Jolls FC Ute Project

[ardiesse]

I'll weigh in here.

What Clay says about expectations.  I reckon it's best to wire up your taillights like a late '59 FC or FB/EK ute, with orange lenses for the indicators.  The FB and EK workshop manuals have the correct wiring diagram.

In short:

Black wire - taillights, number plate lamp
Violet wire - RH rear indicator
Pink wire - LH rear indicator
Yellow wire - brake lights

B.t.w., I've repaired the indicator switch, but if you can find someone who's got the stalk as well as the switch, better.

Oh, and - you'll have to run all the extra wiring for the indicator flasher, the dash tell-tale lights, and the front indicators.  At this point it might be easier to get in touch with Vintage Wiring Harnesses and order a main wiring harness for an FC Special.

Do your front parking lights have a blue and white wire each?

Rob

[fcute]

I have just finished wire my reverse lights, indicators and park lights on my FC ute. I left all the clear/white lenses in and used switch back led globes, indicators flash orange and reverse and park lights are white light. I did have to put a different flasher can that senses the load from the LEDs

[my8thholden]

Same with my '58 Special Sedan ..Flashing rear brake light as turn indicator ...modern day drivers and or people who arent into cars think your lights are faulty  ..I didn't want some one overtaking me whilst turning cause the didn't see my brake light flashing  ..as the others have covered here , my clear lenses are period correct , so extra pair of globe holders ,extra wires as per FB wiring , also covered elsewhere here , and LED amber globes front and back , new flasher canister to suit ..my intention to turn is very clear ..dont have blokes hanging out window yelling " should a got a sparky mate !!! Or as one lady said during resto " why dont the blinkers work , They are !!! cant you see the red brake light is blinking ? NO ! why did you do that ? Thats the blinker lense there isn't it ? Drivers cant make decisions about what they cant see ,That is the message I get from that ,Its a real safety issue for me ,and obviously Holden were intending to get around to it ...

[Jolls]

I have just finished wire my reverse lights, indicators and park lights on my FC ute. I left all the clear/white lenses in and used switch back led globes, indicators flash orange and reverse and park lights are white light. I did have to put a different flasher can that senses the load from the LEDs

I think you have won me over, although I really loved the red indicatos in my previous FCs; not that I ever saw tham other than when I was testing them. Definitey white lenses with orange globe/LED. Means I can ditch the search for the reversing light switch. Tick one more off the list.

[Jolls]

It has been slow and steady so far - checking out the electricial side of the hose in the evenings and working hard on collecting the parts I need to finish her off. So far I have collected/repaired:

• a set of triple 1 1/2in SUs;
• a matching set of period headers - came with the SUs
• identified a heater (to be picked up next time I am in Sydney - thank you John
• repaired the dash dimmer in the light switch
• cleaned and repaired the idiot lights
• taken photos to the local signmaker to get new markings for the idiot lights and fuel gauge
• started the repair of the tailgate badge using CASWELDs pot metal solder
• commenced "unseizing" the clutch and brake master cylinders
• sanded back the repairs of the steering wheel by the previous owner (he used bog; not sure how it will last. I have previously used araldite - thoughts on the best approach?)
• assessed parts for repair/rechrome/spare/replace

I have yet to resolve the fuel gauge issue - will have a play with moving the coils to see if I can get a result. Otherwise I  will have to search for a replacement.

I have decided that I will replace the front end with a HR disc brake setup for safety purposes - but not in the immediate term. It can be a slow burn so I can try and get her back on the road ASAP. Given I am also in the midst of renovating a house that isn't very fast.

Cheers n Beers
Jolls

[Jolls]

I have just finished wire my reverse lights, indicators and park lights on my FC ute. I left all the clear/white lenses in and used switch back led globes, indicators flash orange and reverse and park lights are white light. I did have to put a different flasher can that senses the load from the LEDs

Just re-read your post - indicators and revers lights. Smart and got it. The reverse switch is back on the table! DAmn - thought I was making a little progress haha

[ardiesse]

Remind me - what's the problem with the fuel gauge?

Rob

[Jolls]

Hi Ardiesse

I pulled, inspected and cleaned the fuel gauge. It was full of wasp mud.

Wiring and coils look good and the paint over the screws holding the coils is intact.

The needle can make a full sweep so there is no impediment to movement. When power is applied at 0 ohms the needle instantly responds to where the E symbol would be, but as the resistance is increased the needle moves below the E until I get to 150 ohms where there is no needle deflection (up against a hard stop). So instead of the needle moving from empty to full it continues to move left as I step up the resistance. I switched the resistance to the power and ground side of the gauge as well with no discernable change. As the gauge moved in the wrong direction as the resistance increased I also changed the polarity to see if I had that incorrect and there was no discernable change in the system.

The circuit across the coils is complete and has a 54 ohm resistance. I can tell from the plier marks on the chrome trim that the gauge has been apart before. The needle also looks as though it has been "aligned" previously. I have it doing a reasonable sweep now and pointing in pretty much the right direction under the influence of gravity. I have identified the two screws that hold the coils in place and I am contemplating adjusting them to promote movement in the gauge.

This is as far as I have progressed in the fault finding/diagnosis.

Cheers

Craig

[ardiesse]

Craig,

In normal operation, a short to ground at the sender terminal makes the gauge read E, and 30 ohms between sender terminal and ground makes the gauge read F.

The gauge has two coils inside - one connected between BAT and sender terminals, and one between sender and ground (the gauge's case).  So you need to make two resistance measurements - one between BAT and sender, and another between sender and the case, with the BAT terminal unconnected.

I reckon that the "shunt" coil in your fuel gauge is open-circuit.  When you short the sender terminal to ground, enough current flows through the "series" coil to lift the needle off the stop and point to "E", but as you increase the resistance, the current decreases to the point where the needle can't lift off the stop.

There's no point in trying to repair the gauge.  Get another.  But you may need to test several before you find a good one.  The insulation in the coils degrades over time, and leads to unsteady readings.  Go to Jaycar and get a 15-ohm wire-wound resistor.  Connect between sender and ground.  Power the gauge up.  It should read half-full, and the needle shouldn't wander.

Rob

[Jolls]

I reckon that the "shunt" coil in your fuel gauge is open-circuit.  When you short the sender terminal to ground, enough current flows through the "series" coil to lift the needle off the stop and point to "E", but as you increase the resistance, the current decreases to the point where the needle can't lift off the stop.

Thanks Rob,

That makes sense. I'll have a squiz at it tomorrow and pull it apart for a bit of experiential learning.

Oh well, add another part to the puchase list.

Cheers

Craig

[Jolls]

What Clay says about expectations.  I reckon it's best to wire up your taillights like a late '59 FC or FB/EK ute, with orange lenses for the indicators.  The FB and EK workshop manuals have the correct wiring diagram.

In short:

Black wire - taillights, number plate lamp
Violet wire - RH rear indicator
Pink wire - LH rear indicator
Yellow wire - brake lights

B.t.w., I've repaired the indicator switch, but if you can find someone who's got the stalk as well as the switch, better.

Oh, and - you'll have to run all the extra wiring for the indicator flasher, the dash tell-tale lights, and the front indicators.  At this point it might be easier to get in touch with Vintage Wiring Harnesses and order a main wiring harness for an FC Special.

Do your front parking lights have a blue and white wire each?

Rob

Hi Rob,
Thanks for the heads up. Sorry I  missed your post when it came in. I was able to locate an indicator switch with the stalk in reasonable condition. Thank you very much for the offer and following up. I also purchased a reverse light switch so my plan is to run the woring as you have indicated to a dual LED setup, one white one orange. I'm not sure how I will do that yet, may have to make a bespoke "globe". I can then use a modern can hidden away up under the dash. I will also use and orange/white combo in front parkers. Shouldn't be too hard to pull off.
Cheers
Craig

[Jolls]

Hi fellow FC nuts,

 think I am top of most of the electrcial for now. Time to move onto the next problem set.

I have a set of old style triple SUs and am wondering about the best setup to operate them from and accelerator perspective. In my head I have a plan to use the standard accelerator setup and rig up a cable from the lever on the firewall to a lever setup on the SUs. I assume this has been done plenty of times before so before I go trying to reinvent the wheel can I lean on the forum for a bit of wisdom? Perhaps some photos of how this has been achieved before?

Thanks in advance for your time and advice.

Cheers n Beers
Jolls

[ardiesse]

Craig,

Triple SUs are by no means a "bolt-on" setup.  At the least you have to remove the battery tray and relocate the battery; and also make substantial modifications to the firewall.  If you don't already have an account on FB-EK, now's the time.  Clay and Brett both have put triples on their utes (OK, so on red motors, but the principles are the same), and somebody on FB-EK has a thread showing how to connect a throttle cable to the standard accelerator pedal.

Oh, and "scope-creep".  You have been warned.

Rob

[Errol62]

I run HZ 6cyl cable running off the lever out the floor on the pedal. Easy conversion. Just a matter of extending the lever with a mount to suit the HZ cable.The outer bracket slips conveniently under the brake distribution block, and some adjustment can be obtained by sliding it forward and back to obtain wide open throttle.

As Rob says, I'm running 1 3/4" SUs on a 179, using a Warnerford Design manifold, which I believe was intended to be a bolt in fit to EH.You can see it brings the rear carb forward, and I used all forward mounted float bowls.

Only modification to my firewall was a slight indent where the body tag was originally, for the rear filter, and I relocated the tag up higher. This is a late FB, not FC though.

Sent from my SM-G781B using Tapatalk

[Jolls]

Thanks Errol and Rob

I'm not sure if I will need to do too much modification with the setup I have. The SUs are set up on three manifolds and just a stub on the intake to put a sock over. If I can work out how to post a photo on this site I will do so.

Cheers

Craig

[Errol62]

I see where that mudguard washer I lost went now…


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

[ardiesse]

Image Uoploading:

https://forum.fefcholden.club/index.php?topic=5613.msg31835#msg31835

Rob

[Jolls]

Image Uoploading:

https://forum.fefcholden.club/index.php?topic=5613.msg31835#msg31835

Rob

Thanks, appreciate the guidance. Will get some photos tomorow.

Cheers

[Jolls]

Hi All,

This is the SU setup I will be installing. Was supposedly fitted to an FC previously. I also expect that the fuel line had a return to the tank to prevent flooding. I expect I will need to shorten and cut the return line to make it fit.

Choke is setup on the centre carb but no throttle linkage, or evidence of one, to be found.

[Jolls]

Headers/extractors I plan to use: