Re: SJ Trialer
Posted: Tue Mar 27, 2012 8:48 am
Got a crafty couple of hours at Wellow Racing last night, after dropping in to Newey & Eyre at lunch to pick up a couple of ring crimps. Mike-who-shares-the-barn's Dad is an electrician so has proper crimping pliers for the crimps. We now have properly done ends on both power cables to the kill switch, which is nice.
The rest of the vehicle electrics have needed to be modified to suit the kill switch as well. Thankfully the SJ doesn't have terribly complicated electrics. The modifications have extended to moving the positive feed from the main loom, to go to the starter, then taking the positive feeds in the main loom to the big positive terminal on the kill switch. In addition to this the ignition switch wires now go to the kill switch and back and there's a ballast resistor that goes on the second pair of the terminals and to earth.
I had no idea a ballast resistor was needed in this situation, but because we're breaking the positive, not the negative (I think) we need something to maintain current for the split second the circuit is broken, to prevent the alternator topping itself. Or some such story; I just drew the wiring diagram while nodding and listening to the theory from a mate.
Last night was the first time I've had the opportunity to use a pair of ratchet crimps for the small electrical terminals. This has left me fairly disgusted and wondering why I didn't buy one of these crimping tools before. Oh hang on, that'll be because I'm tight and they're over £20 for something I won't use THAT much (actually I will and I have fairly clearly been fooling myself).
It's one of these and if you don't have one and you have electrical connectors which you might use, go buy one: http://www.screwfix.com/p/forge-steel-r ... tool/70036
Next up, I should probably go buy a pair of these: http://www.tooled-up.com/Product.asp?PID=187607
Brace the wallet and chase the moths out!
The rest of the vehicle electrics have needed to be modified to suit the kill switch as well. Thankfully the SJ doesn't have terribly complicated electrics. The modifications have extended to moving the positive feed from the main loom, to go to the starter, then taking the positive feeds in the main loom to the big positive terminal on the kill switch. In addition to this the ignition switch wires now go to the kill switch and back and there's a ballast resistor that goes on the second pair of the terminals and to earth.
I had no idea a ballast resistor was needed in this situation, but because we're breaking the positive, not the negative (I think) we need something to maintain current for the split second the circuit is broken, to prevent the alternator topping itself. Or some such story; I just drew the wiring diagram while nodding and listening to the theory from a mate.
Last night was the first time I've had the opportunity to use a pair of ratchet crimps for the small electrical terminals. This has left me fairly disgusted and wondering why I didn't buy one of these crimping tools before. Oh hang on, that'll be because I'm tight and they're over £20 for something I won't use THAT much (actually I will and I have fairly clearly been fooling myself).
It's one of these and if you don't have one and you have electrical connectors which you might use, go buy one: http://www.screwfix.com/p/forge-steel-r ... tool/70036
Next up, I should probably go buy a pair of these: http://www.tooled-up.com/Product.asp?PID=187607
Brace the wallet and chase the moths out!
Nice work, you do seem to have a problem with staying on all 4 wheels 