Wiring bulkhead/disconnect at firewall

The time has come to wire my 32 roadster and I'm trying to come up with a slick way to create a bulkhead connection at the firewall for all of the frontend circuits, so that I can take the body off of the frame without too much trouble down the road. This would include all of the underhood wiring and headlights, so the wire gauge varies a bit.

So far all I can think of would be to create a little box at the base of the firewall that would hide a couple 9 pin connectors, then I could just pop open the box and disconnect the harness.

Has anyone come up with something better? I'm not finding much by searching. Pics would be much appreciated.

Thanks very much,
Jake

 

Mulling over the very same issue at this moment. I look forward to some creative responses.

My current plan is to tuck 2 x 8 pin connectors up under the dash to keep them dry and have either a grommet that fills the hole for them to pass through or some kind of sheetmetal cover over the hole.

 

some of the newer cars/minivans hav pressure type pins/contacts.....hard to visualize but have a look at a honda odyssey rear sliding door for an idea

 

one of the cleanest styles i ever saw was a mopar unit that they used on 94-ish dakotas. they used regular spade connectors on both sides with a rubber cover over the whole thing after you made all your connections.

 

http://www.ledfoote.com/store/product_info.php?products_id=258

I have used these a few times, they are big, but when hidden under a fender or other out of the way spot they are not too noticeable.

the only down side is you will want to run your main power wire, as well as your starter wire through a separate plug as that unit can not handle the larger gauge wires.

 

Thank you for the ideas. Any more out there?

Jake

 

I'd look at aircraft fittings and the late model car stuff. Both have been built for environmental protection and vibration resistance.
This sure looks like late model GM stuff.
http://www.aircraftspruce.com/catalog/elpages/sealAllconnectors.php

 

A mil-spec or Cannon connector may look cool. They came in all different sizes, and if you get the right one the wires are quite large. You'd have to find a military surplus place that carries them, here's one example. http://www.surplussales.com/connectors/Circcon.html

 

Here's some more mil-spec/ Deutsch connectors like listed above...

http://www.deutsch.net/deutsch-product-search.aspx?page=3

 

A 7-Pin Trailer Connection Works Great. I saw it on a little VW bug, and thought it was a damn nice idea. Looked clean too.

 

Funny, in 32 Ford, Henry Ford thought of the ideal thing and made the firewall separate from the body so you could lift of the body and still drive the chassis by simply adding seats.
If yours is steel that might work.

 

Molex, available at Radio Shack.

Avoid BMW bits from a junker --
proprietary sizes that you can't replace.

 

Fiberglass I'm afraid.

Those Mil-Spec connectors are very cool, thank you for the help everyone.

Jake

 

When I wire up our road race cars (Hondas ahhhhhhh) I use AMP Mil-Spec connectors, they are available in numerous pin counts and shell sizes, they sound exactly like what you'd want, they're also pretty small and concealable. You can get them in metal shell or plastic shell as well. I get all my stuff from alliedelec.com it's hard to navigate their site, but you can get a catalog from them which weighs about 10lbs and is 2000+ pages long.

 

I used a 21 way bulkhead connector from American Autowire on my '40 Ford. I'll add pix later if I remember - which I don't seem to do much lately.

 

What did you do for the thicker gauge stuff Weasel? Does the AAW connector allow for say, 10 gauge connections?

Jake

 

From past experience-------DON'T use that application----Wire it the right way!!!------------Don

 

Here's a couple options as well....

http://www.kwikwire.com/ca_firewallplug.html

 

All the above are great ideas. I used a bulkhead connection from a Chevette. Ya-you have to pull it out yourself and it takes time. Also used the glass fuse panel and wired the car GM style. Mounted the disconnect under the seat, the fuse panel is under there too. Out of the way and it works. Good luck

 

early to mid 90 gm W-body. the fire wall plug behind the alt. is pretty compact and set up to exit at 90'. the inside half of it unbolts from the fire wall. The halfs bolt together with a nice gasket. You should be able to get enough wire to work with in plenty of gauge selection. The terminals are removable and replaceable with off the shelf stuff from "Terminal Supply". (12 pack at the parts counter of the local gm dealer works too) The fuse box on those is pretty nice, heavy duty and small , bunch of relay sockets. Also treminals from the same source.

 

I use Mil-Spec's at work. They are a pain in the ass to solder the wires onto, but, would look awesome on a deuce (especially if it's gonna be WWII era).

 

I agree with the military connector thing. The cylindrical D38999 series III connectors are great and are available as "environmental" so they're weather tight. Whatever you choose, get a bulkhad mount for the firewall and a plug for the loose end. Super solid and vibration resistant.

D-Sub (M24308 style) connectors are pretty good too. You can always hit up your electrical supply house, they have lots of alternatives to choose from.

The down side of the mil-style connectors is the specialized crimp tooling.

Bob

 

Painless sells a 22 pin waterproof bulkhead connector.
http://www.painlessperformance.com/webcatalog/largeview.php?SearchField=40130