trouble starting - electrical - help!

[Narnian]

The J20 has been sitting fo about four weeks and I decided to move it soI could get rid of my parts Jeep (which is parked behind it)

I turned the ignition and just got a hint of it turning over, so I figured it needed a jump. I popped the hood with the key still in the on position, and then I saw the smoke. The black wire (ground) was red hot where it connected to the Alternator mounting post, and it was smoking both at the mount and at the little gizmo on the firewall (the starting relay? Solenoid? I don't remember what it's called!)

The ignition switch has been loose ever since I bought the durned truck. What's the first thing to check?

[Bob Barry]

That wouldn't be a ground-wire, as that stud and the starter relay are both hooked to the (+) post on the battery. Sounds like you fried your charging wire; probably by trying to recharge your dead battery with the alternator. Fix is to replace that wire and incorporate a 14-gauge fusible link.

Just be grateful it wasn't your Cherokee; your ammeter and the sixteen feet of ancient 10-gauge wire leading to and from it would have been the things that burned up, and burnt your truck to the ground.

Let it be said again: NEVER jump-start an ammeter-equipped FSJ that still has the original charging circuit.

[Narnian]

I never got to the point of hooking up my jumping device. It started burning on pure battery juice.

I took another look. The black wire runs from the mounting post on the alternator to the - terminal on the battery. It was burning at the Alternator end. The red wire that leads from the + terminal on the battery goes to the solenoid, and THAT end was burning.

I hooked up my battery charger / Jumpstart device just to check the reading on the battery. It seems to be indicating that the battery is still good. The battery is only 5 months old. The wires definately need to be changed now, since they are both burned on one end, but I don't want to change the wire if that's not the source of the problem.

[Narnian]

PS, when I say the black wire is mounted on the alternator mounting post, I don't mean the battery terminal on the alternator. I mean the post that mounts the alternator to the engine block - it's just a grounding point.

[Bob Barry]

Ah, I see. Probably just corroded wires causing excess resistance and resulting melting. New wires and you should be good to go.

[Narnian]

@!@$#!!#@@@!!!

I'm a Bible thumper, so I'm not allowed to cuss.

I drove down to the store, picked up a new set of wires, tried unbolting it from the solenoid, and the post on the solenoid snapped off. Now, Autozone tells me that they can't even order one. :(

[Narnian]

Savage says they have one (just one) for $21.00. I'm on my way over there now.

Sheesh. So much for cleaning out the parts Jeep so they could tow it next week.

[Narnian]

Thanks Bob!

I actually got in the car and headed down the street when I realized I never removed the Solenoid from the parts Jeep. I swapped that and the wires and the J20 started up just great.

Now if I could only figure out why my Cherokee isn't charging . . .