<VV> "good" grounds

[djtcz at comcast.net]

original messages 


Hello All, My '65 Monza sedan is still having an electrical issue and I am checking to see if anyone else has experienced a similar problem. 
First- thanks for the advice so far! <snip> 3- The copper ground straps from engine to body were in very poor shape- have been replaced and ground is 
now ok. <snip> 

Jim (and everyone else), 
T 


... to the best of my knowledge, all other grounding was done through the factory wiring harness or at the negative battery cable where it attached to the 
frame (on EMs) or the small pigtail on the LM ground cable. 

......... cleaning up and reattaching ground w ires at the taillights, headlights and parking lights made a tremendous difference in lighting brightness. 

............ Without a doubt, good grounds are a MUST! These grounding straps are for RFI issues, but are stout enough (if they're all there) to improve the electrical ground to the engine. Of course, the main reason the negative battery cable goes to the engine is for this reason as well. 

.............. Sad that all these people that write in with the myriad of other items to CHECK spend so much time on a problem that can be most likely fixed in 20 minutes... 

.............. Troubleshooting means you check and eliminate the most likely culprits first, maybe see if others have experienced the same thing you are having go wrong and systematically work your way through the problem. And I appreciate all of the ideas bounced off me.It has been my experience that some of the hardest things to troubleshoot are:1- Something caused by a defective part off the shelf.2- Bad circuit breakers.3- Broken or shorted wire that is intermittent and hidden under something. And bad grounding can cause some seriously weird effects. My idea was to avoid doing "swaptronics," i.e. changing components until it is fixed. That can be costly ; )Jim 

<snip> I'm not sure that I agree with that. Especially with electrical problems, they can be frustrating. Troubleshooting means you check and eliminate the most likely culprits first, maybe see if others have experienced the same thing you are having go wrong and systematically work your way through the problem. And I appreciate all of the ideas bounced off me.It has been my 
experience that some of the hardest things to troubleshoot are: 
1- Something caused by a defective part off the shelf 
.2- Bad circuit breakers. 
3- Broken or shorted wire that is intermittent and hidden under something. And bad grounding can cause some seriously weird effects. My idea was to avoid doing "swaptronics," i.e. changing components until it is fixed. ................ 

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For my money, and time, "CHECKING" electrical parts is: 
- first a very basic visual inspection looking for broken parts, wiggly loose connections, then parts charred, scorched or otherwise discolored by heat 
- immediately therafter measuring stuff. Bad grounds are easy. Just need a voltmeter set on a scale that would make 0.1 or so volts readable, stepped along a wire circuit while the load is on and misbehaving. 


http://netanimations.net/Moving-animated-eyes-finger-pointing-down.gif 


I almost never clean an electrical connection anymore. As others have said, it is not impossible for a great looking wire with clean and tight connections to have an internal problem. 
A voltage drop test on a wire with access to both ends will make it clear in seconds whether it is the crimp, the bolted joint, or the wire/cable itself. 
The cleaning/tightening ritual would only place an unjustified feeling of satisfaction in a position to delay or even prevent an actual repair 


http://www.fluke.com/Fluke/usen/community/fluke-news-plus/ArticleCategories/Electrical/DiagnoseVoltDrop.htm 








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