I am.

 

ok, so you can get rid of that wire from the lights to the battery. the frame of the runner is ground/negative, so just connect the neg of the lights to bare metal on the frame/body. also, give the lights their own fuse. if you plugged something in the outlet with the lights on (with what you've drawn), you could blow the fuse.

here is a circuit for the front lights

for each light (55 watts or less) add 5 amps to the fuse. here, you would use a 10 amp fuse

edit: the upside-down x-mas tree thing means "ground". in this case, its the frame or body

 

Ok that seems fairly simple. Is grounding to the factory bumper sufficient?

 

it might be, but it's better to ground to the frame behind it. wish I was closer. I'd do it for ya. But the drive there would be longer than the install. lol.

 

yep. that should work

 

yes. the frame is better than the bumper. but as long as it's bare metal and not something like a winch you're connecting, you should be fine. if not, then yeah, attach to the frame.

 

Swimmer, I'm building an 85 4runner and need some interior parts: door panels, plastic trime strips etc. Can you provide any help on where to look?

Steve

 

yeah. here

and that wonderful little "search" button on the top

 

Alright thats good then, i'll probably end up grounding to the frame anyway. My relay's should be here in a few days. I'll let you know if i get stuck. Also what is the purpose of relays exactly?

What exactly do you need i have a few things.

 

to control a large load with a small load. in other words, you can control a bunch of lights with a tiny switch. that also keeps high amperage out of the dash. if the starter motor didn't have a relay, then 4 gauge wire would be needed to run to the ignition switch (key hole)

 

That makes sense, i assume that helps prevent wires heating up and starting my truck on fire (my biggest fear). So are you suggesting that i get multiple relay's and switches for my lights or run them all on 1 relay and switch? OR can you run multiple switches off 1 relay? Sorry i'm so unexperienced in electrical. I can do bodywork, i can do mechanical but i can't do electrical.

 

ha, it's ok. i'm big into electronics, but have no bodywork talent

i suggest using one relay for the front lights, one for the yellow roof lights, and one for the white roof lights, each with it's own switch. if you want, you can run multiple relays from a single switch, so, for example, the roof lights would be controlled by 2 separate relays, but those relays would be controlled by a single switch:

 

Alright, i see. I'll pick up 2 more relays then.

 

if you really wanted to make it fancy, you could do something like this. 100% solid state! i'm actually thinking of adding a micro-controller to the truck to control lights and stuff

 

I'll pass on that lol

 

WOW, Ian,

You're a Proverbial 'Electronic Rock unt Rolllller'! hehe... THANKS, I was hoping to find this info on a search. Now, between you and YotaRob, I'M SET!

Looks good, and Brian, you gonna light that thing up like "Christmas Block" in Connecticut, eh? lol.... Can't wait to see the pics! ...... PICS, PICS, PICS! lol.

Have a good one, guys,

Mark

 

the only reason my rig aint wired yet is lack of time and income. if i had said items, there would be more wiring in that truck than hoover dam! lol.

i just looked at sparkfun's site, and was thrilled that the micro-controllers can now be recognized as a joystick on any computer! i love geeking out!

 

Don't i always post pics!? And yes gotta get me 2 or 3 more clear lights for the top!

That means literally nothing to me lol

 

me x 2 ^^^ hahaha!

 

i was new to the arduino a few years ago, but now have a good understanding.

relays are so much fun to work with. just browse around for a while, you'll get the hang of it