wiring at solenoid (accidental thread deletion)

[FORDification]

1970sportcustom started the following thread, but did an accidental double-post. I went to delete the duplicate post and accidentally deleted the entire thread. I was able to hit my browser's Back button to copy and paste each reply so far. Sorry about that!!

Anyone have a good picture or a diagram showing stock wiring or connections at the starter solenoid? I removed the bolts and pulled it all to the side to paint the inner fender and just want to make sure I don't get a connection wrong.

Inner fender is swiss cheese under the battery box. Guess I should have expected that. I think I'll leave be until the spring. Everything has cleaned up good so far.

Blue electrical-type box next to horn (name?), on radiator support, on pass side close to battery. There is a ground in this wiring bundle, does it go between the rad support and box, or between bolt and box?

- looked in my book for the solenoid wiring, couldn't find a picture, and its too damn cold to go look at my truck. as far as the ground, either one should be fine.

brown wire to the "I" terminal, the red wire to the "S" terminal. The battery side of the terminal is on the "S" side and the starter side is on the "I" side of the solinoid.

Thanks Greg, thats what I thought, but didn't want to burn up the fusible link or something. They come out of the loom the opposite, but it looks like they wanted to "lay" the way you said.

The battery cable goes from the red or S side of the solenoid to the pos. terminal and the long black cable runs from the brown or I side to the block, is this right? I don't think it can go the other way around.

[heep70]

The battery side of the terminal is on the "S" side and the starter side is on the "I" side of the solinoid. Yes that is right.

[dotcentral]

Thanks Keith - and heep 70 and old schoolrods, I got it worked out.

[heep70]

excellent

[dotcentral]

Went out this morning and the truck wouldn't start. Headlights & radio work fine. I'm thinking the starter solenoid is either not grounded, went bad, or I have a bad connection somewhere. Any other likely things to check?

I'm guessing the ground is the problem. I just painted the whole inner fender. Where should the ground be occuring? Does the solenoid make the ground physically? I was thinking it was all grounded to the engine block.

[68F250]

Yes, the solenoid mounting to the inner fender is the ground connection for the solenoid and it needs it to work.

In the alt. wire loom there is a ground wire (black/red stripe) that goes from the alt. ground stud to the engine ground. Another wire from the alt. ground stud (same color) goes to the regulator mounting point on the inner fender. This is the ground reference for the regulator which also grounds the inner fender and also grounds the solenoid. Make sure that both the regulator and solenoid are making good contact with the inner fender.

Barry

[Rockcrusher]

Went out this morning and the truck wouldn't start. Headlights & radio work fine. I'm thinking the starter solenoid is either not grounded, went bad, or I have a bad connection somewhere. Any other likely things to check?

I'm guessing the ground is the problem. I just painted the whole inner fender. Where should the ground be occuring? Does the solenoid make the ground physically? I was thinking it was all grounded to the engine block.

Make sure you have good ground connections between the engine block, chassis and body. Use fat wire and make sure the connection points are bare metal. Should cure what ails you.

[dotcentral]

Well, after a lot of head scratching I decided to take a piece of 300 grit sandpaper to the terminals and battery cables. The thing fired right up. I'd had the battery unhoooked for 2 or 3 days and apparently some sort of acid or film or maybe even overspray was preventing a good connection.