Here is an easy one for ya. I have done a few this way. All hidden switches. Run the push button as a hidden GROUND switch to a relay. Without a ground, a relay does not work. Run the solenoid power through the relay. This way you have to have the key AND the button on at the same time. Or nothin happens. Very easy to do.
Now I'm really sorry I asked, I thought I'd drill a hole and that was it, looks like the wire will out weight the HEMI.
The wire won't be that bad. You simply remove the wire from the start lug on the current ignition switch, connect it to your starter button, then run a wire from the other side of the push button to either an always hot, ignition hot or through a disable toggle. The solenoid requires 12 volts, but seldom is a big amp draw. If you do have a solenoid that has a big amp draw, you just need to put a ford firewall solenoid in to take the heavy load. The main power to the starter is still carried by the battery cable...
Watson's Streetworks has a very nice push button system, a bit modern, perhaps, but I think the best. Push in, ignition on, push further, starter engages. Push again, all off. Hide a master disconnect under your seat or through a floor dimmer switch mounted higher up under the dash so as to be unseen and descreet when you hit it getting in the car, and you're done... BTW, some other outfits have similar switches, but not the quality of Watson's.
Whats, amps, Volts, whatever push button I think looks best will be under rated and most like fry the car on first push. What is out there that can safely start a nuclear reactor and not overload the system. What ( pick your electrical term) rating am I looking for?
What I did was have a key that activates a heavy duty RV solenoid that turns power on and off for the entire car. This switch mounts below the dash and back so it doesn't really show, all the electrics are mounted on the same tray up behind the dash. The off-on-start switch is a push pull that mounts in the dash and looks just like the headlight switch and the heater blower switch. When you get in you insert the key and turn the car on then you pull the knob out one click and the ignition is on. Pull it out against a spring and the starter activates then you let go and it returns to the run position. To stop the engine you push the knob in. Here is a link to the switch http://www.haywireinc.com/index.cfm...category_id=25/home_id=-1/mode=prod/prd14.htm
A lot of these are good ideas. The hidden stuff not so much, that will only keep honest people honest. A real car thief wont even mess with the inside stuff. They will have a jumper wire and a screw driver and wont even get in the car untill its started.
So Cal sells a cool switch for ignition . Works like a headlight switch . One click for accesory power , pull past that to start spring loaded to crank . Push all the way in to shut off. nice switch with several billet knob options for around 30 bucks. - Mayor
The pushbutton contacts just do the same thing as the key switch contacts same size wire going to the solenid, the key switch doesn't use heavy gauge wire either. They are both momentary switches, its just a matter of how you want to feed power to it. I chose to use a keyed battery disconnect between the battery and the fuse panel. That way I would still be able to lock out the ignition circuit when I walked away from the car. None of these old cars would be hard to steal if someone had a little time and know how. But if it is custom wired it would take more time to figure it out than a traditional key switch.
I start my ot truck every time with a pushbutton under the dash that is easy to reach but out of sight. I lost my keys to the 48 one day in Texas in the mid 70's and wired a toggle switch and push button from the shop parts room into the system and put them under the dash in front of the floor shift. My best friend rode in the truck a number of times before he figured out that I didn't have a key in the switch. With what seemed like one motion I could flip the toggle switch, push the starter button and then move the shifter to low or reverse and be moving. As someone said above there are other places to mount a switch besides on the dash. If you have a floor shift you could make small panel around it that had a spot for the switch. It could even be under a flip up ashtray style lid so when people looked in the car they wouldn't see a switch or a key.
I still have the key in the stock spot just moved the amp gauge and put in a starter button from an old America LaFrance fire engine. Its all metal with the bezel that says starter... I didnt worry about any of the other crap, other than it was a 12volt switch! I figured if it could start a fire engine it could start a flathead roadster!
I have the SoCal switch in several cars. Combined with a battery shutoff (also from SoCal) I don't worry about theft. Also, I can remove the steering wheel and button down the tonneau cover. Switch is the one on the right, left switch is a dummy to match.
You worry too much. It ain't rocket science. If you talk yourself into having a big problem one will certainly appear. A 354 Hemi. It looks like they used a remote solenoid like a Ford. You'll need to select the key switch that you want,(you don't need a key start switch.) a remote solenoid and then the button that you want. You have to figure out where each of these will be mounted and then it's a simple matter of connecting the proper terminals with wires. One step at a time. You'll want to mount the solenoid so that the battery cables are as short as possible. That's more important than the length of the starter button wires. Once that is done there are plenty of guys that can explain where each wire goes on your system. One wire at a time and soon you'll be starting that Hemi up and bragging about wiring it yourself. You have to believe that you can do it. There is plenty of help here for you. Go for it.
Tommy, Thanks, all I need to know is what push button on the market will work. My goal is to have a finished dash panel on the shelf, done/finished and I can move on to the next part of the bodywork. Will I need a push button rated for X (whatever X is) will I need it to accept a battery cable or smaller wire? Theft isn't a worry FIRE is. Bob
I used one of those pull starter switches on my 40 pickup. Looks like any other knob or even headlight switch. Stock 40 column switch is wired through the coil and locks the steering. I left the push button starter switch and hooked that as a ground switch to a au-gah horn. A friend needed to move my car and I knew he was shocked when the horn blew. Only then did he come and ask how to start the damn car.
Exactly how I run it. ...and as for killing the motor or stalling on rail road crossings(!??) just use some common sense as to where you place things
mj40's beat me to it. Thwart the thieves by using an MGA pull-to-start switch. Takes most people at least 15 minutes to figure out how to start the car the first time. Better yet, use a pull start switch and put a "push to start" knob on it.
Don't worry about amps and stuff like that. Any automotive starter button will be rated high enough and work as long as it has 2 terminals on the rear. There are so many possibilities. Pick one that you like the look of that has 2 wire terminals. As said above there are lots of universal buttons available at your local auto parts store and all over the web. Google starter button images. Don't forget to look at the antique parts houses for reproduction buttons like the early Chevy truck parts stores. You may find one that you like there. Fords will have only one terminal and require a relay but it can be done. I'd stay with the 2 terminal type on your first one. Keep it simple. And don't worry about using a button for a 6V car they actually are beefier than a universal button.
mr starter button switch doesn't need to be a real muscle guy, he is only telling the starter solenoid dude to do his job, starter solenoid dude does all the heavy work.
I'll need to know how much crap is on the back of the button for gauge clearance. I like to plan things and cut and or drill once. Looking at stuff on "That Auction Site" there are buttons with two small connections while others have a Colt .45 cylinder size gizmo with God only knows what inside.
What is inside this starter button, and is it something I would need ? I don't like the looks of the button, just wondering about the stuff behind the dash.
That's just a simple aftermarket 2 wire contact switch used on a lot of motorized off road equipment. It just makes contact inside to let the power go from the input wire terminal, to the output terminal that goes to the solenoid. Yes it will work perfect, but if you don't like it, why not get a different one? Some Ford repro parts place maybe will have the '40 through '50 Ford style button, but made for GM rods with a 2 terminal contact, not the single one like the Ford used.
In your first sentence you said "I don't want to look at keys on my dash". OK fine. Most of the suggestions here leave you needing keys to turn on and off the ignition. The start button will only affect the starter. Easy way out of this mess, look into the Watson's setup mentioned earlier.
INSIDE contact, so some make OUTSIDE contact? I haven't bought anything yet, that was a photo I swiped off the internet. Is inside contact safer, less of a fire starter?
i bought two "standard automotive" switches at the local parts place and both were complete garbage. i ended up using a momentry switch from an electrical surplus store, but i run it with a HD keyed ignition 'cuz its got a headlight switch too.
I have NEVER seen one that was outside contact. They are sealed to keep moisture and dirt out. A starter switch is a "momentary switch" so even if you overloaded that switch with a shorted starter solenoid, there would not be enough time for the contacts to ever get hot enough to cause a fire...because you will stop trying to start it. Yes, the wires could get warm, if you held the button in a very long time, but I can't see someone holding a button "in" that long if nothing is happening.
The Jalopy Journal
