2 Wire Alt. Upgrade Question

[Hammer 74]

Is it correct for me to assume that if I go from a 50 Amp to a 78 Amp I can just run a heavier black lead to the starter relay and also the old black Alt lead. I need a good book on electrical wiring for reference. Any out there? Thanks.

[451Mopar]

You should be able to run an extra wire from the alternator output to the battery in parallel with the original wire. This will partly bypass the ampmeter gauge in the car, so the gauge will not read correctly. Other than the gauge reading it should work fine. I prefer to just hook-up an aftermarket Voltage meter than rely on the stock Amp gauge.

[Hammer 74]

I am running a Volt Guage and m wondering if the stock black wire feeds the dash or other important stuff.

[451Mopar]

The stock wire will need to be retained as it does supply the power to the dash amp gauge, fuse block, and ignition switch.
Running a seperate wire in "parallel" (using two wires) will reduce the current load of the wire (in proportion to the resistance paths of the wires.)
Anyhow, it will work. The diodes in the alternator keep the alternator from draining the battery when the engine is off (they also convert the alternators AC output to DC, but that's not the point as far as wiring up the alternator.)

[Hammer 74]

Thanks 451Mopar for the info. I understand your idea of splitting the wire to feed the dash and also feed the battery. My battery is in the trunk so I will run a #4 (I have a spool of it) to the battery direct so my shutoff switch will still shut the car off. There is also a fuseable link in case it over powers the stock wire. I want to eventually find a Dakota fusebox and run thru that with a alt. fuse upgrading from glass to modern fuses and relays. Thanks a lot for the info.