looking for some info/opinions/tech support... I'm looking to rewire my 49 Plymouth to 12v neg ground... I looked at EZ WIRINGs 21 circuit as well as Painless 21 setup... There is a CRAZY difference in price and I'm wondering how much different their products are.. Obviously I don't need the 21, I can do nicely with the 18 but still... Anyone familiar with either OR both these brands ? That can give some insight to why there is such a disparity between prices?
I have the EZ WIRE kit. I haven't installed it yet but it looks simple enough. I was pricing some wiring kits at LARS over the weekend and found out that it all depends on who you talk with. I found that the American Autowire Kits are supposed to be better quality wire/larger gauge wire for the hot wires. A lot of guys used the Painless and the EZ Wire kits and all said the same thing, that they like the product and had no problems with their installs and that the price was good for them. A couple of guys said that they wish that their hot wires were a little larger gauge and that they had swapped them out on their own. The guy at American Autowire Kits, said that he likes the EZ Wire and actually had a couple 21 wire that he was selling along with his American kits. Of course he touted his American kits over the others. He made it sound like that he was the inventor of the American Wire Kits. His base price for his 12 wire kit was $239 and I believe his 21 wire kit was $360 and these were show prices. Hope I helped a bit.
I have not used ez wire or painless kits. I did buy a complete rewire kit for my mom's 58 Impala from American autowire. I am very pleased with it. All wires are factory colors so factory manual works awesome. Was nicely priced compared to others and power wires are nice and heavy.
I installed an Kwik Wire kit in a '47 Ford a few years ago and had zero problems with it. I do think the main terminal/fuse block is a little less 'hi tech' than some of the more expensive kits, but it is fully functional and up to the job required. I used all circuits except power window wiring. I have another Kwik Wire kit on hand and will use it when the time comes. I also have a Ron Francis kit on hand and one other, the brand name of which I have forgotten. In general, I tend to think of the Kwik Wire kit a a 'budget build' kit and will install these kits in projects accordingly. That said, I have no reservations about the utility or safety of the Kwik Wire product. Ray EDIT: !!! all the comments I made above the first time I posted are correct regarding my opinion BUT FOR ONE IMPORTANT FACT. I said E Z Wire, when In fact, I used a Kwik Wire kit......not E Z Wire. Sorry for the misleading info in first posting.....now corrected above.
I used a Speedway 21 circuit kit on my rewire, every thing was as good as the more expensive kits and the instructions could not be any simpler to understand . All parts were included right down to zipties. The be part was the cost and free shipping. I paid less than $160 and didn't have to buy anything else. Very easy to install and very happy with the kit.
For years a lot of members have also used Rebel Wire,good folks to deal with and Alliance discount too.
I just rewired my 37 with a Painless kit. I have no experience with the other brands mentioned, so can't compare them. On the plus side, the quality of the parts, that they include pretty much everything you need, is good. It's not a pain free job rewiring an existing car, but it's not that bad either. A few shortcomings I ran across were: 1. The included manual didn't match the wiring in a couple of minor areas. There were two wires in the kit that are not in the instructions anywhere. A call to their support line was answered by a nice and helpful guy. Supposedly this is fixed in newer manuals than the one I got. 2. The Maxi Fuse holder is supposed to get multiple wired lugs bolted to it, but the actual holder will only really accept one lug per screw. You'll have to work that out somehow. 3. The "radio" leads should be longer. 4. The install manual uses fuzzy 3/4 view drawings that look like 8th generation photo copies. They really should rework the manual with good line art drawings, and colour would be nice too. I complicated the install somewhat by not using zip ties and cable lacing the harness. I also added in and modified their H4 relay kit, and electric fan relay kit. Get a REALLY good set of crimpers for the terminals. I have a really nice Packard 56 crimper here, but have yet to find one for the other types that doesn't suck. They include a good selection of butt, ring and spade terminals. For the largest, I gave up on trying to crimp them and soldered them instead. For the rest, I pulled off the plastic bit, crimped them with a modified crimper to get a good solid crimp, then heat shrink tubing to cover and protect.
I'm rewiring my '58 Biscayne now with a Rebel Wire 16 circuit kit now, factory colors and each wire is actually markrd for the part or accessory it is to be connected to. Even comes with a fusible link. I'm not done, but so far I am satisfied.
I had to use a magnifying glass to read the markings on the EZ Wire I used. I know I didn't have to with other kits I've put in. Gary
I used an American autowire kit in my 51 Fleetline. Never rewired a car before. I was very happy with it. Great step by step directions. I don't know what I'm gonna use for my 30 coupe. May go with them again.
Doing a 57 chev pickup right now with an American auto kit, I think they're the best. Done several cars with them, fool proof, easy to use, best directions ever. Best part? Open the box, need nothing else till the car is running, very complete.
American Autowire is very good and vehicle specific. Cost a bit more for the vehicle specific. Rebel is good also. Painless the wire are small compared to what our old cars had as original. In the 90's GM bought a bunch of different foreign cars and tore them apart to see how they differed to the GM cars. Two of the biggest things were the wire gauges and the thickness of the glass. New cars use very small wiring nowadays. Glass is thinner also.
Thanks everyone.. Like always, you're very helpful with questions and ideas... I appreciate all your input
you will not find a better customer service and a great product then bob and Jeremy at rebel wire... as mentioned longtime hamb supporters and alliance discount. ive used them, for years and have always been more then happy.
Just finished using a Painless Kit in my A. Not the best manual, lot of missing and inaccurate info. No overall schematic which is just plain weird for this kind of thing. Wire quality was OK , but I will look else where for the next one. I can recommend this high temp sleeving to protect the wiring. Not cheap but easy to work with and looks pretty good. http://www.mcmaster.com/#8760t21/=12zpi84 Good luck with your project
Used a Kwik Wire 14-circuit in my Ford and it went well. The instructions were great and easy to follow.
Used a Rebel kit in a very basic car, and American in a rather complex car. Both did just what they were intended to do. I have an old Haywire kit that I intend to use in the next semi basic build, underway as we speak.. I would recommend Rebel or American. Both great tech support.
FWIW I used a Ron Francis wiring kit for my '49, easy peasy to understand directions, even told you to take a break now and then...all wires are color coded and marked as to where they go...
Whatever you choose, the kit forces you to wire it per the kit, not by the OG schematic for the car. Although the schematic is a good reference, at least for me, with some of the dash cluster wiring. And the dome light had 1 wire, the kit used 2 wires. Had to get creative with that. On the Kwik Wire harness there are a couple of wires #30 gauge lights and #35 gauge power that I separated into 2 terminal strips mounted to a bracket I made up under the dash. Made things a lot easier. http://kwikwire.com/content/Kwik Wire - Instruction Book.pdf
It all depends on what you are looking for and how much you want to spend. First, quality, as far as I know, EZ Wire is still made in China, and I'm not impressed by some of the crimps on the back of the fuse panels that we've seen lately. That's just been at a couple different shows, from different vendors. Take it how you will. Kwik Wire seems to be a nice looking quality product, similar to our setup. Like ours they are American made and use good wire. American Autowire is also a nice product, and builds a lot of factory style fit harnesses. We've talked to them many times, nice guys to deal with. Harnesses that come with switches and connectors: be aware that most available connectors are GM, and so that is usually what you are going to get included. Which may or may not match your setup. Also you may wind up with a lot of stuff that you can't use, and you are still going to pay for it somewhere in the price. Most Ford and Mopar connectors are obsolete. Be weary of companies selling universal kits and saying fits "65 Ford F100", just an example, they will fit, but they will fit anything when you make it fit. Of course we recommend using our kit, but want you to get what you want and need. If you are doing a factory restoration, you're not going to be happy with a universal harness. Figure out what you are going to expect from the harness, go for the best quality for how much you are willing to spend, and ask the company plenty of questions before buying.
I have used quite a few of the different harnesses over the years wiring my own vehicles as well as customer's vehicles. Painless was nice as they have their own molded fuse holder and you get all of the necessary connections...at least in the kit I got. It also looks a bit more factory than the other kits. Ron Francis was good if you have the money and you know nothing about wiring. They make it very easy and the instructions are good. However, I personally do not like making connections at fuse panel as I find it very difficult to keep neat. The Kwik Wire and Rebel kits were very similar. It looks like they use common components that you can source from Digikey and both use a good wire. It's nice to be able to get the correct terminals to snap in the panel if you need to add another wire like for a 3 prong turn signal flasher. on both kits, I would have preferred the instructions to go a little deeper like how to hook up a generator or voltage regulator and not assume you are using a 1 wire alternator. The EZ Wire Harness seemed much cheaper quality but worked without an issue. As side note, I didn't like how far the wires stuck out the back of the fuse holders on the Rebel. It made it difficult to mount to a flat surface. On the several that I used, I ended up 3d printing a mounting plate. It protected the wires and made the fuse panel much more rigid. I left stand offs on the grey one to fit through the stock firewall insulation. I do suggest getting this book... "How to Wire You Street Rod" http://www.speedwaymotors.com/Book-How-To-Wire-Your-Street-Rod,2824.html I use it all the time and it gives a good explanation on how to wire something different than a GM. Sure, its dated and the illustrations could be better...but there is still quite a bit of good information. The next car that I do will more than likely be a Rebel.
I used Ron Francis in my convertible and was totally satisfied with it. I will use a Francis kit in the 42 Chevy I am building now
I have installed 15 EZ wire kits, they work great and look nice. Plus they are only like $180.00 so much better than the $400+ other ones that look and work the same Sent from my XT1585 using H.A.M.B. mobile app
I've installed 200+ ez wire kits. They're a great kit with the exception of the fan fan/fan wire in the 21 circuit "cigarette" box if not used with a relay the fan will actually put charge back through the system and keep the motor running for 2-3 sec after ignition is switched off. Never had a problem with the 12 circuit system(relay built in) or the 21 with the bigger fuses.
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