So, the other thing I got taken care of, was a battery cable upgrade.
I bartered some LED stuff with XJWonders (MeanLemons Battery Cables), for a 2AWG set.
It took me a few hours to get it all in place, as I'm a bit attentive to making routing as clean as possible without the cable touching things, firmly secured, etc.
My "review"
Pros:
- Great Crimps
- Great cable
- Comes with everything needed (mostly)
Cons:
- Was shipped two negative battery terminals
- In some areas, I would have made the cable different
- The cable lug end meant for the alternator, didn't fit my stock stud or the new Alternators stud.
I'll add some pictures:
Connected to the alternator, I added a rubber wire boot (I've got a bunch of spare electrical stuff). The stock plastic cover wouldn't fit on the 2AWG. I had to drill out the lug to fit on the alternator stud.
Final routing. Not the "most" ideal as I'd have it laid out, but it will work just fine.
I drilled and mounted the fuse holder along the fenderwell.
I used some MLV underneath it for a couple reasons:
- The plastic plugs on the bottom of the stud terminals kept falling off, this this will prevent an unwanted grounding of the terminals on the fender.
- As the fender is not fully flat, it allows some cushion and vibration dampening to the fuse holder box.
Line to the Alternator (red), and line to the starter (inside wire sheath). I affixed the starter cable inside some new plastic sheathing, and then mounted it with a rubber lined clamp to an existing hole there. I zip tied the alternator cable to that plastic sheathing, as well the the A/C line (with some hose spiced around the A/C line as a barrier/protection from rubbing).
On my buggy, all lines like these were sheathed in Fire Sleeve. I was going to do that on these as well since I a bunch extra, but didn't end up doing it. I might in the future, as electrical and electrical caused fires...are no joke.
Cover trimmed and reinstalled:
Some of the main cable changed I would have made, were cables that went from the battery, to the PDC, and from the Fuse to the PDC. I would have made these much shorter jumpers, as you can see in the last picture they're kind of "twirled".
However, I do realize this added length allows for some flexibility in mounting locations.
I was going to cut the wires and make them shorter, but realized all my lugs were sizes other than 2AWG, and I didn't feel like running to the store to get some.
Also, not pictured is the new block ground, from the engine to the fire wall.
The thicker 2AWG wire definitely makes routing a bit harder, since it doesn't bend as easy, thus tight turns aren't possible.
That being said, it's what I had planned on making, and it's a well built kit.