Is the main circuit breaker popping on my Nailhead?

I've got a brand new to me '66 Electra 225 convertible that won't - yet - start. I turn the key, get "Gen" and "hot," and then a "not quite a click" sound. Everything goes dead until I unhook the battery and go through the same process. I know the sound of a starter solenoid that clicks, but this isn't that.

My hope is that the main circuit breaker (new one on order) is popping. My worst fear is that the engine is seized. Help, please.

 

see if it turns over by hand. put a socket on the balancer bolt on try to turn it over. if it does try cleaning the cables on the battery and the ground going to the engine.

 

When you go to crank it have the headlights on and someone there to look at them ,
If they dim a lot when your trying to crank the motor then the starter is engaging and trying to crank the motor and then there’s only two possible reasons why the motor does not crank.

1) the battery is very low in charge or shot.

2) the motor is seized.

 

I didnt know my 66 had a breaker.

 

I’ve had your symptoms before and it was a bad battery cable connection. Could be at the ground, could be the cable ends. Do you have ‘permanary’ ends on either cable? Your connection works for low draw-dash lights, radio, etc. but not for the starter.
Patrick

 

The Pos cable goes directly to the horn relay and then a cable to the starter. Its in no way interrupted. The Cat has a fault either in the ing switch or somewhere in the wiring to the starter where most of the time I get only a click to the starter or nothing at all when the key is turned . It also will run in the AUX position. I made a stand off box and put a 20A switch on the floor above and to the left of the dimmer switch to start the car when it wants to act stupid. A new switch and dash harness is in the distant future.

 

Thanks! I've never seen a circuit breaker like this, 40 amp and it's not a fuesuseable link per se. Today's project will be pulling the plugs and hand cranking the engine with them out. If it is a seizure, I [second] thought it would be bad if the starter motor did engage against an immobile flywheel. Updates to follow...

 

Gentlemen, we have ignition of the main engine! Thanks for all the help. I first hand cranked it and it turned surprisingly easily -- so worst fears not realized. I then plugged the errant wire to the horn relay. I don't get the idea there though. The horn relay? Anyway, that might explain the weird symptom of the battery needing to be disconnected and reconnected. You all gave me the confidence to move ahead, but I'm also embarrassed to say that I still had rags stuffed into the intake manifold (the carb is off and I was scrubbing things clean first). Now it's time to install the rebuilt carb and cross my fingers.

 

Prime the carbs fuel bowls thru the vent tube until the accelerator pump works nice and it should fire right up if it’s got spark which you can prove out before you even bolt on the carb.

 

I had a look at the plugs and they look less than ideal. New set and we'll see how we do.

 

This is from the chassis manual. The breaker is listed as "power option only." Maybe it's the convertible roof.

 

The horn relay has a lug, that the battery is connected to and the starter is connected to that.
That lug is also used for some heavy draw accessories. So the battery +terminal-->lug-->starter, and is "seen" as cable from the battery +terminal to the starter. It is not actually going through the relay.
And there is not inline protection for the two large cables from the + terminal to the starter.

Some of those horn relays also have a smaller positive lug as well as the large one.

 

When I installed the Sniper in the Cat it said to go directly to the battery with the 2 main wires for + and -.. Instead I made up a junction block and took power from that lug. It stated and ran but eventually left me stranded 100 miles from home. Guess it didnt like that. Later after a long and expensive tow did it their way and have not had an issue.

 

Thanks, TrunkMonkey. I thought to check for this part online and it doesn't look like mine. The first image that popped up looks like the wiring diagram. Mine looks more like this (only in plastic): Once I get this thing started, I'll tackle the non functioning horns and power adjustable seat!

 

@exchaoordo

I prefer the OEM style, but if you have yours working the way it is, you should be OK. Although the fuse link later added were only about 22 and 32 amp load protection, so 40 might be too heavy a rating for the wiring it is protecting. Do you know what size wiring is protected and what all the wiring is that is on that breaker?

Yeah, I have read about folks with the EZ, Fast, Sniper, Fitech etc. having noise and other issues from erratic power, and all recommend the direct connection.

I have the FiTech 2x4 on my 64 Skylark (nailhead) and a FiTech single on my 68 Skylark.
The 64 is on the lug for main power and the 68 is on a junction block.
They also "require" the direct to the + Post, but I have had no issues due to the power wire not being run like that.
(I did wire direct due to another issue for troubleshooting, and once I sorted it out, I went back to to my preferred wiring)

The 64 has all new wiring, and I tore down and rebuilt the 68 harnesses, replaced all the questionable terminals, resoldered all the joins in the harness, and replaced the fuse links, and new battery cables, new ground straps and cleaned and tightened all points of chassis ground/bonding. I think that might be key to eliminating EFI gremlins folks run into, or I'm just lucky.

I did check all logs over a few weeks once I got them dialed in and compared after changing the wiring back, and no differences, no noise issues, RPM scatter or anything.

I run the Flaming River battery disconnect relay, so that makes the direct wire a no go for me.

 

I will definitely get to all of that as there is a lot of kooky wiring in the engine bay. I'm working from a colored wiring diagram that is just this side of legible in some key parts (too pixilated). But we have liftoff! So now at least I can put it in the garage.

 

I don't know how many know this. A fusible link should be approx. 9" long & the wire/circuit you are trying to protect the fuseable link wire needs to be 4 gauge wiring smaller. In other words if you want to protect a 10 gauge wire/circuit the fusable link needs to be 14 gauge.
If the wire/circuit is 16 gauge you would use a 20 gauge.

Tom T.