[wilcom]

After years of hunting and 4 wheeling with my bronco, I am finally going to put her up on the blocks in the garage and work on her during the winter . What is the best wiring harness to put in? I have the time. also will be doing the gas tanks and disk break conversions. so any info you have on those will be help full as well. any recommendation are helpful.

[68rrflyer]

wilcom, on Oct 24 2009, 09:51 PM, said:

After years of hunting and 4 wheeling with my bronco, I am finally going to put her up on the blocks in the garage and work on her during the winter . What is the best wiring harness to put in? I have the time. also will be doing the gas tanks and disk break conversions. so any info you have on those will be help full as well. any recommendation are helpful.

I just got done wiring up my customer's 72 Bronco and used the Centech Harness. Overall, I was happy with it. I don't have any experience with the Painless one, but I can tell you his Bronco wasn't overly modified with electrical junk and the Centech was the best option considering the price difference. Jim at Centech is great to deal with. Called him with some questions and he was happy to help. A few things with the Centech though. I decided to use the ignition switch that came with the kit since his was shot, but it's generic and doesn't fit into the dash without some modifications. I actually made a small sleeve and modified my original bezel to make it appear as if it were original, but it's the one they supplied. I'd spring for the pigtail to adapt the stock switch to the new harness if I were to do it over again. Also, the headlight switch will need the spacer removed from the old switch and placed on the new one. The neck of the switch is what I'm talking about. Two small spot welds to drill out and I used some simple epoxy to mount it to the new switch. Worked well. The bulkhead connectors that go thought he firewall don't fit the greatest and you really have to work at getting them to stay in the holes correctly. I didn't use the all weather connections they supply with the kit for the lights and just reused the ones from the stock harness as they checked out fine. I'm running an 88 GT motor with an 85 Mustang distributor and Duraspark II setup FYI. Here's the extent of the custom dash work. Nothing major electrical wise over stock. Hope that helps!

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[Seabronc]

They are all pretty much the same. Painless or Ron Francis come to mind off the top of my head. I kinda like the Ron Francis stuff but it is a little more expensive than some of the others, in my mind , "you get what you pay for".

Good luck,

[S_bolt19]

If you are going to do a custom build with a lot of extra electrical, then go with the more expensive (Painless or Ron Francis) harnesses. If you are just going back to original and maybe doing some minimal extra electrical items, stay with the Centech. It is about half the cost of the Painless and you get everything that was originally there. Also, you might note that the Painless, you have to pay extra to get the loom taped or in some kind of protection, which is pretty crap in my opinion.

[wilcom]

great info from all of you guys. .....thanks. i think since i am only replacing the origianal wiring with hardly any mods I will use the syntech. I will keep you posted as to the results.
Any of you know about putting a different speedometer in that fits the same hole as the original?

[Bully Bob]

EB houses have them (exact fit) .....@ $600 or there 'bouts..!
BUT.., they're digital, including all the other gages as well.

This post has been edited by Bully Bob: 06 November 2009 - 08:05 AM

[wilcom]

Great info that i will use. since i have everyones attention i would like some help on the following base upon everyones experience;

I will be replacing the following and would like some input on brand equipment;

Front/rear gas tanks. Metal or poly?
Steering arm shock to replace my 8 yr old one.
After market gas gauge that works with the OEM senders.?
afer market Speedo that fits the OEM hole
Brake lines need to be replaced....what is good?
Booster pump needs replace....what is good?
Rear disch brake replacement for drums....what is good? have front disc done 9 yrs ago.
Recover front and back seats?
Need a gas can/spare tire carrier for back....have stock tire carrier now.

any help will be appreciated.

[Bully Bob]

Front/rear gas tanks. Metal or poly? Toss up...ea. has its small advantage
Steering arm shock to replace my 8 yr old one. They're all pretty equal
After market gas gauge that works with the OEM senders.? Go digital
after market Speedo that fits the OEM hole Go digital
Brake lines need replaced, what is good?
Build your own, or, auto parts has tubing already flaired/fitted, or, Google Classic Tube
Need a gas can/spare tire carrier for back....have stock tire carrier now.
Add can holder to exist. rack. (see my gallery) Weld on or bolt on.

This post has been edited by Bully Bob: 06 November 2009 - 07:52 PM

[S_bolt19]

Gas tanks - doesn't matter, but if you are replacing, go with a BC Broncos 23 gallon tank. The extra capacity will let you get rid of the saddle tank if you want & the mounting system is better than the single strap that everyone (and original) employs.
Steering shock/stabilizer - any shock will work. Most of the time you will want to match it to the shocks you have on the axles.
Gauge cluster - Like Bob said, go digital. There is an all in one headset unit that fits in the original opening. BC & Wild Horses sells it.
Brake lines - Go stainless braided lines for your flex lines.
Rear Disc Brakes - The BC Broncos kit is the absolute easiest to install & maintain. Doesn't take long to do at all, about a day from start to finish.
Seating upholstry - Try LMC Truck. They sell quite a bit of OEM type equipment
Can & tire carrier - if you plan on going with larger than stock tires, get a frame/bumper mounted combo rack. If you put anything bigger than a 30" tire on the original rack, you will start to see body separation in your tub lines because of the weight of the tire. Check the vendor warehouses.

[wilcom]

Wow, great info....thanks guys.
I was thinking about cutting the hood and putting a scoop on to help with the heat issue.....any suggestions? Front facing or rear and make/brand?

[kirk]

68rrflyer, on 02 November 2009 - 01:59 AM, said:

I just got done wiring up my customer's 72 Bronco and used the Centech Harness. Overall, I was happy with it. I don't have any experience with the Painless one, but I can tell you his Bronco wasn't overly modified with electrical junk and the Centech was the best option considering the price difference. Jim at Centech is great to deal with. Called him with some questions and he was happy to help. A few things with the Centech though. I decided to use the ignition switch that came with the kit since his was shot, but it's generic and doesn't fit into the dash without some modifications. I actually made a small sleeve and modified my original bezel to make it appear as if it were original, but it's the one they supplied. I'd spring for the pigtail to adapt the stock switch to the new harness if I were to do it over again. Also, the headlight switch will need the spacer removed from the old switch and placed on the new one. The neck of the switch is what I'm talking about. Two small spot welds to drill out and I used some simple epoxy to mount it to the new switch. Worked well. The bulkhead connectors that go thought he firewall don't fit the greatest and you really have to work at getting them to stay in the holes correctly. I didn't use the all weather connections they supply with the kit for the lights and just reused the ones from the stock harness as they checked out fine. I'm running an 88 GT motor with an 85 Mustang distributor and Duraspark II setup FYI. Here's the extent of the custom dash work. Nothing major electrical wise over stock. Hope that helps!

68,

Beautiful Bronco.......did you apply the finish on the tub floor or is that Line-X or some other product?

thanks