Thanks for the replies to my 72B instrumentation death. As with most
electrical problems, it took an interesting turn or two but it may be fixed
now.
First, the #3 fuse was blown near the top but it was only apparent under
close scrutiny. I went to NAPA and bought some new 30A fuses (supposedly
the nearest to the 17A slo blow?). So I replaced the fuse and figured it
was fixed. This morning I started the car and still no gauges. Also no turn
signals or brake lights but wipers worked (??). So I thought it still had
to be the fuse - maybe the new one was bad or a bad connection at the fuse
box. So I put in another one. Still no power but about ten seconds after
the car started, the tach made a quick bounce up to 1000 rpm and then back
to zero. So I went ahead and drove the car and maybe 60 seconds later, all
the gauges started working as if there was no problem.
I figured maybe I should clean the fuse box connections better. Then for
some reason after I got to work, I checked the wiring under the dash and
noticed the brown wire to the ignition was very warm. While pondering the
situation, I realized that there were some schematic resources I can access
from work since my manuals are not available. To make a long story short, a
look at Paul Hunt's site with nice wiring schematics
(http://www.mgb-stuff.org.uk/) and thinking the problem through, I was led
to checking the brake light circuit in the trunk and may have found the
short. I just know my lunch drive went without event and the brown wire did
not get warm. I'll do some more definitive work when I get home.
Its still great to enjoy the last days of top down weather. It was a cool
morning in the 40s and a bit cold on the hands but its now in the 70s for
the drive home. That too will change in the near future.
David Councill
67 BGT
72 B
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