Starting issues

[doghousedevil]

I'm getting frustrated with my model a's wiring. I used a speedway 12 circuit kit. The battery arcs as soon as I touch the cable to the battery. The car is grounded from battery to frame, engine to frame and engine to body. I have triple checked the wires to the diagrams and everything is as it should be. I don't know where to go from here

 

[dutch]

no expert by any means, but it sounds like something is drawing current. I would start with pulling fuses untill the sparking stops. [S

 

[Bamamav]

You have a dead short somewhere.

 

[Whyworry]

You have a dead short somewhere.

What he said. .... or you could try a large tail light bulb between the battery and the main hot wire ... if the bulb light ya got a draw if the pig tail wires smoke ya got a dead short .... CAUTION !!! don't hard wire to start just touch one end of the pig tail to the battery other to the load .( never seen the wires smoke but ya never know !!)

 

[tator]

Take a 12 volt test light, hook one end to a battery post, hook the other end to the battery cable that goes there. Do not hook that cable to the battery. Take the other cable put it on the other battery post. If the light is on you have a short circuit somewhere. Start pulling fuses one at a time, if the light goes out, that is where the short is. If the light is still on it is shorted in a circuit that is not fused. So start disconnecting wires one at a time till the light goes out. One of the things that it could be is a shorted altenator. I would try unhooking that first. I don't think you are going to find the short in the fuses, it would probably pop the fuse.
Anyone reading this, this does not work on a vehicle with a computer as they automatically have a draw, and the test light will always be on.

 

[soltz]

If it had a dead short wouldn't blow the fuse[S

Maybe check with speedway [S

Good luck

 

[Old Iron]

If it had a dead short wouldn't blow the fuse[S

Not if the alternator is bad. Like Tator suggested.

 

[Yankee Transplant]

yep im with yall take the test light and hook it to the hot wire and hot post if its shorted it will light ... then take wires loose one at a time till the light goes off .. that will be the one that has the dead ground .

 

[sneakysnake]

For you guys that prefer pics.lol

 

[Yankee Transplant]

sneaky I did not know this ...I always heard of some body doing this if you kept getting a dead battery , as something was drawing your battery down ,, the way I was going to figure it out was to put the test light ground wire on the hot wire , then the bulb end on the hot post of the battery .. if it lights that means you have a hot wire that is made ground some where .. I guess it will work ??

 

[akatao]

it is the same

 

[Whyworry]

If you disconnect the pos.terminal from the battery it will work .
Test light between load & battery (dosen't matter which terminal you put it between)

 

[sneakysnake]

I think they always have you do the Neg side or remove Neg side first is to prevent arc or accidental shorting. Nothing like touching a wrench from Pos to anything metal if the Neg is still on bat.