BJ74 Restoration and LHD Conversion has begun!

[Shes Mad]

Since I went through the pain to remove the starter, At least I took the opportunity to move the shutoff VSV to the firewall per John Galts suggestion. There was enough wire, just had to add some vacuum hose

 

[Shes Mad]

One electrical problem solved, more crop up.

So I fixed the starter issue, hooked it up as I assumed a couple of posts back. No sparks, but no power either.

So I went back to the disassembly pics, and found this. Look at the battery cable circled in red on the right



Notice the green plug, and the rusty eyelets. The green plug had a 10GA white and 14GA red wire on it, and I also had an 8 or 10GA black wire connected by an eyelet. All 3 went together in an eyelet to the positive terminal. Here is that piece



So I hooked them up to positive. Got power, but the large black wire got hot--smoked! QUICK DISCONNECT!!!
When I disconnected it, there was no continuity to ground, but the large white and the red did have continuity to ground, which doesn't seem right?

The large black wire smoked to the soledoids for the glow screen. (left center wire) The white and blue wires go to the glow screen, and also have continuity to ground. I assume the black wire brings in the power, and the solenoids transfer it to the glow screens. I checked the solenoid pack per FSM, and it all checked out.



So where do the large white and orange wire (the green plug) supposed to go? They were all hooked together, so how can one be power and 2 grounded/

Electrically retarded right now

 

[crushers]

the large orange and the large white are your fusable links.
they feed power to the whole system.
you have a ground somewhere that shouldn't be.

 

[Shes Mad]

the large orange and the large white are your fusable links.
they feed power to the whole system.
you have a ground somewhere that shouldn't be.

Thanks Wayne. That is where I was leaning--thought they powered the system. so they do need power.

GRRR--more searching--disconnecting grounds till I hit paydirt

 

[crushers]

i added 38 new circuits and 28 new fuses to the "work" BJ70 build.
i have spent the last 3 weeks chaceing electrical gremlins ... stupid part is, when we tested each circuit individually as being install they all checked fine.

i feel your pain.

 

[Shes Mad]

i added 38 new circuits and 28 new fuses to the "work" BJ70 build.
i have spent the last 3 weeks chaceing electrical gremlins ... stupid part is, when we tested each circuit individually as being install they all checked fine.

i feel your pain.

Gremlins.....I just hope the issue isn't under the dash!

 

[crushers]

at least with the 7* series the whole cosmetic dash is easily removed for access to the harness for testing unlike the other series.

 

[cruiserdan]

Gremlins.....I just hope the issue isn't under the dash!

at least with the 7* series the whole cosmetic dash is easily removed for access to the harness for testing unlike the other series.

Let me ask both of you gents. Is it really worth all the effort to convert RH to LH? It seems to me that the brain damage can easily exceed the end result. My RHD 74 is sound with virtually no rust. I would love the steering wheel to be on the left but the combined skills required well surpass my level and the cost to hire it out would be astronomical.

 

[crushers]

i drive RHD,
i build custom, very expensive cruisers that end up with a lot of ... intricate fitting of parts and electrical.
check out the 1985 BJ70 work truck and you will see the complex (for me) wiring needed.

i bounce between LHD and RHD on a daily basis, both have their pros and cons in North American applications.

 

[cruiserdan]

i drive RHD,
i build custom, very expensive cruisers that end up with a lot of ... intricate fitting of parts and electrical.
check out the 1985 BJ70 work truck and you will see the complex (for me) wiring needed.

i bounce between LHD and RHD on a daily basis, both have their pros and cons in North American applications.

I am getting used to driving on the right. I would prefer to be on the left in a perfect world but I am not prepared to spend thousands of dollars and hours to do it. I got the truck to enjoy it and seeing it scattered all over the shop for perhaps years really takes the fun out of it.

 

[Malahki]

For some people the "fun" is in the build itself and completing a project can be anticlimactic. Resulting in them selling and starting a new project. I think most of us are somewhere in the middle but a build like this particular one is definitely a labour of love!!

 

[Shes Mad]

For some people the "fun" is in the build itself and completing a project can be anticlimactic. Resulting in them selling and starting a new project. I think most of us are somewhere in the middle but a build like this particular one is definitely a labour of love!!

You nailed it. I have been doing this for years, and never for anyone else, or for profit. Hobby, enjoyment, challenge. That's what I get out of it. Why do I do it? Because I can.

Like fishing, hunting, horseback riding. Takes a lot of time, trial and error, but that is where the enjoyment and learning comes from.

 

[crushers]

and
you excel at it.

 

[John Galt]

Let me ask both of you gents. Is it really worth all the effort to convert RH to LH? It seems to me that the brain damage can easily exceed the end result. My RHD 74 is sound with virtually no rust. I would love the steering wheel to be on the left but the combined skills required well surpass my level and the cost to hire it out would be astronomical.

I looked at the options and decided it was easier to convert my brain to include RHD. I started by moving the computer mouse to the left hand. Once that was automatic hand-eye, the rest came easy.

I live in a sparsely settled region and I don't drive much in traffic, so the challenges RHD presents in those cases isn't a frequent problem. As well, the insurance and registration/licensing jurisdictions are RHD import 'friendly'. On the semi-paved trails with indistinct shoulders that pass for roads around here RHD offers distinct advantages of always knowing how much road and shoulder you've got, especially in a land where it snows for half the year.

I can see how a LHD BJ-74 would be a distinct advantage in MN and if I had the shop and time, I'd like to get my mechanical/electrical creativity into a project like this one.

The '74 is an excellent vehicle in RHD or LHD. This one will be a unique showpiece when finished.

Keep up the good work -- stay warm.

 

[Shes Mad]

Great time to be in the shop today. It isn't supposed to get above zero for the next 3 days. Got up to 4 below today! WooHoo

Going to Florida on the 13th, so I will put up with it for now

I spent almost all afternoon trying to fix a brake fluid leak on a line.....

Started with a leak on the right side where the lines connect from the MC to rubber lines.

Thought I had a bad flare, so I cut the line and reflared it. Still leaks

Cut it again, reflared. Still leaks

Changed out the rubber hose. Still leaked

Put the other hose back on. rerouted the line as it was getting short.

Cut the line, changed tube nut, and reflared. NO LEAK!!!

I don't know if it was the nut or the flare, or the nut that did the flaring, but it doesn't leak now.

Happy

Only took 4 hours

 

[Shes Mad]

Decided to tackle the electrical gremlins today.

The wire that got hot last time was the black wire going to the glow screen solenoids. I disconnected the black wire (comes from Power), and then powered it up again. NO issues. Everything I tried worked except the wipers and the starter. Wipers I will tackle later

First question on the Glow Screen. When I turned on the key, the black wire got hot again. Then I had the black wire disconnected, I cycled up power. The solenoids clicked, the timer ran, preheat light on, then shut off, as they should. So I am wondering if I have the wires hooked up wrong on the actual glow screen. There are washers, insulators, etc, and I cannot determine what order, if any, they need to be in. Here is a pic before I took them off, and I believe I have them hooked up the same way





I don't get it? Need Help.

Second, the starter. I cut the solenoid wire to insert a clutch safety switch. The starter relay clicked, but no starter. So I hooked the wires together that I cut, and starter kicked in. So it is installer error.

I put a Hella 30AMP relay in, but not sure how to wire it. See below. Is this right? How I had it wired did not work, so I pulled the wires, and drew a diagram as how I THINK it should work.



Does this look right? Need more help!

 

[Shes Mad]

Need help need help

 

[John Galt]

There is a circuit diagram for the Pre-Heat system at msg#10 at this link
https://forum.ih8mud.com/diesel-tech-24-volts-systems/597560-super-glow-explained.html

There is a picture of a glow screen unit in msg#1 at this link
https://forum.ih8mud.com/diesel-tech-24-volts-systems/597560-super-glow-explained.html

Using a test-meter and the diagram, check for continuity and shorts to ground. Hope this helps.

 

[torfab]

For Cruiserdan, I finished my LHD conversion and 12HT swap in my BJ74 in about 3 weeks. I love it, and at the same time really disliked driving on the RH side of the truck. The novelty wore off quickly and I'm glad I made the change.

I decided to use the 12V harness from the BJ70 LHD donor, which I think made my conversion easier. I also did the conversion quickly so all the parts and pieces were fresh in my mind during the project. I consciously chose not to do a full restoration, only rust repair. My cruiser is meant to be a camping rig, and restoring it like shes mad (beautifully restored by the way - props) just didn't make sense for my needs.

 

[torfab]

Your numbers are correct on the relay, and that SHOULD work fine. The drawing however is incorrect. 85 and 86 are opposite from eachother, and 30 at the bottom with 87 and 87a are the two poles that are ones that go horizontal

http://www.quickconnectproducts.com/relay-wiring-parrot.jpg

Good job adding a clutch starter interrupt though, my wife just started my cruiser and it hit a little jelly bean car in the parking lot. No damage to the 74, but the Aveo she hit was toast.