Re: '63 Spider no start -now starts (but I feel like an idiot)

[John_Torello@domain.elided]

O.K. folks- Last night after work I decided to try the first of 2
troubleshooting steps on my '63 Spider. To recap, car was running fine during
the winter except for the fact the battery was a bit low. Regulator and
Generator were replaced the previous Summer. Bought a new battery and suddenly I
had no electrics whatsoever.
I got a lot of good advice and decided to revisit the problem more methodically.
Well, my hands have finally "healed" (read: I can grip again) after the
miserable go kart endurance race in the downpour last weekend, so I figured it
was time for another go.
I decided to start with the Battery connection first, because it is the easiest
thing to get at. Something that Keith Goring had said to me several days ago was
repeated again by Fred several posts ago--and it was bothering me. The advice
was to check both the battery cables (inside edge) and battery terminals since
over a period of time they can get a "film" on them that can cause a bad
connection. I don't have a wire brush for the job, so I get a piece of fine grit
sandpaper and decide to "clean up" the connections a bit. I work on the positive
cable and post and clean up some black stuff on the inside of the cable and move
to the negative. Again, I do the cable first and go to the battery terminal. But
wait--something doesn't "feel" right as I rub the sandpaper on the post. I look
really closely in the limited light and to my horror I realize there is a
plastic cap over the negative terminal!!!!!! After laughing, crying and awarding
myself the 2002 Darwin Award, I take the black plastic cap off, replace the
cables and guess what? The car cranks over fine and starts up. It's funny how I
never noticed it when I bought the battery even in plain daylight. So.... after
you you stop laughing your a**es off, take heed to to the moral of the story:
Never underestimate the basics. This problem almost had me doing a lot of time
consuming things. The old saying goes, start with the easy things first--this
couldn't be more true for me.
Anyway, thanks to all who offered advice and help--sorry this "solution" won't
help some of the others that are having similar problems with electrics-but you
never know

On another note-the GTV6 track car project is moving along. although
s-l-o-w-l-y. I'll keep everyone posted on that one as there are lots of upgrades
going on that seem to be of general interest. I still haven't received the
removable steering wheel adapter, so no new news to report on that one. I did
receive the clear NACA ducts and flexible hose from Racer Wholesale, so time
permitting, the next project will be replacement of side and rear hatch windows
with LEXAN and ducting going to rear discs, via the NACA ducts probably through
the trunk. I also purchased front and rear bumperettes from a Porsche 944 that
may replace the stock bumpers, but some playing around is required on that one.
More to follow....

-JT
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