Best Complete Wiring Harness??

[Tri-Fivefamily]

Hello All,

I'm looking to install a complete wiring harness into my 57 2DR BA. I'm leaning towards American Autowire, but even those choices are a bit much ie classic update vs. highway series??

[chevynut]

I built my own from scratch but my car is more modified than most. Even the AAW classic update kit wouldn't work, and you can't mount it anywhere but on the left kick panel or that vicinity. I have heard it's the best for a Tri5 update harness, if you don't have a bunch of other electronics.

[Rick_L]

Echo what cnut said. The AAW is good for many, but the more modified your car is the more likely something else will be a good or better choice. If you want to move the location of the fuse panel or much of anything else, a custom harness is better. The AAW has many wires preterminated, so the length makes you put things in the stock locations.

There are some interesting variations available in custom harnessese. Ron Francis has one with the fuse panel on a pigtail, where you can remove it from its mount and bring it closer to you to look at fuse condition, etc. Painless has a harness with extra long wires where you can mount the fuse panel in the trunk.

There are also some very simple, inexpensive harnesses out there for cars without a lot of extra stuff.

[smooth 56]

I put a painless in mine but I have power window's and decota digital dash,worked well for me and all the upgrades I dune.

[Bihili]

http://www.kwikwire.com/kwindex.html

http://www.ronfrancis.com/

http://www.painlessperformance.com/faq.php

http://www.americanautowire.com/

If you consider some 55 Chevy's did not have a fuse box and todays cars have two fuse boxes, I would buy a harness with more than enough circuits for a modified car.

[reborn55]

Doiing the AAW in my 55 right now---went with the modified version--most of my upgrades are in or close to stock locations. Won't use all the circuits now,but are available for future use. What crimping tool are you guys using for the wire ends.

[Tri-Fivefamily]

Thanks All! I went with the AAW, it arrived last week and it looks very user friendly.

[victorniner]

Just installed aaw in a 57 150 wagon was nice to have step by step instructions bought crimping tool online will look to se manufacture but worked great for all crimps and was only 78.00

[BAM55]

I have an AAW also nice kit comes with everything. It a bit expensive but its complete.

http://www.americanautowire.com/

[warren57]

Nearly everyone recommended AAW to me when I was looking, but I chose to go with EZ wiring, strickly based on cost. Well, the kit was fine, wires labeled fairly well (in spite of no overall wiring diagram). But let me tell you, their instructions are less than vague. You better be very knowledgeable in wiring prior to starting with these kits and keep their phone number handy.
So far, every thing has worked well upon termination of the wires, but not a kit for the novice.
For those that haven't tackled a project of this magnitude and have money falling out of their pockets, stick with AAW.
Had I known the limited wiring diagrams included with the EZ kit, I would have wired from scratch like many of the others have done.
Good luck...

[Rick_L]

I guess that "wiring from scratch" means different things to different people, but I can't see that. Some kind of pre-terminated fuse panel seems like a minimum starting place. Is that what "from scratch" means or do you start with a fuse panel with no wires?

[JT56]

Thanks All! I went with the AAW, it arrived last week and it looks very user friendly.

That is what I have. You will be happy

[warren57]

I guess that "wiring from scratch" means different things to different people, but I can't see that. Some kind of pre-terminated fuse panel seems like a minimum starting place. Is that what "from scratch" means or do you start with a fuse panel with no wires?

Can't speak for other projects, but mine had most everything missing, so there was no wiring to follow or routing, nothing. So for my project, start from scratch would likely have been a junk yard fuse box with the wires cut about 12" long. Mounting the panel, identifying what each wire did, using the wires/options wanted and running all new wires, connectors and switches....
I find it strange you understood ChevyNuts interpretation of "from scratch" without additional explanation...

[chevynut]

I guess that "wiring from scratch" means different things to different people, but I can't see that. Some kind of pre-terminated fuse panel seems like a minimum starting place. Is that what "from scratch" means or do you start with a fuse panel with no wires?

I used a modular fuse block and built my own fuse panel. I couldn't find anything else that would work the way I wanted it to. I have to install my own contacts and all my own wires, but it's not difficult to do.

I'm using the same block as these harnesses from Kwikwire. You can stack them to as large of a block as you want it to be.

http://www.kwikwire.com/wireharnesses.html

[Tabasco]

I once had a '41 Chevy pickup. A previous owner had wired it from scratch. He got a fuse box and wire and put it all together. Everything seemed to have the correct gauge wire, it all worked just fine, it was neatly routed and secured and and I never had any problems.

Oh yea, every single wire in the truck was white. I don't know where the guy got the wire but it was all the same color. It was a challenge to trace the wiring if you wanted to change anything.