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Thick Gauge Battery Cable Replacements

jahin77

jahin77

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I'm needing new battery cables for my 1977 K10 truck and was wondering if anyone knows part numbers to both positive and negative. The positive wire is 4ft 3in and the negative is 2ft 10in with a ground wire attached. This information would be appreciated.
 
Back when I worked a parts counter,the Standard/BlueStreak catalog had listings for both 4 gauge and 2 gauge..

Now that catalogs are ancient history,I suppose you'll have to do much googling to find one that is a suitable match..

Edit--I googled "1977 K10 battery cables, 2 gauge",and came up with several listings in Autozone's online parts lookup--the GP/Sorensen brand they carry,uses a "2D" suffix to indicate a 2 gauge cable,and a "4D" for the oem 4 gauge ones..they show various lengths,55".65",so I guess they list all possibilities ..note these cables will be for a SIDE POST battery,as that is what GM used originally..

Chevrolet K10 Battery Cable - Best Battery Cable Parts for Chevrolet K10
 
If it were me I’d get the fine strand welding cables and put the correct lugs on them. Helps when you already have the crimper, but you can always find a shop that’ll do it.
 
I made battery cables for my diesel pickup ,just used some welding cable I had ,and took some 1/2"soft copper tubing and mashed it flat onto the cable,drilled 3/8" holes in it,and shaped the copper on my bench grinder till it looked like a factory made crimped connector..

I used the cheesy bolt on top post "repair" clamps on the battery end..not my favorite things,but they work OK ..now you can get ones that work like compression fittings for tubing--just shove the cable in,and tighten the nut,and it crushes it tight ..
 
I did the welding cable thing, holy crap did that ever make a difference to crank speed! vroom!
 
Way back in the day, lots of companies made cables for the older vehicles, like my '60 CJ5 in 12 volt and 6 volt. I always went with the 6 volt if they made them. Half the voltage means double the current to do the same amount of work, so hte 6 volt cables were heavier. I used to have a battery store in town. They were local, not a national chain, and carried pretty much whatever you wanted.
They also had lots of very heavy fine strand cable, all the different connectors, and the right crimpers.
Hurricane destroyed the building, and the owner used that as an excuse to retire and close shop.
 
Only downfall to welding cable is it isn't very oil resistant. Not the stuff I used long ago anyway. Oil made the insulation swell and basically become useless near the starter due to a valve cover leak
 
Farm stores or heavy duty truck places will have a assortment of HD cables in stock in various lengths and ends with a nice crimp.

I went away from the welding cables because the lugs at the welding store didn't have the correct hole size for auto stuff. The holes in the lugs were to big.
Then your putting washers on it and looks like shit. Hacky, hacky, hackitdy, hack.
When looking for the correct ends at the auto parts store the lugs didn't fit the wires.

So i stumbled on the heavy truck tractor stuff and it has the post lugs on for a nice install. Its just as big as welding cable and is designed for the underhood environment. As shady found out.

I am sure I can get the correct lugs on Amazon. But typically I am in a pinch to get it done if I'm changing battery cables.


I put welding cables on my plow pump and it made it run so fast I burnt up my pump!:doah:
 
shady said:
Only downfall to welding cable is it isn't very oil resistant. Not the stuff I used long ago anyway. Oil made the insulation swell and basically become useless near the starter due to a valve cover leak
Click to expand...

True, EMPD covered cable is not oil proof , but it has not been an issue anywhere I have used it..
If I do have a leaker, or anywhere that might be questionable, I usually sleeve the cable with a couple of pieces of heat shrink first, and then maybe a piece of heat shield tubing if close to a header or exhaust.

Where this really worked great is in my LUV truck...as I have the battery box mounted in the bed and cable run up to the starter... The PO had 3 long battery cables spliced together thru the bare strands with a 5/16 bolt and nut and a couple of washers.....all wrapped up in a gob of electrical tape... I should have taken a picture of it ... :haha:
 
I've used this type of lug at the starter solenoid end when I made my own battery cables,to solve the need for a right angled lug fitting like GM used factory..
I sprayed it with battery terminal spray because it is "bare" and will corrode eventually...first one I used I put grease on it but it soon washed off,so I brake cleaned it and sprayed it with Permatex "High Tack" gasket sealer,it stayed perfect for years...."Flex seal" or RTV would work well too probably..

These are fairly common in house power supply wiring,should be able to find them at Lowe's or Home Depot..they have a 3/8" hole too,at least the one I used did..copper lug.jpg
 
Yeah they cattier to shops and industry, American made mostly, our Automotive Electrician loved that stuff, I got to use it on occasion. Is fine wire bends and routes easier than the thicker strand of same gauge.
 
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