QuestionMr. Jacobson,
I am the proud owner of a 1985 Chevy Blazer that had looked to be well taken care of by it's previous owner. Upon inspection of the vehichle there has been some "re-wiring" done to the vehicle, but from my examination everything is connected properly and goes to the right areas of interest for form and function.
I bought the truck in early September 2005 and it's been having a hard time starting. A friend of mine thought that if I adjusted the number fo shims in the starter that should give me a more precise response, because 40% of the time I would get this buzz sound when I tried to crank over the engine. Almost like the same sound you would expect if you turned over a vehicle while the engine was already running. I would simply turn the engine off and then back on again until I had the familiar response of an engine engaging properly.
Since I am from MN, I decided to purchase a 1000 CCA battery for the frigid mornings here. I installed that and hooked everything up after it wouldn't start up again, thinking that it was a dead battery from the cold. Well instead of turning over it fried the "secondary" negative 10gauge wire. Upon inspection the primary or thicker negative was not snug fit tight on the alternator. From what the gentleman over at Mill's Fleet Farm told me, since the smaller negative wire was the only wire firmly grounded, all the amps and voltage ran through the 10gauge wire and basically it was too much for smaller wire to handle. So I hooked everything back up with a new terminal end for the small negative wire, cleaned up the big terminal end that connectes to the battery (As well as the positve one) and cleaned up the area and terminal head to where it was connected or grounded to the alternator. Hooked it all back up and sprayed some starting fluid near the carburator. Went to crank it over and nothing. I can't figure it out. I figured 2-3 squirts of starting fluid would take care of the problem...to no avail was this engine going to give me adequate spark.
I greatly appreciate your time and attention with whatever advice you can better arm me with before I take her into the shop.
Warmest Regards,
Mark Wyn
AnswerMark,
I don't follow all of your description.
The "thicker negative wire on the alternator" must be the main battery ground wire which runs from the "-" battery terminal to the alternator bracket.
The "secondary" or "10 gauge" negative wire usually runs from the "-" battery terminal to the chassis near the passenger headlight or to the frame near the battery.
Does the engine crank over? You mention no spark but I cannot tell if the engine is cranking from your description.
Be aware when such shorts occur, a lot of other items such as fusible links and electronic ignition modules, can burn out.
