Heres the question. When youre building a hotrod from scratch, which wiring kit is the best? Which one is the most complete with all the connectors youll need to hook up things like headlights, altenator, ignition, turn signal switch, etc.? Ive found 5 wiring companies which I'd like youre input on. Tell me which company you used and what you liked/disliked about it. Im also interested in the quality of their support and instruction manual. 1. E-Z Wiring 2. Hotrod Wires 3. Painless Wiring 4. Ron Francis Wiring 5. Kwik Wire
I like EZ Wiring, Installed a few with no problem Had a customers car come in with a Painless with leads plugged in to the wrong ports in back of fuse block. Like to never found that problem Never used the others
Don't buy more harness than you need. My roadster has a system that would wire up a 747. Most of it's capability is paid for but unused. For the T that I am building I am using a basic Haywire kit. Cost $125. I will need about $40 in additional accessories. But that is way less than the complete kit that I bought for my roadster.
I would go with the simpler wiring kits on say a roadster, and then painless if you're going to do a big sedan or something with a lot of circuits (electric windows, etc, etc). The labeled wire being useful on the big projects. I just used painless for the first time this summer on my 3-window, and it not painless. You can download their instruction sheets, and see that, while they put a lot of information in there, it makes no sense. It's good wire though. Labeled everywhere and a nice fuse block. I finally figured most of it out by flipping the fuse block over and looking at the back side. Sure explained a lot. Part of my problem was putting the fuse block in the trunk (I got the one that goes in the trunk). Many of the wires weren't long enough, and I had to do a lot of splices on their kit. On my old dodge, I just went and bought a marine fuse block (8 fuses) and got a booklet called "how to wire your street rod from start to finish" by Jack Sweeden, to figure out the fuse sizes and wire sizes, and then made a trip to the NAPA store for some wire.
Haywire. Get if from ElPolacko here on the HAMB! I used one on the 35, and thats what Ill put in the 34 also.
Most wiring "kits" are a case similar to the "just enough power to get yourself into trouble" senario. If you know what you're doing, you can do a good job, but as stated, painless is not painless , especially for the uninitiated and most -if not all - the kits lack enough modern things like relays. This is an area where" back in the day" doesn't really stack up. Unless it's a resto, original harnesses can be frightening, as can el cheapo kits. No, you don't need more harness than necessary, but ask about relays and fuses, wire guage etc. Remember, a fire will end in tears as will poor performance and quality matters and in most cases costs more. Only my .02. Hope this helps the research prosess.
I did not buy a painless kit but I would say stay away. I looked at their instructions and also deemed them as pretty much useless. Also, the book How to Wire your Hot Rod by Overholser, the owner of painless, is useless too. Nothing but a giant ad for his company. Well, maybe not totally useless but there are better ones. I used a Rebel Wire harness sold by glenn33 here. They do not have all the ring terminals and sockets etc. you may need. But, the kits are good the price is great. Bob, is the guy who puts the kits together. He is the one you talk to with a question. The best point of all for me really. Bob went out of his way to answer my questions. I also read HPBooks Automotive Electrical Handbook. There are other good manuals out there too. OK done.
I used a "Highway 15" system from American Autowire and it's the best I've ever used. Well okay, it's the only one I've ever used. But the kit includes switches, relays, connectors, all gauge sender wires, everything you need. They use a single plug for all the gauge wiring. I was able to wire the entire dashboard on the bench and then just plug it in once it was in the car. No laying up under there with wire falling all over your face. Their wire is all printed every few inches like others and all of the wires were more than long enough. But the best part of the kit may be the diagrams. Not only do you get a complete car diagram, but you also get lots of individual ones for separate systems, like the back of the gauges, and the ignition circuit, lights, etc. And here's another plus for this kit; this was the first time I've ever wired a complete car myself and everything worked the first time I powered up the car and has kept working ever since.
'58 Buick fuse block. Build the rest yourself. (the '58 Buick fuse block has regular spade terminals for crimp connectors and is easily removed from the car; from a Special or Century it only has the basic circuits needed for any vehicle that doesn't have power toys on it). Seriously, asking a question like this is not going to create a definitve answer; you may as well ask which brand of shorts people prefer. You're liable to get any answer from Jockey to Hanes Her Way. If you're not comfortable with doing it yourself from scratch, someone like Rebel Wire may be the best way to go, because you can talk to the guy who puts it together and he can tailor it for your vehicle and your skill level.
I've used EZ in all my cars & customers cars since EZ started without any problems, Although saying that i'm about to start using Rebel Wiring as they are very cost effective. They all seem good but some are very expensive for what you get !!!
Thanks for all the input so far and all of your opinions and suggestions. So far it sounds as if its best to stay away from painless and go with one of the other brands you guys have mentioned. Does anyone else have an opinion on which one they liked best? thx
Um, I wire from scratch, more fun, and exactly what you want/need. Then make a drawing of what you did. I guarantee after you do that you will never be stumped by your wiring again. The Thunder Road Electrical Guide is a good book, in basic laymans terms. It actually tells you why you are doing what you are doing.
Kwik Wire myself. He builds a good kit with heavier wire than a lot of them do. He also makes an 8 circuit kit that should fill the bill nicely
When I first got my 38 Chevy coupe in '74 It didnt have a fuse in it. After having to jump out and unhook the battery to get wires to stop smoking I pirated a wiring harnes out of a 62 impala and installed it. That was before wiring kits. During the last rebuild finished in 2001 I installed a Painless kit. Installed an identical kit in a buddys F-1 a year later. The last time I tried a Haywire kit. Like it much better and its lots cheaper. It has an extra relay on the fuse block that is designed to operate an electric fan but can be used for anything else.
I've used lots of EZ wire kits, never a problem. Pretty complete, easy directions, GM color coded wire, well labeled.
I work at Ron Francis, so feel free to give a call there. A Bare Bones is enough for a basic hot rod with minimal accessories. We are definitely not the cheapest wire kit out there, so if you want cheap, look elsewhere. We go for quality, and that just costs more. Spike
I bought a kit from Rebel Wire...look in the "for Sale" section...if you are an aliance member you get a discount. Very nice stuff, good quality wire, labelede well, good directions. I pulled out a "it's a snap" kit the PO had used...the wires in the Rebel Kit are much better.
The Jalopy Journal
