Help On 3G Page

[Gary Lewis]

I'll let the two Jim's respond. We need an "eating popcorn" emoji, cause that about all I'm doing on this ride.

I need you to verify that I made the correct wires red.

[Machspeed]

I'll let the two Jim's respond. We need an "eating popcorn" emoji, cause that about all I'm doing on this ride.

I need you to verify that I made the correct wires red.

Yep, I sure enough did that!

[ArdWrknTrk]

Jim - In reverse order:

When you say "you will have to replace the voltage regulator plug with a NEW plug that has all 3 wires" do you mean a new 3G plug?

As I said above, I don't see a need for a relay when there's a warning light. There is no voltmeter and we added the relay for the voltmeter.

And you are exactly right, the relay is to eliminate the constant drain of the voltmeter when the engine is off.

As for the LG/R, you are right that you can use it to power the voltmeter w/o a relay. Which is why I've shown it that way on the Monitoring At The Ignition Switch tab under 2G. (I want to get the 2G tab done before moving on to the 1G tab.)

So, where is the power in the lt gr/red wire coming from, if that's what the 'voltmeter' is monitoring?

And in that case, wouldn't it save about 20' of wire in the loop if you just found key-on power under the dash?

[kramttocs]

... wouldn't it save about 20' of wire in the loop if you just found key-on power under the dash?

Yes I have thought about this and been meaning to find a scrap cluster plug, removing those two (y/lg and r/o), and seeing what kind of terminals they are.

Or better yet- pull the terminals and some length of wire from a parts truck, swap the existing terminals with those and leave the factory wiring alone.

[Gary Lewis]

So, where is the power in the lt gr/red wire coming from, if that's what the 'voltmeter' is monitoring?

And in that case, wouldn't it save about 20' of wire in the loop if you just found key-on power under the dash?

The LG/R wire is coming from the ignition switch in both cases. In the case of the warning light it comes through the light first, and in the case of the ammeter it goes directly to the regulator, as shown below.

And yes, you could shorten the run by finding key-on power under the dash. But you'd also have to find the wires to the voltmeter under the dash, and they aren't that easily accessed. Easiest way is to pull the gauges and wire just ahead of the connector.

 

[kramttocs]

The LG/R wire is coming from the ignition switch in both cases. In the case of the warning light it comes through the light first, and in the case of the ammeter it goes directly to the regulator, as shown below.

And yes, you could shorten the run by finding key-on power under the dash. But you'd also have to find the wires to the voltmeter under the dash, and they aren't that easily accessed. Easiest way is to pull the gauges and wire just ahead of the connector.

Edited my post after yours Gary but yes - the best way to me would be to remove the wires from the cluster connector and replace them with some from a scrap harness. That way one doesn't chop up their main harness. This all goes back to whether those choosing this option need/care about removing the extra length.

While I may be interested and would like to test, it's not something I am rushing out to do.

[ArdWrknTrk]

... wouldn't it save about 20' of wire in the loop if you just found key-on power under the dash?

Yes I have thought about this and been meaning to find a scrap cluster plug, removing those two (y/lg and r/o), and seeing what kind of terminals they are.

Or better yet- pull the terminals and some length of wire from a parts truck, swap the existing terminals with those and leave the factory wiring alone.

I'm just saying, if you're monitoring voltage from the ignition switch,

power starts at the fender relay, goes through C610 to the ignition switch, out the lt gr/r hot in run 'I' wire, gets tapped into C610, to the meter, back to C610 and then to ground.... somewhere.

That's insane.

The switch is on the column and the hard point for ground is right by the radio.

[Gary Lewis]

Edited my post after yours Gary but yes - the best way to me would be to remove the wires from the cluster connector and replace them with some from a scrap harness. That way one doesn't chop up their main harness. This all goes back to whether those choosing this option need/care about removing the extra length.

While I may be interested and would like to test, it's not something I am rushing out to do.

While I think this approach would work fine, I doubt anyone would really do it. To me you are either looking for accuracy, in which case you'll monitor the battery via a relay, or ease of installation, in which case you'll connect the LG/R wire to the R/O wire and ground the Y/LG wire. Done.

Saying it another way, why go to all of the work to tap into the meter circuits at the cluster connector only to monitor the changing voltage in the cab? It seems like a lot of work to get mediocre results.

[ArdWrknTrk]

While I think this approach would work fine, I doubt anyone would really do it. To me you are either looking for accuracy, in which case you'll monitor the battery via a relay, or ease of installation, in which case you'll connect the LG/R wire to the R/O wire and ground the Y/LG wire. Done.

Saying it another way, why go to all of the work to tap into the meter circuits at the cluster connector only to monitor the changing voltage in the cab? It seems like a lot of work to get mediocre results.

I was never the one to suggest using the voltmeter for cab power.

In fact, the only way I got drawn into this was because I'd suggested to John (quick and easy) that he tap his HO choke relay if he wanted to monitor battery power. (The fuselink literally sits on the same stud with the battery cable)

[kramttocs]

While I think this approach would work fine, I doubt anyone would really do it. To me you are either looking for accuracy, in which case you'll monitor the battery via a relay, or ease of installation, in which case you'll connect the LG/R wire to the R/O wire and ground the Y/LG wire. Done.

Saying it another way, why go to all of the work to tap into the meter circuits at the cluster connector only to monitor the changing voltage in the cab? It seems like a lot of work to get mediocre results.

Agreed Gary. I've definitely given it thought and while I'd would like to try it for a comparison just to have the data to see what kind of drop there is, it goes against the reason for the LG/R+R/O option.