PS> Ordered my OEM Lower Ball Joints, tonight, 63$ a piece! Should have them in no more than a next Monday, then it's ONNNNN, boooooey! LOL. Well, still have to get the shocks from my buddy on trade, or maybe some other things, lol... and then I'll be nearly ready to go. Ordering the bj spacers and diff drop from 4Crawler, tomorrow... Just too tired to stay on another minute! lol.... .oh yeah, plus I still have to clean up a lil in there! grrrr, lol.

 

maybe this will help with the relay pins. ignore 87a if you only have 4 pins.

 

Dang XXX, you beat me to the relay wiring by just minutes, lol.

Another nice diagram, Chef if your switch has 3 legs (I betting it does) the the 3rd leg would be to ground.

 

not gonna take credit for the diagram. Google is my friend. However, I will take credit for this one for the headlight wiring harness upgrade that I did.

 

Thanks, Rob, Brandon..... you guys rock! That's JUST what I needed, B! I'ma try to figure out why which goes where it does, in time, ..but for now, just wanna know the lay out, lol!

Rob, my switch has 2 pins, not 3. I was told at the electronics store, the third pin is usually for a 'light' on a 'lighted switch'. Mine has no light, thus, no need for a 3rd pin. Unless the electronics expert is silly in the head! hahaha... hey, after what's happened to me with machinists, etc., over the last few months.... I WONDER! hahaha. I might get a lighted switch instead, but I felt... 'FLIP TOP, keeping it from switching without opening top' was the way to go for me. I've had other things lit and not even paid attention to it when rolling down the road for countless miles! lol.

I'm stoked on the OEM lower Ball Joints for that price, too, guys.... I mean, even with my 20% dealer discount, the price was like 88$ or so. So at least I saved 30 bucks, minus the shipping I paid. I'll use that to pay for my diff drop, if I in fact do that. (you firmly decided yet on the diff drop kit, Rob?)

Thanks again, X, for the great diagram!

Mark

PS> X, are you saying that the Off pin on the Switch needs to be to the auxiliary kick panel on my side(by my foot)?

 

what size diode is that? p/n or amperage. i assume just a 1004 will work?

 

well, ya know what, I didn't use that and my lows stay on with my highs. iamsuperbleeder did something similar to his as well, but i think he might have used a diode. If you search for that image name here, you should find the thread it's in.

 

X, ..... any thoughts on whether I can open my light and replace the power wire with a 10G? Or should I just be fine with 14G throughout the system?

 

what you mean by open up light? the fog light itself? 14G seems a little low but you should be fine with that going to each light. But I would use 10 gauge in the rest of the system.

I edited this as when referencing these numbers I gave, they are all over the place when it comes to ratings. There is no set standard I guess.

14G seems to be ok with 180 watts @ 12VDC and 15A if kept under 6 ft in length.
10G seems to be ok with 360 watts @ 12VDC and 30A if kept under 6.6 ft in length.
8G seems to be ok with 720 watts @ 12VDC and 50A if kept under 8 ft in length.


I forgot what we said your total current draw would be.

trick here is make sure your fuse blows before the wire melts. but you probably already know that. lol.

 

yeah, the factory 14 is fine for each light, but x2 on what xxx said

 

Hey guys,

Well, the lights are 100W from everything I could find. As of now, I have;

1. 40A, 5 Pin relay and block with sealed bottom, 5 wires coming out of there. The wires on this 40A relay block are all 14G wire... So I'm guessing that now, from what's being said, I might not be ok with the 14 wire I have plenty of for the rest?
2. 40A Glass Fuses and sealed housing and wire mounting rings for the fenderwell(This fuse holder has 12G wire, sealed, coming out of both ends and joined(I know, I have to cut it)
3. Plenty of 3/8" Heat Shrink Tubing
4. Plenty of split-flex wire loom
5. 20A, 2-pin on&off switch with flip top for preventing switch throwing on accident
6. Got the Grommets for both lights where the wire comes out, ...and it's tight(and yes, X, I was asking if I could take the Dick Cepek housings apart and rewire the light from the contacts through the grommet... But I don't think I need to do this)

********************************

So, now I read that I should be using 10G wire throughout, other than the existing light wires? Ahhhh.... Sorry, I would have waited to go get stuff but I have limited time that I can get out to the store, etc.

Also, are you guys saying a 40A fuse is just too big? I need to throw a 30A in there with a 40A relay and my 20A switch?

Could I just use the 14G wire with 100W lights and be ok? Or would that be very risky?

Thanks guys, .....I guess I should have just waited, but I didn't think I needed the 10G wire.

 

2 x 100W lights = 16.67 Amps of current draw. That switch is fine as long as you ar only using it to "trip" te relay as the relay itself will not draw that much current through the switch.

each light will draw 8.3amps which is fine for the 14ga wire. but the whole system will draw 16.67a over the rating for the 14ga wire. Which means up to the relay you should be using 10ga wire. This is assuming you are gonna split the two supply wires at the relay itself. If you split a single wire from the relay then tap into that wire for the second light the wire your tapping into should be 10ga. Maybe 12ga. Would have to look that up as far as current capacity but I wanna say somewhere around 20amp when under 6ft.

Not sure on what kind of relay block your talking about. but 12ga wire on a 40 amp relay doesn't sound right.

But if your using 14g wire then a 15 amp fuse would be needed but those 100w lights will blow the fuse.

10g wire would require no more than a 30a fuse. Using a 40 amp relay is fine. The fuse would blow before you damage the relay.

Hope this is all kinda making sense. Like I said the confusing part of all this is there is no set current rating on AWG wire. Some sites will say it's good for 15amp while another site will say it's good for 20 amp etc etc. And some of them you have to be careful because the ratings given are for 24V, 120V etc etc, which changes the current rating when a different voltage is used.

This site here http://beta.circuitwizard.bluesea.com/ uses a wire size calculator that uses the ABYC standards which comply with NFPA and USCG regulations.

Note when putting in load current use what fuse size you are gonna use to avoid the risk of using a wire that is rated below what ever fuse you will run. Typical voltage loss would be between 3-5% mostly 5%. This means a 5% drop in voltage from the beginning to the end of the wire. Anything higher than that you risk burning the insulation of the wire. Type of load in your case is fixed. Derating factors would be how long you would keep your lights on at one time. THe reason for this is the longer the lights are on, the hotter the wire gets. Engine room box I would check this assumes a 122 ºF area in which the wire sits. Otherwise it assumes 86 ºF. Which I would think under the hood is hotter than this.

 

Ok, thanks Brandon!

It's strange, ...all the kits they come with on the 6" KC's and even the 7.5" hellas....the wires are not big at all. Maybe 12, but more of them look like 14G or so. I guess that most of these lights are now like 55W, right? I think the KC's I saw though...they were 100W 6" lights, and the wiring kit inside looked REALLY small compared to what you're suggesting using. I guess they figure "whatever,.....it's 'enough' to make it work", maybe?

Friggen nuts... hahaha. I know what you mean about the wire getting to hot. 12v is 12v, but under heavy current, that thing can melt off the wire, eh? These are a lil thicker wiring than most they had there at the store... but still, it's 14g, and I don't wanna be unsure, NO THANKS! lol. Oh well, I guess I'll just keep this relay and wiring and start over.... The relay I can use, actually,...but the block that it plugs into, with wires already coming out of it? ...Yeah, they're 14G, POSITIVE. So I just need more 10G wire and I can switch back to a 30A fuse holder that's like the auto kind(I'd rather do that, anyway....just seems like those fuse holders seal better, anyhow.

S'all good, ... I'm learning stuff, so it's all worth it! Thanks alot for explaining some of this, Brandon! I can always find a use for some of this other stuff. I'm going to be getting a more powerful inverter...gonna try to have a slot for it in the rear(probably in the rear passenger pockets...one of them, lol). I also have 2 waterproof 12V lighter type power plugs that I'm going to mount to my rear area as well and one under the bed somewhere for when I need it back there. Oh, and I have to install that extra OEM dome light over the rear passenger seat tops....that'll be nice!

I'ma get pics of all the stuff I have, later. Gotta finish this 18hr day first... Party here goin on. Soon as I'm done I'll get some pics of all the stuff I have...IT'S LIKE A CHRISTMAS STOCKING OF ELECTRONIC GOODIES! hahaha. Most of which I can't use right now, I guess, lol.....well, only some of it. I'll get it, don't worry!

 

rememeber the wiring on each light is only for that light. a single 100W lamp is only gona draw 8 amp well within the 14ga rating.

 

Stuff I got.... I was out there looking into wiring the light back there, so I thought I'd take some pics of the dang stuff! hahaha......

 

i like the big ol switch lol

 

Much of that stuff I already had... just was keeping all my electronic stuff in a box, and I have more wire, etc..... The lil tiny wire is for the dome light I want to put in the back.... gonna have to figure out a way to wire that up. I think the grounds for it go through the screws, through the arms and into the body(roof), up front... and the back is fiberglass..... Gonna test it out not screwed in and see if it works.

The all weather power outlet will go near the hitch, underneath in the rear.

The switch, well, that's what I have... I can return it if you guys think a 3 pin would be better for this application.

The inverter doesn't seem to work right. Not sure if it's my lighter hole(it says 12.25 volts with the meter on it)....or if it's the friggen inverter. Seems to only work when the motor is running, far as running my laptop. That does me NO GOOD, ya know? dangit! lol.

Got plenty of 14G wire and SOME 10G.... I guess I just need to figure out how much 10G I need to make this work. Either way, it's getting to cost more than I thought it would, hahaha.... well, I mean, if I have to buy 3 balls more of 10G. Think my neighbor will have plenty.....pretty much sure of it.

One question.... there is only one wire coming out of my light. Is that right? Seems most on the computer like youtube stuff have 2 wires. When I hooked the wire to the positive and grounded the bolt of the light, it lit just fine..... So not sure if that's right or not, lol.

 

Hey 85(FKA 81!), .....It's not that big, it's just a close up, lol. It's black and gray, so it'll blend in my dash well, ya know? Man, I wish I was just 'GOOD AT THIS STUFF', already, lol.

 

lol sounds like me my electricl skills are very low

 

I'll be fine, once I GET THE RIGHT CRAP! lol... FINAL plan of attack, tomorrow, OR ELSE! haha. I'm hitting up my neighbor for some wire and possibly a killer fuse block thing I know he always has extra of....and I should be good to go, solder, plug and play! GRrrr! lol.