John's response is reasonable. I was surprised to find that the portions of
wire insulation covered by the original tape was still very well preserved,
soft and flexible. I really didn't have any serious concerns about the
quality of the original wiring. This comment does NOT apply to the MELTED
portions of my harness! :-)
There were some areas where other leads are spliced in with a really cheesy
factory crimping, ie. instrument lighting. Also, the wires often exhibit
black oxidation quite a ways in to the wires. New connections require
cleaning or scraping this oxidation to expose shiny copper.
Mike H. '67-1600
----- Original Message -----
From: "John F Sandhoff" <sandhoff@csus.edu>
To: "Ronnie Day" <ronday@tlabgalaxy.net>
Cc: <datsun-roadsters@autox.team.net>
Sent: Thursday, May 11, 2006 2:29 PM
Subject: Re: Wiring Harness Cleaning
> > Realizing that 35 year old vinyl insulation is very prone to being stiff
and
> > brittle, even without exposure to engine and exhaust heat, what cleaners
> > have folks had good experiences using?
>
> Truth be told, I would be very hesitant to take the harnesses apart.
> Surface dirt isn't going to matter to the electrons :-), and if the
> insulation is brittle you'll probably end up damaging the wires.
>
> Likely, some of the plastic ends will disintegrate on you as well.
>
> I'm all in favor of a careful inspection, and if there are trouble
> spots addressing them, but all in all I fear that if you pull things
> apart you're going to be looking at a real headache getting it
> back together.
>
> -- John
> John F Sandhoff sandhoff@csus.edu Sacramento, CA
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