The last adventure for Dixie I reported was the tune up and our friend Young Steve helping us get her out on the road.  We decided to bite off a big chunk and replace all of the wiring.

Did I mention it was a big chunk?

I was not quite prepared for how big.

BIG.

We took the advice of a friend and ordered a ready-made wiring harness.  There are companies out there who can build a wiring harness for many needs.  In our case, we chose a company called Kwikwire.  They have a great reputation, and are a family owned and operated company based in the United States.  We found the one we needed, and placed the order.

The box arrived.  It was a big, heavy box.  We took it out to the barn and opened it.  That is when I realized just how big this project would be.

The box was FULL of wire.  The wires were all connected to a fuse box.  It looked like a multi-colored, crazy octopus.  The wires were coiled and bundled. 

Did I mention the box was FULL of wires?

I was immediately intimidated.  Where in the world do you start?

Fortunately, the people at Kwikwire had their game together.

There was a full schematic included that showed you the entire project.  Mind you, it was a bit overwhelming as it was the entire vehicle.  They also included a step-by-step instruction booklet.  The booklet had smaller schematics of each part of the wiring process. 

We started by removing the harness from the box and laying it out on the floor of the barn.  It was amazing.  Each section of the wiring bundled by function, and labeled so that it corresponded with a section in the instruction booklet.  Each wire had colored insulation.  It was very colorful!  Red, light blue, dark blue, purple, pink, and on and on.  Each wire was also stamped about every six inches with a label indicating the function. 

How cool is that?

We spent some time getting acquainted with the new harness, referring to the instructions and Dixie for reference.  Then Hubby decided it was time to dive in.

Head first.

Hubby mounted the fuse box under the dash, and we worked together to pull the necessary wiring circuits through the firewall into the engine compartment.  As we pulled wires in, we referenced what wires would be going to what parts.  Once all of the necessary “outside” wiring was through the firewall, we started to remove the old and replace with new. 

Sounds simple enough.

Wrong.

The instructions were very good.  However, they were not 100% specific to OUR vehicle.  The company is quite clear in explaining that they give all of the scenarios you may need, but cannot tell you what your specific needs may be.  We had to do some deciphering, some research, and some guessing along the way. 

I learned more about Dixie. 

Originally, Dixie had a generator and voltage regulator to keep her electrical system in check.  Somewhere along the way, someone removed the generator and replaced it with an alternator, thus eliminating the need for the voltage regulator.  The voltage regulator was still under the hood, but nothing was connected to it.  It sounds simple as I write it, but it took time and discussion to figure it out.  This is all new territory!

As Hubby worked under the hood, I took on the job of installing the turn signals.  In 1959 turn signals were an option.  Dixie did not have them.  I bought a kit that was a reproduction of the original turn signal kit, and a tool to remove the steering wheel, called a “puller”.  I found a great tutorial online and got to work.  It surprised me that the job went along quite smoothly, and I got the turn signal kit installed, the wires run through the steering column and out to be joined to the new wiring. 

Hurray!

The wires on the turn signal kit came with no wiring diagram.  They were each a different color.  That was good.  The wires on the wiring harness were labeled for each turn signal function.  That was good.  However, the two sets of wires did not match in color, so I had no clue what wire matched.  That was bad. 

I went to one of my go-to websites for old truck information.  After a bit of searching I found an article with step-by-step instructions on deciphering the turn signal wiring.  Hubby had the right tool for the job, and we went through the steps.  It worked!  That allowed successful matching of the wires. 

From there, we worked on headlights, taillights, and the instrument panel.  Given we could not work on this full-time, it took about two weeks for the entire project.  Everything had a home and we were ready to test.  We turned the key and stepped on the starter.

Nothing.

We tried the headlights, brakes, and turn signals.

Nothing.

Hmmm.

After some discussion and reading, we determined we may be missing some grounding.  The wiring harness does not come with the ground wires, so it is your job to figure out what you need.  Hubby went to work installing a few more ground wires. 

Lights!  Turn signals!  Horn!  Hurray!

Still, Dixie would not start.

Hubby did some pondering away from Dixie.  He came home from work one day and looked under the hood again.  He remembered a special fuse that was installed in a little case within one wire coming off of the battery.  He changed the fuse. 

Victory!

Now that the wiring is up to date, we have figured out there are bulbs burned out and they have been ordered. The headlights will need proper alignment, and that is for another day.

We took Dixie back out on the road yesterday.  It was quite a treat to drive around keeping our arms INSIDE the vehicle when we needed to turn!  The speedometer still does not work, and remains on the list. 

Dixie does not move quickly.  It is not about how quickly we can get there.  The journey is what matters. 

I am enjoying my journey, and sharing it with you!