and everything looks pretty good for the most part. Thw wiring actually looks like it was re-done pretty recently. Too bad nothing worked except for the turn signals. Still not sure as to why not.. I suppose I will trouble shoot with the cluster out and see if I can figure it out. I had a couple of questions... I had one pigtail that had no bulb and didn't seem to go anywhere, as well as some wires that looked cut, and have no idea where those go to. Also, what can be done about the DUST? I assume it is coming from the original batting which it making a complete mess under the entire dash.









I also have always had an issue with the steering column bracket fitting flush against the cluster... here is a picture prior to pulling everything out... no matter what I do it doesn't fit right.

 

Random bulb
Your second picture shows what appears to be a black plastic bulb socket, with no bulb. Is that the one you are asking about?

If it has a gray wire on it, it likely goes into the back of the ignition switch.

Cut Wires
Can you post a picture of the cut wires? Perhaps we can tell you where they went.

Dust
When I had my cluster and wiring harness out, I took a damp sponge and wiped all of the dust off of everything.

Fit of column
As for the fit of the steering column collar - the up/down adjustment of the steering column relative to the instrument cluster, on my 65, is handled by moving the steering column bracket fore/aft. This bracket is the sort-of-flat-ish bracket that goes under the column and is held in place with 2 bolts/nuts. It attaches to the big brake pedal bracketry. It is the bracket I am holding in this picture

 

Yes the wire is grey... but no way it would reach the ignition switch.. why is there a buld socker for the ignition switch??

As for the dust... the padding will just produce more dust.. it is just old. Is there something non flammable/flame retardant I can spray on it that might mat it down.. like a hair spray type of deal?

There is a pic of the wires.. a crappy one at least. I will try to take a better one tonight. The wires go into the harness and then god knows where.

 

I'm afraid the only black plastic bulb holder having a single gray wire going into it, on my 65 (what year do you have?) is for the ignition switch. It provides back-lighting so you can see where to insert the key at night. Pull the dash lights on and ta-da the ignition switch lights up.

After looking at your pictures more closely, it looks like many of your bulb holders are black plastic, even those with single gray wires going into them. Do I interpret your photos correctly?

Can't help you there. I pulled all of my decaying insulation out, and installed new. I suppose you could spray your old padding with a clear coat spray paint, but I'd think the padding has too much irregular surface area to allow that to work real well.

Was one of your earlier pictures showing the cut wires? If so, can you guide me to them on your pic?

Jeff

 

This diagram from DZVette may help you identify where each wire is supposed to go...
http://lbfun.com/Corvette/Tech/vette...%20labeled.pdf

The photos are of a new, correct reproduction harness

 

My 63 has the same gap behind the steering column escucheon (sp?)and dash. The reason mine is that way is because I have a 64 dash in a 63. I bought a 64 steering column escucheon and I think it will take care of my problem. I could buy a 63 dash but I ain't worried about it. I will let the next owner worry about it. It will be my estate cause I ain't selling.

 

You might consider buying a new dash harness, you've got it all apart, that's half the job. Watch out for sockets without bulbs, the design of these sockets allows the hot wire to short out easily. One in my clock let the smoke Genie out while I was going down the road. Good Luck

 

Buy new dash harness from lectric Limited $ 380

Buy wiring diagram from Doc Rebuild (shows real images of connectors and wires - very simple and easy).

You want to do this job ONCE and correct!

 

Thats a great illustration.

 

Cluster lights not working is a typical symptom of the ground wire not hooked up. If I recall correctly its a tough one to get to up towards the top of the cluster.

 

The cluster gets it's main ground in the form of a black wire, with a black female connector on it, which attaches to a male tab at the top of the cluster above the tach.

That wire in turn gets grounded through the ground wire connected to the "Z" bar between the cluster and the radio.

The "Z" bar gets it's ground because it is part of the bird cage, which receives ground from the ground wire running from the frame to the birdcage at the left front rocker panel area.

The frame gets it's ground from the ground strap at the motor mount (and other places)

 

Ok then.. that may explain a lot then. If you look at this pic I circle 2 things in red and green that were not connected to anything. One seems to be that tab at the top of the cluster and may explain why my cluster lights were not working. But the turn signals worked... do they work off a different or their own ground?

Also, what is the thing circled in RED? It also was attached to nothing. As for the ignition switch light, it looks like there is a separate piece that attaches to the ignition switch which I do not seem to have.



It still doesn't explain the random empty socket, unless someone plugged one in somewhere wrong, and this empty one went to a gauge or speedo?

And what techniques are used to clean everything up? Seems like the faces will have to go off somewhere to get silk screened if I want them pretty? What about stripping the cluster and various pieces? Magazine articles have eluded to chem stripping, but I really hate chem stripping. Is media blasting too abrasive for the texture of the cluster? And I don't think I have my colors straight. SEM Black for the cluster, but what shades/colors for the rest of the cluster? There is a piece painted a green on one side and some black on the other side.



And finally.. when painting the cluster, how do you paint it while leaving the lettering silver? I had thougt these come off and can be replaced, but i guess not. And the ignition switch lettering is worn way down and looks like crap.

 

The item circled in green is indeed the tab where the black ground wire connects.

The item circled in red is a radio capacitor, it splices into the tan parking brake alarm wire.

My guess is that the left over bulb is a bulb that should have been plugged in somewhere else, and the bulb that should be plugged into the ignition switch was plugged in the wrong spot, and if you do that enough times you can end up with a spare bulb on the wrong side of the harness (left versus right)

The ignition switch bulb is a 1445, but the other 9 gray-wire lights are 1816s in the back of the cluster.

As for the silver lettering, I suppose you could gently wipe the new black paint off with a rag and lacquer thinner, or use a silver paint pen to paint the letters.

 

Here's a good article to answer many of your questions about what to do now that you have the cluster out. Hope it helps.http://www.corvettemagazine.com/content/view/76/Once you have the cluster stripped and painted you can use lacquer thinner on a rag over a flat paint stirrer (or finger) to carefully rub the edges of the bezels to remove the paint down to the chrome. Use a razor blade to carefully scrape the paint off of the areas where you want the raised lettering to show. You could use the thinner too on this but I found the blade to be a better way.

 

I read that same articles and others that mentioned chem stripping.. I assume media would ruin the texture on the cluster and is why nobody seems to do it?

 

One thing not mentioned here is this: original wiring harnesses have silver metal bulb holders. Yours are black plastic, which replacement harnesses have, so your harness has been replaced at some point, which is why the wiring looks pretty good to you. This is good news, since you don't have to bother replacing the dash harness. Hopefully, the engine harness and rear lighting harness have been replaced too, but check if the those wires look fresh.

It looks like when someone replaced your harness, they messed up by connecting things incorrectly, or not connecting some things at all. The info in this thread will let you connect things up just fine.

The gray wire with no bulb looks like one of the several bulbs that provide general instrument illumination, instead of having a function such as working an ammeter, etc. It should work fine in any of the general illumination locations.

Good luck!

 

The replacement harness I recently bought, Lectric Limited I believe, has the silver metal bulb holders.

 

It looks like you are doing the cluster yourself, what paint have you found for the interior? I believe that it's luminescent green paint? Does anyone know where to buy this paint? Dave

 

Yes I am trying to do this myself.. Some have suggested a green paint from Lowes I believe. They will have to confirm what to buy. How to actually paint it I don't know. Seems like it would be easier to send them off and be refaced, silk screened or whatever. I forgot who does this (redline?) but I think the cost was about $20-30 per. If someone figures out how to do the faces myself let me know as well.

 

The luminescent paint that I was referring to was the green luminescent paint on the back of the cluster. This paint makes the gauges glow that green color. As for the gauge faces I would just replace them. Dave