Inliners International Forums General Discussion Electrical Wiring Question

First, I am new to this board. I have a 1962 Chevy Bel-Air 235 L6 with a 3speed on the column. I have found a lot of useful stuff reading all of the posts, this is a great site. My fuse block has deteorated and is losing connection at the slightest bump. I was thinking of going with a universal harness from EZ Wire or painless for cost reasons but I don't want to cut the firewall any. The factory fit replacements are around $300 for the underdash harness and the fuse block where the EZ is only $175 from front to back. Anyone who has went through this please make suggestions. Thanks in advance

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1962 Chevy Bel-Air, 235 L6, 3sp on the column

I've used Painless on 2 cars that I built for other owners. The kits worked out very well, mostly because they wanted additional circuits to run accessories the factory didn't use (A/C, C/D players and amps, etc).

The kits I used have only a small 1 1/8" or 1 1/4" hole that has a grommet seal around the wires. I took out the factory plugs and welded/sealed the square holes with 16 ga sheet metal, then used a hole saw in the same exact spot to make the round grommet hole.

It really depends on how many things you might add to your ride as to how many circuits you should have. I'm a big fan of lots of cicuits, and the Painless fuseblocks are nicely marked as to which fuse takes care of what. If you go with an original type and then retrofit more gadgets, then it's up to you to remember what wires you tied into in order to get the power out.

Hope this helps.

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David

I do not know the big cars are the same as Chevy IIs, but on the IIs, corrosion is often found where the engine compartment side connects to the interior side. Often taking the block apart and cleaning the connection and putting fresh grease in will eliminate the intermittent problems.

I am pretty sure that the problem is the fuse block itself because I did take the connector loose and clean them and make sure that there wasn't any corrosion. This only made it worse. Thanks anyways. I will probably go with the painless or ez.

Have you tried looking at a salvage yard? if you can find a car that still has the hood, doors and glass in it, then its possible the harness is good too. Or maybe find a complete parts car for a few hundered bucks, strip it, and sell what you don't need.

If you plan on keeping the car for a while, do yourself a huge favor and buy an aftermarket fuse block/Wriring. Don't cheap out on a used one because if you have a problem, like a short and a fire, you'll never forgive yourself.
I used the E-Z 12 circuit system. I am not an electrical madman, just a hobbist. It was clear and simple. go with the new one.

RapRap
1940 Chevy Coupe

Thanks to all. I just ordered the EZ 21 circuit so I would have all the circuits I will possibly ever need for future future upgrades.