<VV> electrical problem - SOLVED!!!

[judynrandy at comcast.net]

A little while back I sent an e-mail requesting help for a weird electrical problem.  After installing a Spyder dash in my '60, when I hooked up the 
neg cable to the battery, the temp/press and gen/fan lights came on, with the key off.  In the midst of this dilemma, an old friend stopped by.  He 
just happened to be a 'sparky' from his Navy days.   [ That's electricians' mate for all you landlubbers   ( : ]    The first words out of his mouth were " you 
have a short circuit."  But where?  We worked all day checking things, pulling fuses, etc. and found nothing.  He told me the only thing left was to backtrack 
and take everything back apart and double check anything I had worked on.  He told me as he left, "It's probably something stupid.  Don't worry-you'll 
find it."  The next day I did just that.   Disassembled and double checked and still didn't come up with anything.  Then, as I poured over the wiring 
diagrams yet again, I noticed something we hadn't checked.  I noticed the starter solenoid was in the gen/fan and temp/press circuit that was causing 
the problem.  I headed under the car with a test light to check and see whether the 'run' terminal was hot or not.  Could the starter solenoid be the culprit? 
I looked into the wheelwell at the connections.  Everything looked normal.  Once under the car, I proceeded to hook up the test light.  
I then looked up..................and saw IT.  It seems that what was causing all of this hate and discontent was, quite simply, the battery cable end being tilted 
just enough to the side to touch the "run" terminal nut on the solenoid!!!!!!! 
Further clarification (for those who didn't know this) is that the '60 starter wiring is hooked up from under the car.  The starter is mounted upsidedown. 
Also, this was NOT an original gm battery cable.  A generic aftermarket one.  The terminal had an oblong shape to it and really didn't fit that well on a 
'60 starter.  All it took to fix it was to bend the end of the cable to a 45 degree angle and CAREFULLY re-attach it.  Now I see why the factory changed 
the starter setup and wiring after '60!!!!!!!! 
  
Randy (Cap'n) Hook 
Hopewell, PA 
'60 700 4dr -'64' 110/4spd 
'63 ragtop 110/pg 
'65 Monza 4dr 84/pg