Thread: Low-budget/T-Bucket Pickup

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Originally Posted by NTFDAY

I was just curious and wondering if you were part of the crowd that thinks wiring a Ford solenoid in series with a GM solenoid fixes a starter heat soak issue. Yours is a more practical application.

I think most people that use the ford solenoid as a remote unit are doing so when they move their battery from stock so they don't have a large hot battery cable running from one end of the car to the other. Plus itsaves money and weight.


Driver50x, it is loking very nice! You have to be getting excited now!

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Originally Posted by 40FordDeluxe

I think most people that use the ford solenoid as a remote unit are doing so when they move their battery from stock so they don't have a large hot battery cable running from one end of the car to the other. Plus itsaves money and weight.
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I disagree. Putting a Ford solenoid in the circuit increases the total resistance which will ultimately increase the gauge of the positive cable. The larger the gauge the less resistance it will have as well as more current carrying capacity. As an example what was the size of the positive cable originally in your Vette?

Originally Posted by NTFDAY

I disagree. Putting a Ford solenoid in the circuit increases the total resistance which will ultimately increase the gauge of the positive cable. The larger the gauge the less resistance it will have as well as more current carrying capacity. As an example what was the size of the positive cable originally in your Vette?

How is it increasing resistance? You use the solenoid to send the voltage down the battery cable to the starter during cranking only so the cable isn't hot the entire time. I was joking about saving money and weight.

Although, this is a good safety feature irregardless.

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Any component added to a circuit adds to the resistance of that circuit. Adding a Ford solenoid in series with a Chevrolet solenoid, except for a safety feature, is a band aid at best. If the engineers at GM thought that by adding a Ford solenoid in series with a GM starter and solenoid would work better I'm sure they would have done so years ago. There are a number of possible causes if the engine won't start, starter won't spin, and they are:
1 Bad or loose grounds
2 Corroded cable(s)
3 Too small gauge wire running from the battery to the solenoid
4 Badly worn brushes in the starter
5 Arced contact in the solenoid
I have encountered all 5 of those things in my almost 60 years of messing with cars and trucks.

Originally Posted by 40FordDeluxe

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Driver50x, it is loking very nice! You have to be getting excited now!

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Thanks Ryan! It’s great to see some visible progress. I might fire up the engine pretty soon, just to make some noise, and help keep me motivated.

Originally Posted by Driver50x

I might fire up the engine pretty soon, just to make some noise, and help keep me motivated.

Definitely! That's one of those milestones that seems to make things all worth it.