What have you used to wire your buggy? The kit from heritage is about £65. Is it worth getting? Or am I better off buying individual parts?

I think it's a good start but Chad is the best one to answer this question as he is the whirring guru

got my wires from these guys mostly thin wall as it takes up less space but has a higher amperage rating.
http://www.vehicle-wiring-products.eu/VWP-onlinestore/home/homepage.php

[6 Pots...stuff your bhp, torque is king]

Matt,

All depends how adventurous you feel...!!

I ended up buying a s/h loom from a beetle and using that. Replaced any bits that were shot or looked ropey.

If you are half decent with wiring, you could buy all the wires you need from VWP or get in touch with Chad. He could probably make you one for sensible money. It would be a quality product as well...

[My Youtube channel]

Assuming you have a tube running down each side of the tub, I would recommend buying trailer cable for the wires.

From the website Snoopy quoted its under trailer cable and is TC13. I actually bought it elsewhere and was a little bit cheaper. The beauty of this is that it gives you loads of options with the thicker (greater amperage) cores. I bought 15 metres which was ideal for running down both sides and a load left over for the wiring up front (dash/lights/switches etc). It also meant that I had no earthing (except for the engine of course) at the all earths ran to a copper plate at the front. To be fair it may be a tad over kill but as you will see when I complete my build thread in the next week or so, I do have a few additional electrical requirements.

Of course the disadvantage to this system over a pole rack holding reels of all colours and all thickness options (or getting a professional to do it) is that your colour coding will be all over the place - so make careful notes!

Thanks for the replies guys. This will be the worlds most basic loom. No extra lights, gauges, stereo etc. quite like the idea of creating it myself. Have the wiring diagram from 1966 that's in the beach buggy build manual. It's as technical as I need to be. Just wondering if the kit will have all the wires needed.

Mat,
I used Pete's wiring diagram (Manx maniac)   and have done several buggy's since..

Easy as and simple to follow too  I'm not very good with the wires stuff but I managed ok..

Check it out its on his web site or may even be linked on here..

Mat,
I used Pete's wiring diagram (Manx maniac)   and have done several buggy's since..

Easy as and simple to follow too  I'm not very good with the wires stuff but I managed ok..

Check it out its on his web site or may even be linked on here..

Did you start with the kit Hunter? Or buy things separately?

Bought a bunch of the new thin walled cables from Premier wiring off of "the bay of E" different colours    and all,
just worked out what switches I thought i was gonna need, added a couple of spares in the runs for stuff that may come later, checked it as I went.
Must admit Chris came round and stuck the battery on for the first turn on but otherwise no issues.

Will say though make sure you have good earth connections every where. I fixed loads of double ended male connectors for earthing, I also ran earth return cables back to the front end under the dash for the rear lights and stuff, I know it may be a bit of over kill but I have heard about and had too many stupid issues that have just been down to bad earths.
Oh and solder/heatshrink connections is a real good way to go too.

If I can help just ask..

H

This is what you get with one of those 'bundle of wires' looms, coloured in for clarity. If you follow this it'll give you the simplest loom possible for a basic Buggy, you'll need to add front sidelights though.

I eventually became fed up with the loom in my buggy:
At the front, most of the wires changed colour at least twice and thickness once between the steering column and the fuse box.
At the rear all of the wires were yellow!
Whenever I did any work on the electrics, I removed loads of wire, and yet everything still worked.

When I updated the ignition system, I decided to rewire it from scratch, I could have bought a stock loom, but I would not use half of it and would still need to add loads, so I bought a book instead, I think it was this one: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Automotive-Electrical-Systems-Sadesign-Workbench/dp/1932494871/ref=pd_sim_b_3 drew up all the circuits (they can all be seen on http://www.flickr.com/photos/7344754@N08/sets/72157632065386938/) bought a load of different coloured wires and started running them into the car.

Total cost including the book, wires and connectors was about half that of the Heritage loom, and still have loads of wire and connectors left should I decide to do another car. I had to buy a fuse box and a relay box and a bunch of relays, but I only put in the circuits I wanted - OK, there are lots of them, but I have a complete breakdown of what wire goes where and the satisfaction of having done it myself.

If you are building your own loom you can make it as simple or complex as you like, and use whatever connectors you want. Fancy being able to remove your dash? - some quick connector blocks and away you go. Building a race only car? - probably only need two or three circuits and you are done. Want to use the rear lights as a trailer board? - add a socket at the front of the car. Custom circuits - why not? how about one to give a choice of rev limit but only when the line loc is engaged? - that's my line loc circuit http://www.flickr.com/photos/7344754@N08/8204581825/in/set-72157632065386938.

As Hunter says - make earth connections wherever you can, I have 3 or 4 main earthing points on my buggy - most electrical issues on a buggy can be traced back to bad earthing, we use a fibreglass body rather than a steel one, so need to run earth wires for just about everything.

[25mm2, 170A –]

I build up my own looms.

I know some like to use trailer wire for most applications but there are a number of wires that do need to be bigger etc so I thought this might help.


25mm2,  170A –    
Battery Cables               Red, Black

6.0mm2, 42A –    
Alternator / Dynamo Charging Wire                 Red
Battery to Ignition Switch            Red
   
4.5mm2, 35A -   
Starter Solenoid                                            Red 
Igintion Switch to Permanent Live feed to fuseboard   Red

3.0mm2, 27.5A -    
Coil Wire                                               Black               
Power feeds to Head Light Relay and Light Switch   Red, Black/White
Power from Light Switch to Side Light Fuseboard   Grey
Power Feed to Hazard Switch                         Red, Black
Ignition Switch to Ignition Live feed to Fuseboard   Black

2.0mm2, 17.5A  -
Headlight Wires                    Yellow, White, White/Black, Yellow/Black
Earth to headlights  / shared earths   Brown
Shared Feed to ancillary switches      Black

1.0mm2, 8.75A  -
Indicators   -          Black/Green (Right Hand Side)
                  Black / White (Left Hand Side)
                  Black/ White / Green (Power to Indicators)   
Side Lights                 Grey
Brake lights                 Black / Red
Oil Switch                         Blue / Green
Generator Light Switch      Blue
General Earths                 Brown
Wiper motor wires to switch   Black, Black / Yellow, Black  /Purple   
Horn                            Brown/Black
Washer Bottle Motor      Blue/Black
Rev Counter                 Green
Fuel Tank Sender         Brown



If I need Red / Black or Brown / Black or Yellow/Black etc I just get a black SHARPIE and put a black trace line along a plain coloured wire.....

Also you can't get a green / black / white wire so I get a black / white and use a green sharpie to add the green in places......


I generally get my stuff from these places

Auto Electrical Supplies (AES) for all wiring and connectors - http://www.autoelectricsupplies.co.uk/

AutoStar Components Ltd – Call Dave and say Chad sent you.

Tel: +44 (0)1384 671299
Fax: +44 (0)1384 686299
Email: AutoStarShop@GoogleMail.Com

I get all my connectors, cable sleeveing and heatshrink from this guy.

Sample of his product at http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/2-Way-Waterproof-Weather-Proof-Sealed-Electrical-Connector-KIT-12V-24V-DC-/180734625987?pt=UK_CarsParts_Vehicles_BoatEquipment_Accessories_SM&hash=item2a149f88c3

Look at his shop for loads of stuff


SCREWFIX  -  Cable ties and connector blocks


Vehicle Wiring Products for brass 6 way earth blocks. However wiring is far more expensive than AES above.

http://www.vehicle-wiring-products.eu/VWP-onlinestore/home/homepage.php





I tend to pick up stuff like my fuseboards and cut off switches from e-bay as they are cheaper in general than buying from the shops above.

Have sent you an e mail Chad