill the carb. Hooked the starter back up and it fired right up. Ran for a little bit and then died. With the Quickfuel bowl sights plus the clear inline fuel filter I could see that it wasn't getting any fuel. Did this a couple times before I realized I never grounded the fuel pump relay over by the brake booster.

Second one was after it had been warmed up. I was checking some things on it when [insert Old Faithful noise here] the bottom-most plug under the radiator cap flew off sending coolant everywhere. Guess I'd left clamping that thing off of my pre-startup checklist. :nabble_smiley_blush:What is that bottom port even for? On all my 400/460 trucks it has been capped. Update - did some googling and sounds like it's for the 300.

Now I need to tune the carb and swap out the recurved distributor from Scotty.

Then back to wiring. Hooked up the Cole Hersee smart battery isolator and ran the 1/0 power and ground wire from the passenger side fuse block. Before I can finish that wiring I need to make/install the aluminum plate that will hold the drivers side fuse block and the duraspark module.

Originally I was also going to mount my battery charger on it but after getting the charger in hand, the size and weight of it meant it had to go elsewhere.

The onboard battery charger I am using is a NOCO Gen2 Mini. Not kidding about the weight of this thing.

It is going to get mounted on the core support between the core support and the aux battery. I am making a mounting plate out of 1/8 aluminum sheet that will bolt onto the core support and then the battery charger will mount upside down to it - this is because there isn't anything on the core support that lines up with the charger mounting holes.

Originally I was going to just hook the two charger leads up to either side of the battery isolator since it would be right under it but with this new location, the two leads can reach each battery directly.

In addition to the battery charger, I also have the block heater that will need plugged in. Last winter I just ran it through the grill like a diesel but I picked up one of these (also NOCO) to see if it will work.

While I know to go around the front and unplug it, if my wife or anyone else ever needed to take the truck somewhere it wouldn't be something they would think of nor would it be visible from the drivers side.

The plan is to mount this thing in the plastic inner fender towards the front - somewhere in the turn signal area. This way it would be hidden when not used but also tough to miss when the cord is hanging there.

I also finished up installing the floor heat/sound mats which reminds me - since the exhaust shop routed the drivers side exhaust up and over the transfer case, the area under the drivers seat definitely got warm when the engine was running even with these mats installed. It wasn't routed this way previously so I have nothing to compare it to but I am assuming (hoping) the mats made it better than it would have been on the interior side than if they weren't there. Will have to see if the mass backed carpet makes it less noticeable.

Speaking of, I took that out of the box yesterday to get some of the wrinkles out and hope to get it in tomorrow although the weather may not cooperate.

I was reading up on the various ways to cut the holes for the seat/seatbelt bolts.

Seems like cutting x's, heating a socket to burn a hole, or using a soldering gun to burn a hole were the common ways.

TheScatch - you used the soldering gun right? Happy with how that turned out? I don't recall - did you just poke it through or did you use a flat tip to cut a circle? And was your carpet mass backed?

You HAVE been making progress. Well done!

Now I know why I have a Starter fuse and a Fuel Pump fuse. I can pull the Starter fuse and still run the fuel pump to prime things.

As for the hiccups, I'm expecting to have more than that. So you did well. But I think the extra fitting on the radiator may have to do with the fact that some of the EFI'd engines had coolant-heated air inlet systems. Small hoses ran to the throttle body to heat the incoming air.

On the on-board charger, did you remember that it may well trigger the smart isolator, thereby paralleling the two batteries?

[FuzzFace2]

You HAVE been making progress. Well done!

Now I know why I have a Starter fuse and a Fuel Pump fuse. I can pull the Starter fuse and still run the fuel pump to prime things.

As for the hiccups, I'm expecting to have more than that. So you did well. But I think the extra fitting on the radiator may have to do with the fact that some of the EFI'd engines had coolant-heated air inlet systems. Small hoses ran to the throttle body to heat the incoming air.

On the on-board charger, did you remember that it may well trigger the smart isolator, thereby paralleling the two batteries?

On the block heater cord on work truck where it was plugged in at the radiator the cord was run over the drivers side mirror so you would see it when getting in to start.

My work truck now has it under the drivers door, again you see it getting.

On my diesel I was the only one to drive it so not a big deal but I also parked it so I would have to walk pass where it was plugged in.

Maybe for you if the above does not work something that hangs from the sun visor blocking the view saying the block heater plugged in?

Dave ----

[kramttocs]

Now I know why I have a Starter fuse and a Fuel Pump fuse. I can pull the Starter fuse and still run the fuel pump to prime things.

That will definitely come in handy

On the on-board charger, did you remember that it may well trigger the smart isolator, thereby paralleling the two batteries?

Over the past few months I've left a handful of messages with Littlefuse tech support to ask them about the smart isolator and if they had any warnings about charging like this but haven't ever received a return phone call. I called NOCO last week and explained how the smart isolator worked. In short, the gentleman I spoke to said that all the charger cared about was what was between the positive and negative lead. So hook up the two leads to each battery and it won't care if the isolator has them joined or not. He said the charger were smart enough to identify the batters individually. Then gen2mini can handle batteries up to 120Ah per bank so that will have to be considered. A quick search is showing the standard group 65 battery topping off at 75Ah and the largest yellowtop at 72.

They do have some info on their site: https://no.co/support/series-and-parallel-charging

Dave - that's a good idea on the visor or the drivers mirror. Simple and effective.

 

[FuzzFace2]

Now I know why I have a Starter fuse and a Fuel Pump fuse. I can pull the Starter fuse and still run the fuel pump to prime things.

That will definitely come in handy

On the on-board charger, did you remember that it may well trigger the smart isolator, thereby paralleling the two batteries?

Over the past few months I've left a handful of messages with Littlefuse tech support to ask them about the smart isolator and if they had any warnings about charging like this but haven't ever received a return phone call. I called NOCO last week and explained how the smart isolator worked. In short, the gentleman I spoke to said that all the charger cared about was what was between the positive and negative lead. So hook up the two leads to each battery and it won't care if the isolator has them joined or not. He said the charger were smart enough to identify the batters individually. Then gen2mini can handle batteries up to 120Ah per bank so that will have to be considered. A quick search is showing the standard group 65 battery topping off at 75Ah and the largest yellowtop at 72.

They do have some info on their site: https://no.co/support/series-and-parallel-charging

Dave - that's a good idea on the visor or the drivers mirror. Simple and effective.

What was nice going over the mirror beside you would see it, but if it snowed you could grab the cord there and follow it to the truck plug pulling it out of the snow and sticking it out of the way for a plow to come by or shoveling.

Dave ----

[kramttocs]

What was nice going over the mirror beside you would see it, but if it snowed you could grab the cord there and follow it to the truck plug pulling it out of the snow and sticking it out of the way for a plow to come by or shoveling.

Dave ----

Been working on the dash controls for awhile since the weather hasn't been great but did get a few minutes to install the battery charger.

The 1/8 aluminum plate is mounted to existing holes on the core support braces and I tapped some holes to mount the charger to the plate. It's pretty close to the battery tray at the bottom but angles away at the top.