Hot ground wire

[Kwg10305]

I have done a full wire harness swap. Now , when I go to start my 84 k10 the ground that goes from the frame to the block gets very hot. I have found no shorts and everything is wired exactly how the schematic shows. Any help would be great.
Thank you

 

[Ricko1966]

I have done a full wire harness swap. Now , when I go to start my 84 k10 the ground that goes from the frame to the block gets very hot. I have found no shorts and everything is wired exactly how the schematic shows. Any help would be great.
Thank you

What gauge are you running from frame to block? My money says you've used to small a gauge,your connections aren't clean,or your starter is drawing too many amps. So let's start with what gauge,and make sure your connections are clean.

 

[Scott91370]

Agree 100% with Rocko, either too small of a wire or bad connection.

Also, how long are you cranking it before it gets hot?

 

[Kwg10305]

This is the ground strap is the one we installed. If this is not correct what do you recommend

 

[DoubleDingo]

Battery cable sized cable from block to frame, battery to block and frame for starters. Never too many grounds.

 

[Bextreme04]

This is the ground strap is the one we installed. If this is not correct what do you recommend

That strap is supposed to go from the back of the cylinder head to the cab firewall. You need a minimum 4AWG wire from the alternator bracket or block to the frame and then same gauge from the frame to the Battery. That strap is not going to flow nearly enough without massive amounts of resistance(heat).

 

[Bextreme04]

As Dingo said.. you need, AT A MINIMUM, the same size wire for the grounds as you have providing power from the battery. Since you have the main power feed through a 4AWG wire straight to the starter, you need at least that much going from the block back to the battery.

 

[Ricko1966]

@DoubleDingo nailed it,nothing more to see,everyone can go home now.

 

[WP29P4A]

If your ground from block to frame gets hot, your probably lacking a solid ground from battery to block. The factory ran the biggest positive lead straight to the starter because it pulls the most amps. The first stop for your grounding should be the block, and it needs to be equal in size to the positive cable from battery to starter. The rest of the grounds are for much lower amperage circuits, and are sized accordingly.

My two points are. Ground of equal size straight to block. The place you tie the cab to the block and the frame to the cab does not matter anywhere near as much as the ground from battery to block. The best analogy would be an extension cord with one 20ga. conductor and one 10ga. conductor, the smaller wire will be the one to heat up.