One more Noob Question.. plug wires

[78Suburban]

Got a set of auto lite 8mm plug wires today, hoping it will cure my poor running problem. I was reading over the instructions and it says "To prevent cross fire, be sure that wires DO NOT run parallel, but run across each other somewhere between the plug and the distributor."

I was gonna use a trick a ck5er told me about to seperate the wires, which uses zip ties to keep them all connected, but also puts a little space in between them. ( I can post an illustration of this if I need to).

Can somebody show me pics of their engine compartment? Any closeups of the wires coming off the dizzy? How your wires are routed? I know some of yall have pics like this floating around on your computer.
thanks soo much ,
James

 

[mxfireman]

Pretty sure you have to be a member but here is mine. They just cross in certain areas and I used the stock clamps the kit came with to keep them seperated.

 

[78Suburban]

Thanks Shane, I can see those pics, I can see alot of the pics on ck5. I am deffinitely going to get a membership for my birthday (in April) (man I've put it off a long time ). Anyway....


What confuses me is the instructions say don't run wires parallel? Why would that be? All of the setups I've ever seen have wires run paralell, IIRC??
thanks,
James

 

[mxfireman]

Not sure maybee someone else that knows more than I do will chime in here just be patient.....

 

[wildmouse216]

Maybe it is talking running them parallel tied together or something like that. I have mine on a wire loom and they run parallel the length of the valve covers.

 

[78Suburban]

Maybe it is talking running them parallel tied together or something like that. I have mine on a wire loom and they run parallel the length of the valve covers.

I can hoestly not understand how you would not run them parallel?
thanks,
James

 

[dremu]

The thing with running them parallel is not a hard-and-fast rule. The idea is that, if you run a wire with high frequency running through it, it will induce that frequency in wires parallel to it ... they act as antennas and send/receive to one another. This is so-called "crosstalk" ... in the car audio world, you put your power wires on one side of the car and the the RCA's carrying the audio on the other, as otherwise alternator noise could radiate from the one to the other.

In this case, the spark juice going through one wire could radiate to another wire, causing a little baby spark at the wrong bloody time, making the engine run badly.

As long as you don't have long runs (foot or more, maybe?) parallel and in close proximity, I don't think you have anything to worry about in The Real World. Yes, you gotta run them parallel for a bit as they go around the heads.

(NB: while I've half an EE, this is by no means an exhaustive study of RF transmissions, about which I know only enough to be dangerous, but a passable wrench. No flames please )

-- A

 

[Leper]

Sounds right to me.

 

[mciahpv]

Shane, what is that your wires are running through near the block? In the pic, it almost looks like PVC pipe. Or is it that header wrap stuff. Just curious, always looking out for new ingenuity...

 

[pauly383]

Just put them on man , don't worry about it . Enough of us start our trucks every morning and drive 45 minutes ( for years , plural ) to work to know it works the way I showed ya

 

[468k5]

zip ties work awesome! been doin it that way for years, keep a space between them,(a small zip tie) and you'll be fine