Technical Mopar ballast resister wiring questions

[QUOTE="loudbang, post: 10606679, member: 226490"
In the electrical world a ground is a ground is a ground. Adding more grounds in place of a properly grounded system does NOTHING.[/QUOTE]

In the real life automotive world, most electrical issues are caused by bad grounds. The reason for those bad grounds is a result of expecting a single thread on a screw or bolt to make an electrical connection in light gauge steel that is often rusty or painted.

Through the years, I've found adding a secondary ground to automotive components that need to be grounded to function to be a very good way to reduce or eliminate automotive electrical failures. Where you choose to make your ground point, is your choice, I'll continue to make mine at the negative battery terminal.

I trust you don't work on any new computer controlled vehicles, if you believe the battery is "out of the loop, electrically". Gene

 

Sure do and it's so simple to prove. remove one battery cable with the car running and guess what nothing happens because it's running on the alternator. The battery is only doing the starting and Acc position of the key.

Like I wrote "Adding more grounds in place of a properly grounded system does NOTHING." So like I said make sure your system is working PROPERLY and adding more still means nothing.

For your edification the US gov paid millions to get me trained up to their standards to work on aircraft electronics so yes I think I'm well qualified to comment on this subject. Even went to school in a SAFE to be able to work on classified equipment on the planes so I guess the gov also thinks I'm qualified.

 

Since you still aren't convinced after my experiment twice let's advance it a bit. Start the car as before but this time disconnect BOTH battery cables, undo the hold down, and COMPLETELY REMOVE THE BATTERY FROM THE CAR and set it at some distance from the car. And the car will still be running just fine... convinced yet that the battery is just sitting there while the engine is running?

What you are doing when you connect extra wires to the grounded battery cable is just adding one more length of wire into the circuit INCREASING RESISTANCE as the current does NOT enter the battery it GROUNDS (as opposed to just being connected) where the battery cable grounds (is connected to) to the body and from there to the alternator.

It is science but not rocket science. Here is an portion of the science from an OT experiment I did on another site but it applies just the same here in your case.

Found one of many sites for calculating and for ONE THOUSAND FEET of 16 gauge wire the voltage drop is a MINISCULE 0.3675 volts. If you increase the wire size to 10 gauge the drop is 0.09150 over one thousand feet.

Do the math for maybe 3 feet of wire the difference is 0.276 at 1000 feet or a whopping difference of 0.000828 volts in 3 feet.
Note the three zeros after the decimal point still think changing it makes a determinable difference?

And the resistance change is even more laughable for 1000 feet and 16 gauge copper wire it is a HUGE 0.01225 ohms or for three feet 0.00003675 (note the FOUR zeros)

And for 10 gauge 0.00305 at 1000ft. For 3 feet is is 0.00000915

For a reduction of 0.0000276 ohms going from 3 feet of 16 gauge wire to 3 feet of 10 gauge wire.

Still thinking it will make a bit of difference??? Note the 4 zeros after the decimal point.

Do it yourself here if you are not sure of me: http://www.bulkwire.com/wireresistance.asp

In your case you can substitute the extra wires and calculate the difference it makes and I'm 100% positive the increase or decrease (works either way if you can interpenetrate the results) will still be in the 0.0000** volts or Ohm range which is not even measurable with a standard multimeter.

 

Just glanced at all the posts re your problem, didn't see where anybody mentioned that the case of the orange box must be grounded. Scrape the paint off on the back side around one of the mounting holes and run a wire from there to ground. follow the diagram that you posted with the orange box. the system works great, have been running one on my flathead for years. I carry a spare box and resistor just in case.

 

That all done already I was just concerned on how hot the ballast was getting but it's all ran by the diagram and runs well just needs some tuning and I got extra every lol I went through a bunch trying to figure a problem I had previously and it was an simple fix in the end

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