windshield wiper and brake light

[simplyconnected]

Please be more specific... 'cause I'm old.

Well, I believe my original single cylinder master cylinder had a connector on it with 2 wires. (I'll have to double check old pictures) I thought those were the brake lights switch. So when I put in the proportioning valve tha is pictured in my first post on this thread I thought it was for the brake lights, so I finally got around to getting a connector to fit it and wired it the other day.

Some google searches found the same thing that you said about pumping the brakes real hard to reset the switch...

I’m reading your post and wondering if you know how the combination proportioning valve should be wired. Reading between the lines, I suspect your new connector has two wires. Both of those wires are tied TOGETHER inside the connector, so you only need to use one wire. You should verify this with your meter or continuity tester.

I also suspect your combination proportioning valve IS NOT off center. If it was, you would immediately blow your brake circuit fuse. I always encourage verification and further understanding by checking the Internet and I hope you recognize that your valve is not faulted nor does it need to be returned as defective.

The proportioning valve is ADDED TO your brake system. It is not a substitute for your Brake Switch. As John posted, plumb your Brake Switch back in (either the front or rear hydraulic circuit) and wire it as the original was using both green wires.

The new proportioning valve simply turns on a warning light by grounding the light bulb. That means the other side of the light bulb is connected to +12 volts. That circuit is totally separate and divorced from the brake light circuit. If you have questions regarding how to wire it, just ask.

Let's see some pictures of your setup. - Dave

[davidmij]

Thx everyone, I had thought that the proportioning valve connector was the brake light switch. Can you guys give me some ideas on where to plumb in the old switch from my old master cylinder?

As for the temp gauge;
John said, "Take the wire off the temp sender and ground it to the manifold. Turn the key on. If the needle goes all the way to Hot then the gauge is good and it's the sender that's bad."
Thanks John, I'll check that today. Mine is from a 1967 390 and has 2 wires on a half moon shaped connector, I'll test it here in a bit.

Are the fuses for all the electronics just put in line with everything? I can't find a fuse box. I'm having a hard time telling what is what because my wire colors don't seem to match the manual very often. I have a tachometer that I installed last weekend. When I start the motor it works fine for about 5 seconds, then it drops to zero and just twitches and jumps. The makers said that is usually because I don't have a full 12 volts for the tachometer. Any suggestions where to get my "switched" 12 volts for the tach - and a dashlighting source?

thx, Dave J.

[jopizz]

You can pretty much put a brake light switch anywhere. Front or back brake lines doesn't matter. Of course you will want it close to the original wires.

Squarebirds only have one wire for the temp sender. It's red/white. Later models have two. If you have a two wire sender I don't know where the second wire would be wired to in the original harness. I would ground the red/white wire and see if your gauge works.

Squarebirds have no fuse box. All fuses are in line or on the headlight switch.

John

[davidmij]

Thanks John, I imagine I'll put a 3 way brake line connector on one of the lines coming out of my Prop valve which is right on the drivers side wheel well near where the two green wires are.
I'll also try the temp gauge idea - if it doesn't work I'll goolge around and find a drawing somewhere. All these ford sites have tons of stuff that pops upon google(ing) pictures .

thx a ton, Dave J

[simplyconnected]

...As John posted, plumb your Brake Switch back in (either the front or rear hydraulic circuit) and wire it as the original was using both green wires...

Our site has plenty of examples of how each member plumbed their valve. Do a search and check them out.

Thx everyone, I had thought that the proportioning valve connector was the brake light switch. Can you guys give me some ideas on where to plumb in the old switch from my old master cylinder?


Are the fuses for all the electronics just put in line with everything? I can't find a fuse box. I'm having a hard time telling what is what because my wire colors don't seem to match the manual very often. I have a tachometer that I installed last weekend. When I start the motor it works fine for about 5 seconds, then it drops to zero and just twitches and jumps. The makers said that is usually because I don't have a full 12 volts for the tachometer. Any suggestions where to get my "switched" 12 volts for the tach - and a dashlighting source?

thx, Dave J.
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There is no fuse box. Your car only has about five fuses. Each fuse is in a separate holder, next to the device it protects. +12-volts can be found on your key switch ("A" terminal). Dash lights are fed from Blue-Red wires. There are a lot of these; just follow any dash light bulb. Your colors are the same as the manual's. You just need to recognize them. If the manual says Blue-Red, that could mean two things; either a Blue wire with a Red trace, OR a solid blue wire with a RED END.

[jopizz]

'67 Galaxies have hot and cold indicator lights which is why the temp sender has two connectors. You may have to try both prongs on the sender to find the hot side. That is the one that you should wire to the red/white wire for the temp gauge. You can also replace the two prong sender for a one prong.

John

[davidmij]

Wow, I've been into this car for a year and half now and keep finding new things.

While looking for the "A" terminal of my ignition switch (to wire the tachometer) I decided to pull the entire switch out of the dash because it is a little wobbly. When I got it out I saw a bare wire in a cluster of wires. So, I pulled the headlights switch and breaker assembly out also in order to get a better look. The two large yellow, and yellow with black stripe wires go to one connector on the headlight switch. The Y/B wire was melted into the other wires a little and "open". It seemed like it may have had a few strands of wire still connecting it somewhere but they came loose from the melted insulation as I pulled it all down and it was just a frayed and open wire.
Can anyone tell me where that Y/B wire goes, or went?

I hooked the battery back up to see if things still worked because it seemed like the Y/B wire had been open all along. (The strands look very old and oxidized).
Anyway, the headlights come on fine, the car fires up and runs fine, the blinkers work fine.

Very strange. P'raps someone had semi-fried the wiring decades ago and done some kind of work around.

Any ideas? Should I just tape that Y/B wire up and call it good?

Thx as always, Dave J

[jopizz]

Looks like there are three yellow wires together on the B terminal of the headlight switch. One goes to the ignition switch, one goes to the solenoid and one goes to the clock/cigarette lighter. The one to the clock should be smaller than the other two. The only yellow/black wire I see goes to the generator light. That comes from the voltage regulator.

John

[davidmij]

That's what I was thinking too John. This is not the clock lighter wire even though the clock and lighter don't work. This is the 10 gauge Y/B wire, the clock is about an 18 gauge. If it is open and isn't going to the voltage regulator then how does the car start and run?
Of course this car is wired different from the manual because I used the alternator from the 1967 LTD 390. In other words it is wired different than the T-bird was. I used a schematic I found on line to make the change from a generator to the alternator. Plus, the shop manual doesn't have any good schematics. I may have to get a electrical manual. I also need to revisit how I wired it and make some notes.

I'll try to spend tomorrow afternoon looking at it some more. The fuse for the dome light was bad, and so was the fuse for the clock. I replaced them both. The clock still doesn't work, but I think that's fairly common on these old cars. Especially since it had a broken drivers window and sat in the desert for 15 years.

Anyway, I'll try to mess with it tomorrow afternoon. We have a breast cancer fundraiser in Santa Fe tomorrow morning.

thx, Dave

[jopizz]

The yellow/black wire from the generator light to the old voltage regulator is only an indicator. The car will run fine without it. You may want to hook it up to your alternator's voltage regulator so you will know when it's not charging.

John

[simplyconnected]

I think I have found the schematic you used to convert your gen to an alt. It shows the LARGE Yellow-Black and the SMALL Yellow-Black. The Yellow wire going to the Headlight Switch is the power wire coming from the Starter Relay post. As this diagram shows, battery/alternator power wires stay under the hood.

Ford used 'yellow' as a non-fused power wire. You should always be very careful when working with these because the wire IS the fuse. So, disconnect a battery lead while making changes.

The TRL has good electrical diagrams for just about any T-bird. Please check it out because I keep it current. I recently updated the 1960 diagram to show where the elusive 'hidden' Brake Light Fuseholder is wired. (Marcelo gave me the info and I updated the print.) - Dave

[davidmij]

Thx Dave and John,
Just so you know, the 2 wires I'm talking about are tied to one molded spade lug and to the post wire a nut on the light switch. The other lower gauge wire is the generator light as John said.
Dave, what is the TRL? If it is "Technical resource library" can you tell me where it is? I'm horrible at navigating. Thanks!

As I was starting all this I replaced several bulbs - including the generator which now comes on when I start the car. I didn't pay attention to see if it stays on after running, but I will. I also saw something in the manual about the lighter having some kind of a fuse built into the back of it.

Decades ago I was messing with a VW square back my girlfriend drove. As I was trying to get one of the gauges out of the dash it started smoking like crazy from under the dash. That's when I learned to disconnect the battery before touching wires Dave. Fried the entire harness - that was an expensive lesson!

OK, off to Santa Fe.

regards, Dave J

[simplyconnected]

Yes, the TRL is the Technical Resource Library.
Ray Clark runs it and he puts the link in his signature so it shows up in every one of his posts:

http://www.squarebirds.org/picture_gallery/TechnicalResourceLibrary/trl.htm

Slide about 1/4 of the way down and find the WIRING DIAGRAMS title. Then, click on the diagram you like, and a larger one will appear for you to print.

BTW, you're not alone. Some time ago, Ray hired a 'seasoned' Professional Mechanic to work under his dash. This idiot caused a fire which destroyed many of poor Ray's wires.

Screwed to the back of the Cigar Lighter, is what they call a fuse. Actually, it's a self-resetting circuit breaker. Many times when they go bad, they get tossed. The lighter will work without over-current protection. Our '59 had one that didn't work so I bent the toy tabs back, inspected the insides, and fixed it. Now, it's back in business. - Dave

[davidmij]

Awesome Dave, thx!

I just got done digging a little deeper and found the other side of the "open" burnt Y/B wire. It is up in the harness where it should be and it has a red 10 gauge wire spliced to it. Instead of going to the light switch it is going to the top terminal on the starter switch - I believe that is the ignition post. Also off the same post on the starter switch is a wire spliced to a green wire with a fuse going somewhere. I'll have to look at the schematic to see where.

It's pretty obvious now that someone fried it in the past. Not sure why they wired it back differently - stay tuned.......


Dave J

[davidmij]

Whoops!
I was wrong, the Red line (actually the Y/B line is going to the "Batt" post on the ignition switch.