Connections to starter solenoid ??

[Rob C]

I had my starter off the other day (was not cranking well), and in my rush to remove it I did not pay enough attention to which wires were connected to which terminals.

The battery cable from the passenger's side battery clearly connects to the fat terminal on the solenoid. The remaining two wires (much smaller conductors) are red and purple. One of them (I can't remember what colour) has a larger diameter connector on it than does the other... does this also connect to the fat terminal on the solenoid ? The wire with the smaller diameter connector would then connect to the ignition terminal on the solenoid ?

BTW, my solenoid has three terminals, the fat one, the ignition one (small diameter terminal, labelled "I"), and another small diameter terminal (labelled "M"). What is the "M" terminal for ? This is not the orignal starter, but a re-build.

Thanks.

Rob

[DmaxMaverick]

Ignore the M pole. The remaining small connectors go to the I pole. The larger connector goes as you describe.

[catmandoo]

the other one is for a bypass wire on the old point type gas cars & trucks to raise voltage while cranking to create hotter spark.

[G. Gearloose]

I thought thats what the I term was for..(bypassing the ballast res)

[Rob C]

So both small connectors go to the I terminal ? I would have thought the wire with the larger diameter hole in its crimped-on connector would go to the fat terminal.

[G. Gearloose]

I beileve one of the small gauge wires goes to the large 'hot' post, but wait for someone to confirm..

Once you get it figgured out...

I had made a QD out of a 4-prong trailer light plug. Two terminals for each of the two small gauge wires. Can't mess it up and it beats working between the frame and the engine. Its cheap and saves some cursing.

[britannic]

The purple wire actuates the solenoid when the ignition is turned to the start position.

[83Silverado]

Using a trailer QD is a great idea. The ignition wire running to my starter has about 3" of slack in it, I've cursed it several times as I've removed & reinstalled my starter, trying to figure out why it was done that way to begin with. Trying to get everything wired up before bolting in place (while holding the starter with one hand) is a chore.