Trailer Light Testing

David,
No damage to the trailer. If there is a short to the trailer frame (ground), the battery charger is protected typically by a auto resetting circuit breaker.

So, what did you find was the problem with the trailer lights?

I kept the old car battery from the last time I bought a new one for my van. I trickle charge it once in a while and use it for the tent trailer when camping. Its great for testing stuff like that.

CrazyCanuck wrote: I kept the old car battery from the last time I bought a new one for my van. I trickle charge it once in a while and use it for the tent trailer when camping. Its great for testing stuff like that.

+1

I clipped the positive from the charger to a very small allen wrench, and was able to probe each trailer side connector with that.

phatsat67 wrote: Ehhhh, electrical stuff is easy. Most folks over think it. It's just a time consuming road map you need to take all of the roads to find the problem. Glad to hear you have a successful test bed and functioning lights now!

Thanks Zach. I tend to feel that I'm not over-thinking, it's more that I'm under-intelligencing!

I know, I can get it done when needed. Just has never come naturally to me, I really realize it when I watch someone who is good. A guy I work with is extremely talented, and a friend who works on trucks for me is as well, I enjoy watching them work.

After the Thanksgiving storm had ramped up I went to hook up my plow, and nothing. After chasing the problem and one call to a friend I was able to get it fixed, so felt pretty good about that, and now I know what to do for the future. It's all just a learning adventure!

phatsat67 wrote: multi meter and you can test about anything besides a wire load test on our boats/trailers.

But Zach, most VOM's have an amperage port and setting up to 20 amps. The only issue with cheap VOM's is they may only read AC amps.

Those Boss plows are solid, we have a Power - V up at the Tree farm on an old F-250, The V is great for opening up the roads after a big snow, that rig will go through anything. Oh and when you get your truck start, you can use the V to push yourself backwards...

IMHO, DC, especially 12v on a trailer is the hardest electrical system to work on.

Space shuttle.

Pete, subject I enjoy, I'm on my 3rd 6.5 diesel and a friend of mine works on them and has bought/sold/run another 6 or 7.

The PMD or FSD can't stay mounted to the injection pump. GM mounted it there because they thought the fuel flow would cool the PMD, but when you stop the engine they heat soak and fail. GM replaced something like a half million perfectly good injection pumps because they couldn't figure this out, but the aftermarket had it figured out in the early 2000's. Anyway, you need to get an extension harness, mount the module on an aluminum heat sink, and then mount it in one of the ventilation holes in the front bumper. That solves the problem, though being honest I carry a spare PMD with me just in case. Go to Heath Diesel (my favorite but expensive), Kennedy Diesel, or a few other places to buy the PMD all mounted with a harness, they aren't cheap though.

Chevys in the rust belt make their own ventilation holes and I've seen Petes he could mount it anywhere!

You're right about that Gary, rust is a real problem, particularly lower door panels and tailgates. My friend bought an extended cab out of Louisiana, had it trucked up, and we couldn't believe the difference. Bolts came apart easily without penetrating oil or heat, no rust, everything preserved. I think if I buy another one I may look to the south.

Zach, I love these things. The knock on them is no power and they don't stay running. But, if you do a few basic mods and take care of a few GM engineering errors, they run strong and are reliable. I towed a 7,500 lb. trailer without any special towing mods and it pulled it just fine, pulls the boats with ease, runs smooth and starts right up. Plus, because there is not much demand for them, they are cheap to buy. My truck was $1,800 not running (no plow), we had it running 4 hours from when it arrived, I've put around $1,200 or so into it. The plow was $2,500, cost much more than the truck!

Kind of like Correct Crafts .... I just like them. I like 6.5 diesels. I like Cub Cadet garden tractors. Becomes a hobby/habit after a while!

Look at that fleet! I hate rust with a passion. One of the reasons I have a newer vehicle and play with boats more now than old cars.

Gary S wrote: Chevys in the rust belt make their own ventilation holes and I've seen Petes he could mount it anywhere!

Now with the water/salt getting inside the doors, the biggest problem is keeping the latch and window mechanisms running free. I've gotten real good at spraying the CRC 3-36 with the straw the problem points without taking the door panel off.