1966 GMC C1500 Battery, Starter, Fuses, I have no Idea

PHROG420

MEMBER
1966 GMC C1500

Electrical problem
1966 GMC C1500 6 cyl Two Wheel Drive Manual

Thanks for reading, I hope you can help this one. I bought an almost beautiful running '66 GMC half ton. It came home fine with some obvious brake problems. I have since done a full tune up and replaced all the fuses, filters, battery and cables, shoes and drums, etc. The problem now is it won't start anymore. The mechanic, which I am not, told me to connect the battery with the negative coming from the cylinoid, with a ground, and the positive from the engine, no ground. When I did this the ground on the negative started smoking and I immediate disconnected everything. Now I have been told, by a different mechanic, the battery was back wards and I may have broke the starter/ cylinoid. It is an old truck with lots of love needed, but I can't get even a click when I turn the key. No lights on or even a sound in the engine. If you are laughing when reading this you know what I did wrong and can probably help me out. When you let me know what to do we will laugh together. Thanks again for your time in reading this and let me know if you have some neighborly advice.

1 Reply

JDL

MECHANIC
16,098 POSTS

Hello, I only have basic info as far as wiring for the model year. The picture is the end of the starter solenoid from a parts book. The field terminal should be hot, when trying to start the vehicle. Make sure the tranny is in neutral--e-brake is set-- clutch pushed in--block the wheels.

The top lug is for B+ battery cable, hot all the time. One of the smaller terminals should be crank feed, goes hot when you try to start. If there is only one smaller wire going to the solenoid, that should be it.

You could jump the starter solenoid to see if there is any starter action, but, there is a safety issue, if the tranny happens to accidently be in gear and the vehicle starts, it will run over you, anything or anybody else that happens to be in the way.

As far as hooking The cables backwards, I can't tell what all you might have damaged.