Ignition kill switch

-

Pawned

N.R.A. Lifetime Member - And damn proud of it
Joined
Jun 29, 2013
Messages
1,613
Reaction score
189
Location
Valle del Sol, AZ
I have one of these with a solenoid and a toggle switch. The manufacturer suggests to us it to kill power to the fuseblock.

I am thinking of putting it in line from the - coil to the points. Then I am wondering if the length of that wire is crucial to proper operations.

Or using it to short out the -coil to ground
Or using it to open the power to the +coil

I am open to suggestions. Truthfully I am not very worry about theft, but protection can not hurt.
please respond ASAP as I am working on it now and this is the last item I need to decide
Ed
 
What do you mean "a solenoid?"

Relay?

Lots and lots of ways to protect a car

switch in the electric fuel pump relay

mechanical or electric fuel shutoff

toggle or relay in coil + line, or as you seem to be suggesting, ground coil neg. If you already have a tach, that''s easy. "not applicable" if MSD. I believe with MSD you can ground the white line and kill ignition. Anyone familiar with MSD might check that
 
similar to a relay but can handle lots of current

http://tinyurl.com/kk35sgo

Do not have electric fuel pump. auto tranny so it did not come with tach. car has points not an electronic ignition
 
Well that is overkill although what I used to use on my old Landcruiser, to operate all accessory and ignition loads. That's commonly called a "continuous duty solenoid."

All you really need if you are going to ground the NEG coil lead is a simple hidden toggle switch
 
What I ended up doing was, I cut the wire that goes from the tranny's reverse light switch to the starting relay.
I mounted the solenoid just to the drivers side of the wiper motor. I painted the solenoid Chrysler blue and the shrink tubing I used on the connections was also Chrysler blue.
I hope it is hiding in plain sight. I just came in at 21:30 and she will have a fit if I go out to the garage again tonite, or else I would go out and take pix to post here.

I do appreciate the prompt replies and advice. Any information at this point is helpful
 
What I ended up doing was, I cut the wire that goes from the tranny's reverse light switch to the starting relay.
I mounted the solenoid just to the drivers side of the wiper motor. I painted the solenoid Chrysler blue and the shrink tubing I used on the connections was also Chrysler blue.
I hope it is hiding in plain sight. I just came in at 21:30 and she will have a fit if I go out to the garage again tonite, or else I would go out and take pix to post here.

I do appreciate the prompt replies and advice. Any information at this point is helpful

Well that did not work. For some reason the wiring does not want to go thru the solenoid. I tried hooking the wires together with jumpers. One jumper worked but two or more jumpers did not even energize the starter.

I ended up abandoning the solenoid in place. I did hook the wires to a simple SPST 'momentary on' push button switch, that I planned to use to energize the solenoid.

As long as I have your attention:
What is the story with setting the points gap. I thought the wider the gap, the lower the dwell angle. according to Chilton it should be 30-34 degrees or .014 to .019 gap.
I fought this a few months ago and lost. I decided to try this again.
HELP pLEASE
 
The simplest solution to the points situation is to swap in a Chrysler electronic ignition and never worry about dwell angle again.

The solenoid is supposed to go in the battery positive lead, thus the high current capability. Then you need 12 volts (fused, preferably) through the hidden switch to one of the small terminals on the solenoid and the other small terminal would connect to ground.

The neutral safety switch wire carries very little current, and I don't see how switching it would work for preventing theft anyway.

The simplest way to keep the car from starting is as was stated previously is to ground the negative coil wire via a small hidden SPST switch. That wire would carry very little current and be much easier to hide My 64ragtop's previous owner did that and used a keyed SPST switch. The car hasn't been stolen in 49+ years, so I guess he did ONE thing right!

I don't understand how a momentary on pushbutton could be used for your purpose.

BC
 
The closer the points are the larger numeric the dwell is. The dwell angle is the angle of rotation in which the points stay closed, so if you gap the points wider, there is less dwell.
 
I think the solenoid was supposed to go in the battery positive lead, thus the high current capability. Then you would need 12 volts through the hidden switch to one of the small terminals on the solenoid and the other small terminal would connect to ground. The neutral safety switch wire carries very little current, and I don't see how switching it would work for preventing theft anyway.

The simplest way to keep the car from starting is as was stated previously is to ground the negative coil wire via a small hidden SPST switch.

I'm don't understand how a momentary on pushbutton could be used for your purpose.

BC


That is the way it is intended. But everytime I disconnect the battery I lose everything on the radio. So by cutting this wire, it prevents the starter from turning. Like having the car in drive or reverse. The key is dead. Pushing the button momentarily connect the wire so the car will start. Then I release it and do not think about it again until I need to restart it.
I bought the solenoid on a whim without really thinking it thru
 
The simplest solution to the points situation is to swap in a Chrysler electronic ignition and never worry about dwell angle again.

I think I need a primer on the electronic ignitions. I look on line and all I see is the conversion kits that do not look to be what I want.

Which brands are the best, best place to buy one. Do local parts stores have these or do they need to be ordered
 
I have to tell you that my antitheft philosphy is a bit different. If you kill all power, the smart thieves will know right away that there's a disconnect. If they have the time, they might find your hidden switch.


But with an ignition kill or fuel pump/ fuel shutoff, they might just think the car won't start. The car will crank, radio will work, and it might even fire for a few seconds on the carburetor. But with all the noise and time, and it won't run, they might think twice about hanging around trying to troubleshoot.

And like all this stuff, if they show up with a rollback or wrecker, you are screwed, anyway.
 

I do not kill all the power. I just made it so the key start does not work unless the button is pushed in and held until the car starts, once started let it go.
I figure a thief may find the switch and not know to hold it in while starting.
Nothing is foolproof.
I will hook up some wires to the solenoid to make it look like they need to work on that and not look any farther
 
Here's a pretty complete guide to installing a MOPAR electronic ignition. http://www.allpar.com/fix/electronic-ignition.html
The only flaw is that he doesn't mention that you have to replace the distributor, DUHH!!

Dan Stern is highly regarded by lots of folks, including me. I really think the stock-style conversion will be adequate for you, though. Some will disagree, but tens or hundreds of thousands of MOPARS have run countless millions of miles with the stock ignition. Here's just one of the many choices for the conversion kit:

http://chucker54.stores.yahoo.net/ma27331834033.html

That kit uses a four-pin connector, so disregard the five-pin info in that Allpar writeup. It's also the least expensive complete kit I found.

As far as theft protection, 67Dart273 said it best: " (I)f they show up with a rollback or wrecker, you are screwed, anyway. "

I'm leaning toward this solution: [ame="http://www.ebay.com/itm/Denver-Wheel-Boot-Lock-Towing-Parking-Enforcement-for-Tractors-Vehicles-Trailers-/310817907835?pt=Motors_Car_Truck_Parts_Accessories&hash=item485e30e47b&vxp=mtr"]Denver Wheel Boot Lock Towing Parking Enforcement for Tractors Vehicles Trailers | eBay[/ame]

If you want to review electronics principles from scratch, check this out:
http://www.autoshop101.com/autoshop16.html

BC
 
I think I need a primer on the electronic ignitions. I look on line and all I see is the conversion kits that do not look to be what I want.
Since you have a small block, it is simple and cheapest to buy a "ready-to-run HEI distributor" on ebay for <$50. Best to change to an e-core coil too. The Mopar ignition is harder to wire in an early car and not as modern, plus you would need a later distributor.
 
http://chucker54.stores.yahoo.net/ma27331834033.html[/URL]

I just now looked at this link and realized that I ordered one of these a few hours ago.

Thanks for the info, but I did not need the refresher on electricity. :cheers:
Before I opened my pawnshop I was an electrical engineer for maybe 20 years. but then again you did not know this

Thanks for the info

Ed
 

Actually I've considered a more simple solution to that, too, for "day" parking. Since I have spoked wheels, I've thought about getting a plastic protected cable with a padlock, and devising a simple "stick grabber dealie" so I don't have to crawl around.

Just poke it through the rear wheel, around the leaf and around the tire and lock the darn thing. "Bicycle style," LOL
 
Oh, that's where your username came from! I think that kit will get you on track. When I looked again at the Allpar article, I realized That a lot of it isn't really relevant to the kit. I think this drawing is somewhat clearer. It shows the green wire on the plug going nowhere. If there's a green wire on the plug in the kit just cut it off and forget about it. When you mount the ignition box, be sure to sand or scrape the paint off the mounting ears and the metal under them. That ensures a good ground for the box and a dab of grease on those bare metal parts will keep air and moisture from starting rust/corrosion there.
 

Attachments

Actually I've considered a more simple solution to that, too, for "day" parking. Since I have spoked wheels, I've thought about getting a plastic protected cable with a padlock, and devising a simple "stick grabber dealie" so I don't have to crawl around.

Just poke it through the rear wheel, around the leaf and around the tire and lock the darn thing. "Bicycle style," LOL

Your old knees don't like crawling, eh?? Neither do mine!!

BC
 
I think that kit will get you on track. When I looked again at the Allpar article, I realized That a lot of it isn't really relevant to the kit. I think this drawing is somewhat clearer..

The drawing is not the same as what I bought. I do not see a coil in the kit and the distributor is included.
Where did you get the drawing? I spent a lot of time last night trying to find information on this . like a installation or owners manual and found nothing.
 
The drawing is not the same as what I bought. I do not see a coil in the kit and the distributor is included.
Where did you get the drawing? I spent a lot of time last night trying to find information on this . like a installation or owners manual and found nothing.

That drawing is a different rendering of the second one in the Allpar writeup I sent you earlier. I'm really not sure where I found it. I've spent a lot of time online on various and sundry MOPAR and related sites and saved everything that seemed relevant. Unfortunately, it's not indexed very well. The photo in the Mancini Racing link does not show a coil, nor does the ad say that one is included, but it's the same kit I bought, except I replaced the E.C.U. and coil with stuff from FBO/4 Seconds Flat.

Any high output coil will work with the pieces in the Mancini ad. I would buy this one: http://chucker54.stores.yahoo.net/msdblascoilr.html , or if you prefer a chrome coil that is electrically identical, this one: http://chucker54.stores.yahoo.net/msdchbl2cowh.html I like Mancini because I've never had a problem with them or with Summit or Jeg's either.

I thought you said in an earlier post that you had just ordered the Mancini kit . The kit that I bought from Mancini came with a pretty complete 11 page installation booklet. I don't know if the kit you bought will have any instructions at all, which would leave you with a handful of parts and more questions.

I have scanned a couple of pages of the Mancini instructions. PM me your email address and I can send them to you.

BC
 
You can find this stuff online, easy. The big difference is making sure you have a 4 wire ECU. That is, if you've scrounged up a used box, it might be 5 wire. Only way to tell for sure is to "ohm" the 5th pin and discover if it's a dummy or not. Some 4 pin boxes have 4 physical pins, and some have 5.

If you do have an (older) 5 pin box, you'll have to use the older 4 pin resistor.

Make sure you leave the ballast bypass circuit hooked up (Shown above as yellow, older cars are brown). When converting YOU CAN LEAVE your coil and coil resistor UNDISTURBED, and just wire the box up

Just add the light blue in the diagram above, from the box, splice into the resistor as shown.

The remaining wires go to distributor.........

and to coil negative.

It is absolutely important to ground the ECU. Now would be a good time to clean up the volt. regulator mount, and mount both it and the ECU using star lock washers.

You can carry your points dist. for a spare. If the system fails, assuming the box or distirbutor, you can just jam your points distro in there and hook the dist. wire back up to the coil neg.
 
This is great information. I will read up on it as much as I can and ask questions so when it shows up I am ready for it
 
-
Back
Top Bottom