The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area The Electrical Bay Ground Straps in General

Since buying the '59 a few months back I noticed an additional ground strap leading from the battery (-) terminal directly to the firewall. Is this just an (extra) precautionary measure that someone thought would be beneficial. There is a ground strap from the battery (-) terminal attached to the bell housing.
If I have a ground from the engine to the chassis frame can I eliminate the strap at the firewall just to clean things up.

Sounds like something somebody added but there could have been a reason. Hard to unscramble that egg at this point but some will say you can never have too many ground connections.

When these trucks were new, they did not have thick layers of paint on all surfaces of the cab like you will have on an extensive over-restoration/mod build. Grounding from cab to frame came about naturally.
Once you add epoxy primer, high build primer, sealer, base coat, and clear coat, you might want to add some extra ground straps from the frame to the cab.

In addition to Carl’s suggestions, clean any grounding locations to bare metal.

Then coat the clean metal with an anti-oxidant conductive grease (“copper impregnated grease”), which is available in any auto-parts store or auto parts section of a large multipurpose/product store that has an auto section.

I considered running a very heavy solid copper wire from the frame at the rear to the frame up front. All other equipment copper wire grounds could be run to this wire. I would then only have to check and keep clean at 2 places in the system.

I once told this to a friend and he said that's the way they do it in big pleasure boats.

That's because watercraft have "floating grounds".

Yep, kind of hard to get good grounds on fiberglass.

I need a schematic for a '59 FAM showing where the braided strap lands. From what little bit I have discovered its (one) strap from the battery attached to the firewall in behind the battery tray.

Batt to motor, motor to body, body to frame, are the main straps. In any order. Then auxiliary grounds to enhance fuel sender, dash gauges, lamps, etc can be added.
Keep in mind, everything is isolated by rubber mounts/pads. The motor, the cab, the bed, the gas tank, electric motor feet, welting...............so ground continuity needs bridged all over the place.
The FAM does show a picture, or two, of strap from neg batt to a threaded hole behind/below batt. You can do the three main straps almost anyway you want.

My LCF has a strap from battery to firewall and another from toe board to engine. I added a battery cable from negative battery to engine. I don't remember a strap from the cab to the frame but everything is working nicely.

Alright sounds good...in my case preformed store bought cable lugged at each end is used in lieu of the braided straps used as OEM. I will double check for (3) bonding points. thanks

Electrons can't read assembly manuals. They go wherever there's the least amount of resistance. Since the heaviest current draw item on the truck is the starter, it makes sense to attach a heavy ground cable as close to the starter housing as possible and use smaller-gauge ground wires/straps to ground the body, frame, and bed to the engine.
Jerry

Amen, Jerry

It might not be "original", but it sure is logical.

That 00 gauge ground cable (I believe in in overkill) from the 6v battery to the 6v starter bolt might be expensive, but, it makes sense and makes for a fast spinning starter.

And, I have 00 ground straps frome frame to clutch-housing on both sides, and from clutch housing to firewall (inner-fender rod-to-firewall bolt on passenger side). I think these were specified for the RPO/Accessory 6v radio?
(00 gauge might not have been specified, 2 gauge was probably "standard", but what the hey?)

Clean-to-shiny and use conductive-grease on all connections. They will not corrode/oxidize in your life-time?

Early automotive engineers were mechanical types. They knew the basics but did not recognize the importance of the ground or fuses. Auto companies didn't hire E.E.'s except for maintenance of the building. Most "electrical" stuff was built by subs that were supported/funded/purchased/concieved by GM/Durant. Smart guy.
The electrical motors and components were left to Remy and Dayton. But the overall "harness" and grounds were factory designed/routed. GM gradually put all these boys together as a team and improvements developed.

Along the way they bought Dayton Engineering Laboratories Company D E L CO and the bought Mr. A lbert C hampion's Spark Plug Company and called it AC-Delco. Then they were really "into" the electrical portion of auto's.

It's interesting history. Durant actually started an automotive parts and accessories company first. Selling to all manufacturers. Ended up owning GM (twice) and putting all kinds of companies together for exclusive use of GM. He was well "grounded". (that's an "on topic" reference).
Finished up broke, managing a bowling alley. Sad. Too many loans from too many lenders.

GREAT HISTORY LESSON!

bartamos, what do you know about Dort Carriage Works and Dallas Dort's offspring? I have an HVAC customer by the name of Dallas Dort - I wouldn't think there are very many with that name. I have never asked him if he is related to the Flint Michigan Dort family but I think he is from the area, his wife is from Grand Blanc just south of Flint.

WIKI:
In 1886, he partnered with Josiah Dallas Dort to found Flint Road Cart Company eventually transforming $2,000 in start-up capital into a $2-million business with sales around the world.[4] By 1890, the Durant-Dort Carriage Company, based in Flint, had become a leading manufacturer of horse-drawn vehicles and in 1900, the largest in the US

However, Durant had overextended himself with imprudent acquisitions, and in 1910, General Motors faced a cash shortage. In the aftermath, Durant was forced out of the company by a consortium of bankers.[6] Not to be defeated, Durant backed Louis Chevrolet's eponymous company in 1911; J. Dallas Dort was vice-president and director of the company.[8] In 1913, Dort stepped down as vice-president of Chevrolet,[8] and in 1914 Durant disposed of his share of the Durant-Dort Carriage Company.[9] By 1915 R S McLaughlin was building Chevrolet to allow that 1916, Durant had leveraged Chevrolet's sales to regain control of General Motors, and he went on to lead GM until 1920.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Josiah_Dallas_Dort

You would have to do a family tree search for his off spring. I suspect your customer is related. Durant was really big in the carriage business before cars. "Lets put a motor on a carriage and call it a horseless carriage".

Like the Wright Bros were bicycle guys. Look what they did. Same era.

Thanks, I have seen some of that history, I was just curious on how much info you have.