Auto Parts: ballast resistor, ballast resistor, resistance wire

Question
i drive a 1970 chev. pickup 400 block. thats what ive been told. i'm a girl who's father likes to give her big gas guzzlers. n e ways. when i turn the key to the first click the wires that go to the ballast resistor start to smoke and when i turn it all the way it just wont start. it trys but just wont get that final turn on. i bought a new ballast resistor because the other one exploded and the wires immediately started to smoke when i turned key. Is there a pos.& neg.? I was told no it doesn't matter what wire goes where. Q: Will u explain to me how the wires should go from battery to the ballast resistor?  
 thx a million,

leslie

Answer
    The wire to the ballast resistor should come from the ignition switch and go to the + post on the coil.  There isn't a positive and negative post on the resistor, but there are resistors for other makes of car.  You want to make sure that you've got one for a Chevrolet; a lot of stores only stock the one for the Chrysler since they used them well into the eighties and GM stopped in the sixties.  A new resistor might smoke a little because it gets hot and the sealant around the resistor wire will heat up and burn off the coating (just like putting a new element in an electric range).  Since you say the wire is smoking, I have a feeling that the wire used to connect the resistor is too light.  These trucks didn't have resistors when new.  They used a piece of resistance wire that was actually part of the wiring harness.  Someone wired in the replacement resistor and used whatever wire they had laying about to connect it.  It might not be a bad idea to get an OEM resistor wire and replace the resistor with that.  Painless Wiring™ sells them; you can order through any speed shop.  If that's not practical, just replace the existing wire with a 10ga wire (both ends) and it should work great.  A bad coil is also a possibility.  If they've been fooling with the ignition wiring they may have connected the other wire to the coil incorrectly.  There should be a second wire going from the + post of the coil to the "I" post on the solenoid.  This bypasses the resistor when the engine is cranking, giving a hotter spark.  Make sure all of this is straight and it should fire right up.