Wiring Q?

[jamesjones]

I know it's been touched on a little in the past but I thought I'd get an up to date opinion.

What is the consensus on the best wiring kit for our rigs? Painless? H&M? Other? I'm curious because I think I'd be better off rewiring my whole Blazer and was planning on having a shop do it, however after some quotes of $2500 to $3500 to do it I think I'll give it a shot myself. I need something complete and easy to install as I'm a wiring dunce. What do you guys think?

[LUV2XCLR8]

The Set-up On My Blazer Is Really Nice, However It Was On It When
I Purchased It, So I Have No Idea What Kind It Is, However You Can
Send A Pm To Joe ("1972BLAZER") & Ask Him, He Luv's To Be Helpful.

[bouncytruck]

I've heard good things about the painless systems, but no personal experience. Didn't they use an aftermarket wire system in project copperhead on trucks? If so, does anyone know what brand?

[Madbomber88]

Definitely go with Painless. I bought their complete harness to restore my 71 CST and I couldn't be happier. It is a direct replacement yet with better materials and it allows for adding stuff on in the future. Well worth the $400 or so you'll spend.

[jamesjones]

Had you had any wiring experience before you did the install? I'd hate to get knee deep in wires and realize that I'm in over my head and have to take it to a shop anyway.

I found a place that'll do it for around 2K and he'll do the HEI and internally regulated alternator swap while he's at it. He does a lot of stuff for the desert guys around here. I may just bite the bullet and have him do it.

This is driving me crazy, this wiring crap is the only thing holding up my buildup.

[Madbomber88]

I didn't have much experience before I tackled mine. It's all color coded, and it is pretty hard to mess up. Biggest thing you can do to help yourself is to take out the existing harness while you are putting the new one in, or at least take pictures of the existing wiring before you take it out. It is basically a one for one swap. It would be a crime to pay someone $2000 to put in a harness for you, that's highway robbery if you ask me. Or maybe I should start my own business doing it!!
Trust me, do it yourself and you'll be happier with the job, and you'll learn alot in the process.

[jamesjones]

Yeah, I know, I'm going to give it a shot myself. Crap like this is why my friends call me "Cole" after Tom Cruise's character in Days of Thunder. I can drive like a mofo but I don't know crap about the vehicles I drive.

[jamesjones]

Madbomber88...do you happen to have the part number for the kit you ordered? Was it just the 18 circuit setup for the trucks or do they have a special one for the blazers?

[Madbomber88]

Let me see...I am almost positive it was #10206.
Just give yourself plenty of time, and take your time. Take the extra effort to route the wires cleanly and I highly recommend getting the heat activated shrink connectors instead of the crimp ons that Painless gives you. The heat ones will last much longer and look much better. I think you can get them at almost any automotive store.

[jamesjones]

Thanks for the help.

[Kleantouch]

Not wanting to drag this to death- I went with the 68-72 chevy painless wiring- check Summit racing- they had the best prices- READ THE DIRECTIONS- get a quality crimper and stripper- one drawback is you have to enlarge the hole in the firewall to bolt the fuseblock to- as did copperhead- not really a big deal- PLUS the techs at Painless have an 800# and are VERY helpful- wiring is not that big a deal- color coded, each wire is printed- bundles are tied together- get the big picture first, then the rest will fall into place- Painless gives you plenty of wire- as it was said before- you'll appreciate the job you did yourself, and have 1500 left over.
Good luck.

[Huck]

$2K is a ripoff!!! another helpfull hint is to lay out the new harness on the ground with the named wires going the direction of the originals. This will give you a clearer picture of what goes where before you start. It is also helpful to have a buddy with you so that two heads might equal one good one!!! And four eyes==---etc.
Take you time and allow a good full day or two, to do the job. Not that tough.

[jamesjones]

One more question. Did the Painless kit come with the front harness and engine harness? I was looking at the wiring today and it looks like those two are my main problem but to buy them seperately is around $200 so if the painless get is around $300-$400 and comes with those I'd be better off doing the whole thing.

[Madbomber88]

It comes with everything minus the A/C harness

[jamesjones]

Sweet, Thanks.

[earl87gta]

I got my painless from summit for $307 if you go to the painless web site you can download the manual that comes with the kit and get a heds up of every thing involved its not hard just time consuming dont cut any thing untill you have it laid out just like you want it and try to give you self some slack in case you have to change somthing down the road.