1966 replacement starter solenoid not working

[Steeletbird]

M 1966 tbird i replaced the starter solenoid and now it won't activate for some reason, all i can find is generic starter wiring (Attached). It seems to have wires missing for lack of a better word ..... ( doesnt show any connections to second wire on solenoid ... does someone have picture of where the wires go ..,,, when i wired it up as they said it wont start ...and when i switched the 2 small wires on front it WILL turn over but wont stop cranking unless i disconnect the battery cable weird ..what am i doing wrong ....
also i am replacing the old distributor for a pertronix and coil ... but i cant a place to provide power for it obviously when KO / running ..any idea ???

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[biddle]

Your subject needs to be a brief title that summarizes your post rather than an entire sentence. Also use the 4 digit model year, this aids in search and no need to include words like Tbird, Thunderbird since we are an all Thunderbird site.

"66 tbird starter solenoid wiring issue driving me nuts arrrrrrrrrrrgh! help"

changed to:

1966 replacement starter solenoid not working

 

[74 Harley]

Ok, on your solonoid one of the two wires is from the key switch to activate the solonoid, the other one is to supply power to the coil while cranking. A quick way to tell them apart is have a friend turn the key while you check the wires with a volt meter.
When you replace the coil just put the power wire back on the positive side of the coil. When you install the Pertronix ignition the two wires coming off of it will both attach to the coil.
This is all you need to do.

 

[Steeletbird]

i appreciate your feedback on that ... ( sorry for a stupid question) but where do the other wires go on the big studs/ bolts, it looks like from the pics all the wires / cables go on the same " side" as the red/ green wire and brown on right , with " only" the cable going to the starter on right side ...is that correct ..... the only reason i ask is that i have connected like that but no crank ...weird ....

 

[Critterpainer]

Where was the new solenoid sourced from? There is a large amount of cheap unsafe Chinese made solenoids on the market. The main body on these is usually grey. Some don't work from the get-go, others arc internally and the starter cranks and cranks until the battery disconnects. More than one Mustang (uses the same part) has burned up the starter or caught fire due to this problem.
Only the big starter cable goes on the terminal feeding the starter This terminal is close to the small terminal marked I for Ign (to coil). The small terminal marked S is on the side that the large lug that the battery and the other cables connect to.

 

[74 Harley]

@Critterpainer has a great point, there are a lot of very poor quality solonoids out there. But to also answer your question about the wires all the power connects on one side. Only the main starter cable is on the other. Like Critterpainer said the other two are ignition and solonoid.

 

[74 Harley]

One more thing, you can jump the small "s" terminal to the power lug and your engine should crank. If you aren't getting anything with the key you may have to check the neutral safety switch.

 

[Critterpainer]

Thanks @74 Harley I skipped right over the safety switch 😳

 

[Steeletbird]

THANKS so much for the great feedback, just fyi i bought it from napa, paid 30 $ wasnt cheap for sure, WOOW ,strangely that is exactly what mine did after i turned key for start it cranked and wouldnt stop until i pulled battery cable, i will double check my wiring ...again... and the neutral safety switch etc... it has been my project for 2 years now which is why details kinda foggy after all this time lol ... total teardown ... see my pictures for details ... been meaning to post the progress report ..... when i had time ... you know how that goes ... after thousands of $$$ sunk into this $$$ pit .... FINALLY coming together that kinda resembles a car now lol like one guy posted here earlier ... " there is a car in ther somewhere lol

 

[Critterpainer]

Known brand from a reputable supplier You should be ok with the solenoid!

 

[74 Harley]

One thing to check is make sure that there is only 1 wire on the s terminal. If by accident the ignition wire is also there it won't stop cranking.