Hot Rods Owner Made Fuse Panels

I know there's a lot of do it yourself/fab it yourself guys on here that wouldn't buy a factory built part if their life depended on it. I used to make all my own wiring harness's and fuse panels from parts and pieces from the auto parts store. You may know what everything in your wiring harness is for but the next guy to own your car does not have that luxury. While your building the fuse panel make some labels or a diagram of the panel so the next guy has some idea what's going on. The electric cooling fan on my deuce pickup quit and I replaced the 70 amp relay, 60 amp super fuse and nothing. Took the wire off the fan sending unit , grounded the wire which should kick the fan on and nothing. Builder says there's possibly a 15-20 amp control panel fuse but nothing is labeled so? I can't stand on my head for very long and having the fuses labeled would be a big help. I'm not upset at the builder as that's the way most guys do it. Think about the next owner when your wiring your next car from scratch and make a simple wiring diagram to go with the car.

 

I am about to partake a complete rewire of my 50. I have diagrams already drawn, and will be labeling all of the wires with a label maker that prints on heat shrink tubing. I am planning to help Future Damon with a bit more work up front.

 

Good advice!

 

That heat shrink tube that labels can be printed on is awesome stuff! An airplane building friend of mine made a bunch of the labeled heat shrink tube up for me.

Lynn

 

I would like a fuse block that uses my enormous collection of glass fuses

 

I wrote the purpose of each fuse right next to it on the panel. Beyond that, I expect the next owner will just have to follow the wire to the component.

Some advice I can give when building your own panel: put it on the passenger side. Much easier to sit on the floor to work on when there isn’t a steering column in the way.

 

What I did on my Ranch Wagon using a Rebel wiring kit.

 

I hate crawling under the dash, my back hates it too! I put my panel on the PU under the seat so I can get to it easily. I glued the laminated wiring diagram on the inside of the door and even added a light on a switch for nighttime repairs (provided that is not the faulty circuit) I keep a fuse puller and spare fuses in there as well.

 

I keep an up-to date wiring diagram in a plastic sleeve in the trunk. When you look at how many times things have been added (radio, extra lights, etc) or removed from the circuit over the years, it adds up to a very messy drawing.

You can still buy the AG (glass) fuse end clips with solder tags on them , and make your own fuse block with a piece of bakelite or plastic.

 

I had a 1998 Sony suburban, 1 of 100 built.

The wiring loom that ran under the center console was bigger than my wrist. It had every gmc option plus TV, Playstation, front stereo with pre-amp, 3 amps, 16 speakers, woofers in rear doors, a stereo in the rear that ran on earphone Jack's, all captains seats were heated. The cup holders were heated and cooled. TV monitors on the back of the headrests that went to a vcr. Satellite phone etc.

It was a wiring nightmare, multi-use remote that I never learned how to use the remote start. I never could find any type of wiring diagram for it. Drove and ran good just couldn't let it set for more than 3 days or the battery would die.b

Tried to find someone to help me run the wiring to do some diagnostics on it but never found anyone who would touch it once they seen the size of the loom.

That's why I always ran anything I added to a car separate from the cars original loom. I could always take my add-ons off and never know it had even been there....


...

 

My buddy did my wiring from scratch and used an old sprinkler or pool timer box.I wanted it mounted where I can get to it .Can't crawl under the dash anymore.

 

Great idea. Great thread Thank You
While we are tallking circuits...
If ever faced with a blown glass tube in the panel,,, and only fuses handy are plastic...
Simply put the blown fuse back In.
Then take the plastic fuse, line up the prongs with the both ends of contact.
Then gingerly. and forcefully piggyback that plastic job into the old clips.
Need that old fuse to help the prongs grip.

 

I'll make a few suggestions for future 'you' or owners...

Having circuit diagrams is critical for future troubleshooting as well as the initial job. But trying to get all that information onto one sheet can be a nightmare, with opportunities for confusion and errors multiplying; even the OEMs get them wrong sometimes. If you decide to go this route, I'd recommend a blueprint-sized sheet (2' x 3') as a minimum if you have more than a bare-bones harness (headlights/taillights/brake lights/ignition/starting/gauges/horn) as adding things like electric wipers, radio, heater, turn signals, electronic ignition/motor controls, stereos, electric fans, etc will cause the wire count to multiply like rabbits.

There is a better way. It will require multiple drawings, but they will be much simpler to draw and easier to decipher.

First thing is to draw all of your branch circuits as individual circuits. Headlight/taillight, brake/turn/hazard flasher if so equipped, ignition, starting, horn, gauges, wipers, etc etc. Each system gets its own drawing. Don't bother trying to show relative relationships as located on the car or the switch internals, although I would note which terminal/wire is which on the switches. Start with input power on the left and go right showing the components and what wires are needed where. Some systems will require multiple power inputs. Brake/turn/hazard will have three, two unswitched, one switched (turns), be sure to show those. Same may go for relays added to switch higher currents. These drawings are really the heart of your harness diagrams. Leave room to number the components and assign wire colors, but don't do it just yet...

Next, map your car. With a bird's-eye view of your car (and it doesn't have to be especially detailed), locate all electrical components more-or-less where they'll go, then determine wire routing. A simple circle for components will do, I'd strongly suggest numbering them, then note the number on the individual circuit diagram as well as a 'master' legend. A simple line will show routing. Now because you have multiple systems going to some of the same places, you can 'bundle' these together. Note which bundles are in each line. Don't worry about behind the dash, I'll address that next. This opens an interesting door. If you don't make big bundles, keeping wire count per bundle down in the less than eight range and with varying sizes in each, you don't need a ton of different colors. With a bit of skull sweat, you could have all unique bundles. Identify each one with a letter (and mark it at major termination points) and note bundle identification and color on each circuit diagram.

Because there is so much going on behind the dash, this should get its own large drawing using the same ideas.

This isn't really hard, its mostly tedious. But could save somebody a ton of time down the road. This wouldn't be especially practical if you have EFI or other forms of electronic control, but those have their own documentation as a rule.

 

I cheated for my wiring job and diagram. I started with a diagram page for a 1960 Ford, a Falcon I think. I used white out on all the extra lights and circuits I wouldn’t need for my 1932 Ford. Then I modified the wire colors a bit because I was using cloth covered braided wire. Worked a charm, and then I made a nice clean copy of it for my notebook with all the other part numbers in the car.

 

I lot citys,I think do way too much clean up,I'm coming from how I did things as a teen,with super low $s,so often got stuff off junked cars in the woods,down dirt roads or were ever they were left. I see less around now,though likely in smaller towns,junked cars still cabe found.
I did make any thing I could not find for the most part. But wiring parts,I just got what I needed out of the junkers. So a Fuse Panel,was just find the one or 2 that had the type fuse's I wanted to use an how many;or cut down to how many.

 

@F-head , please share what you have done

 

Here’s a few I’ve done

 

I would like to do something similar but with spade fuses.

 

Years ago Mom gave me a P-touch label maker for Christmas. All the wires under the dash on my Rancho are labeled with a simple sticker that wraps around them. In addition to that, I have the factory manual that has a wiring diagram, plus a blown up full color laminated diagram. In addition to that, I have some hand drawn diagrams for the stuff I added such as a dedicated ground wire throughout the whole car and mini harness for the alternator.

If you’re interested in a full color, oversized, laminated wiring diagram for your car, check these guys to see if they make one for your car. https://classiccarwiring.com/

 

Ask and ye shall receive.
https://www.waytekwire.com/catalog/...eaton-s-bussmann-series-s-8301-12-break-apart

 

in my old 37, trunk mounted fuse panel.

 

All those red wires is my nightmare.

I always make a wiring diagram and label the fuse blocks in the car. Never bought a kit.

 

This is the key to working on this stuff at a later date. I'd suggest two more things to keep it organized and handy. After you have created a file on your computer and scanned and saved the drawings in a file with the cars pictures you probably took during the build............

1. Buy a 3 ring binder, one of those thin ones just for your electrical system drawings.

2. Buy a cheap laminator and a pack of laminating sheets. ( You will find this is also handy for reference charts and stuff you want to hang on the wall of your shop)

Then you can laminate the drawings and put them in the binder and store it in your car. The drawings will last a long long time that way and always be handy for whoever needs them. Its also much easier to make drawings if you do them by individual circuits .

 

Look in marine parts, Blue Sea makes one with a cover (and another with a neg buss bar)
https://www.bluesea.com/products/5018/ST_Glass_6_Circuit_Fuse_Block_with_Cover

My '41 p/u is 95% yellow wires, bought it that way.

I've built and bought, make them kinda neat, but easy to service or add. Most of my cars needed a new harness when I buy them anyhow.

Where I work I'm used to tracing wires, no schematics, backyard built....total mystery (nothing cool I promise). My biggest issue and I would suggest this to builders.....don't change the color of the wire mid stream. Start off yellow into the taped up harness only to come out blue....that sucks.

 

I did like F head. Those boards for glass fuses are on ebay cheap.

 

Guess I never thought about the next guy. But for me as I get older, Flip down fuse panel from under the dash. Electrical drawings in AutoCad. All wires labeled. Deutsch connectors used for quick disassembly.

 

And when you run out of glass fuses, you can insert .22 Long Rifles.
A high school buddy bought a Chevelle that had the panel filled with them!

 

Glass fuses

https://www.bluesea.com/products/5018/ST_Glass_6_Circuit_Fuse_Block_with_Cover

All type fuses

https://www.bluesea.com/products/category/16/Fuse_Blocks?Fuse_Type=ATO-ATC

 

Kits are nice for a lot of reasons, but I do like the labeled wires. I run their plastic coated wires where they can not be seen but I always wire the engine bay and signals, etc, in the same colored fabric covered wire. It makes tracing wires much easier down the road while looking vintage.

The Coach Controls panel I showed above (under the seat of my truck) has every relay and fuse the truck requires in one neat little unit. It is tidy, it works, it was a breeze to install but it is the most expensive panel on the market. Like they say, buy once, cry once. If I was building a bare bones hot rod, I would build my own, glass fuse panel.