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I haven't been happy with my wiring job for years now. I re-wired the entire Bronco years and years ago with some sort of painless system. There wasn't any problem with the system itself just in the fact that I had never re-wired a vehicle and it turned into a mish mash instead of a clean "HOLY SHIT, NICE WIRING JOB" which is the way I wanted it. I just didn't have the experience of being able to plan correctly and it shows. I haven't ever had any electrical issues, which is a testiment to the fact that I did know HOW to wire everything, and it hasn't burned down so kudos to me. What I've been thinking about (LARS THIS IS FOR YOU) is re-wiring it AGAIN, but instead of doing it in a traditional vehicle style with the fuse panel hidden away. I was thinking about how aircraft wiring is done. In an aircraft you have a row of breakers that are mounted right into the dash, so if you have some sort of electrical issue you can "See" which breaker is the problem and try resetting it or you can simply pull a breaker if need be. Easy, functional, accessable, and pratical. Lars is it feasable to use an aircraft type electrical system on a vehicle? I can't think of any reason it wouldn't be. I heard that the aircraft breakers are rediculous in price but I haven't done any research. Lars would know.
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Re: wiring(calling LARS)
Trent, it's true: aviation circuit breakers are stupid expensive. See here, for example.
Ironically, blade-type (ATO) fuses are starting to show up in aircraft. Mostly homebuilts, but also in the new light-sport category. There is still a lot of resistance in the certified world, mostly from the "that's the way we've always done it" crowd, but there are some compelling reasons to dump circuit breakers. I can supply links to articles if you are interested.
And, it turns out that I used ATO fuses in Bussman fuse blocks on my RV-7. Here's a looking-down-from-the-top shot of my fuse panel. It's on the right side of the instrument panel, ahead of the passenger. The panel actually hinges down for access, though I don't have a photo of that. This photo was taken before I skinned the front of the fuselage, which I waited to do until all the wiring was finished. Excuse the blue masking tape, that went away when I labeled all the fuses:
Lots of companies make ATO style fuse blocks. The Bussman blocks I used in the airplane are inexpensive and basic. I have a fancy Blue Sea Systems block on the firewall of my Bronco, as an auxiliary distribution panel, above the gas pedal. It's nice because it has a plastic cover, so it's a bit better protected (not as necessary in the relatively benign environment behind the instrument panel of the -7).1970, Exploder 5.0 with P heads, EEC-IV EDIS, lots of wiring.
Originally posted by CityHick -
Re: wiring(calling LARS)
Looks real nice Lars. So when are you coming by the house to re-wire the Bronco. I want it to look like that AND have everything work..
I am interested in the pros and cons of breakers vs fuses. I don't want to do a thesis on the subject but if you have something short and sweet I'd like to read it.......T.sigpic68' 351W ,Nothing stock except transfer case
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Re: wiring(calling LARS)
Who said anything about everything working?Originally posted by FLYINHIE View Post
Seriously though... the guru (I actually hate that word) of homebuilt aircraft electrical system architecture is a guy named Bob Nuckolls. He has some good ideas, and I utilized some of his recommendations when I designed the RV-7 electrical system.
Here's a link to something he wrote several years ago, questioning the conventional wisdom about circuit breakers.
Bob N. can be (usually is) pretty verbose. But here's some more anyway.
Feeling masochistic? This page has a whole lot more, some of which is applicable to wiring ground-bound vehicles. Good bedtime reading.1970, Exploder 5.0 with P heads, EEC-IV EDIS, lots of wiring.
Originally posted by CityHickComment
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