dash electrical 224

[TSMART]

A couple years ago, I had a blown fuse. The others looked pretty cheap though, so I replaced them all. I can say that the fuse box (fuse bar?) looks pretty tired. The contacts look like old aluminum. One on a 15 amp fuse is bent pretty badly. And, though my reported problem is with these gages blinking out, I can say that the horn does not work, the lights work sometimes. Work light (to rear) does not work. Flasher does not work. Yet these fuses are not blown. I dont care so much about those problems tho they may be related....but I can't go with out temp gage for sure.

I guess I will remove all the fuses, hit them with some cr666 elec lube, and see if that does it. I keep the engine bay pretty clean. I have not yet had time this week to pull the cluster to reseat the connectors . In my wildest dreams I could get everything working again, even the horn.

On a really hot day, while mowing the field, I would drive by the house, honk the horn, wife comes out with a cold beer. I miss that horn. : ( Help me fix that horn. Please.

If I have to go replace the fuse bar, how does that work? Does the fuse bar plug into the harness? Is there extensive re-wiring for that job? Not a pro here by any means.

 

[curthibbert]

No, its not hard at all. But unless you just want to replace your fuse box anyway, you need to make sure that is your gauge problem. Sounds like the same fuse box to me. Rusty aluminum colored fuse prongs. With my key on and the gauges not working, I wiggled the fuses until I found which one would make them bounce on and off. The basic wiring on mine was the main power to everything came in on a 10 or 12 gauge wire starting at the battery connection on the starter to the fuse box through a 30 amp fuse then out through the amp meter to the ignition switch. From the ignition switch another wire came back to the fuse box. This is the switched power that powers most of your stuff. Lights, gauges, horn everything that works with the key on. That wire supplies power to around 3 more fuses. One fuse just had the supply to the alternator field. Another had the horn and headlights. Another had the turn signals and work light. I put the gauge cluster wire on with the turn signals and work light. Like I said, I bought the fuse box Rob used. I bought it from Fuse Blocks and Fuse Panels. I used some flag style wire connectors from McMaster Carr. The Chinese fuse box used crimp on ring style connectors you run a screw through. The new one uses push on wire connectors. Buy some 10-12 gauge and some 14-16 gauge. You will have to use the larger 10-12 gauge ones with the main power wire and when you jumper wire in your new fuse box to crimp 2 wires in the same terminal. This is to use the same wire to power more than one fuse. The rest are the 14-16 gauge. Remember on the output side of the fuse you will have to combine all the stuff you want to run off that particular fuse into one wire connector. Another use for the 10-12 gauge wire connectors. The Chinese wires all have separate rings crimped on each wire. But you get to throw however many you need under the same screw. The fuse box itself fits right in the same hole the Chinese one came out of. Just drill some new mounting holes for the new one. I used spacers underneath my new box to bring it out to the same level as the tractor sheet metal. There is a ground wire there too in the fuse box area. Make sure and sand off the paint and reattach so you get a good ground.
regards
Curt

 

[curthibbert]

Oh yes, I forgot to say I did have trouble with the screws just being loose on the original Chinese fuse box. Make sure the phillips head screws on each end of each fuse that secure the wires are tight. I get to thinking about all the trouble I had with the original, and may be you should just change it.
regards
Curt