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Bad Ignition Switch

154048

154048

Atomic City Boxer
Well Gents, I think I have finally found the source of my electrical gremlins...The ignition switch. I have thought about replacing the key switch with a toggle switch (hidden of course). Is this do able?
Since the key switch has three positions...(I would prefer to have just on and off...forget the 'parking light' position), can I wire it into a standard toggle switch?

Which of the four wires would I use? And which would I dis regard?
 
I pulled the ignition switch and found that the base (where the terminals are) was loose. I 'undimpled it' and pulled the terminal plate off and found that, not only was the contact surface loose; allowing a sketchy contact with the electrical switch 'arms' inside...but also that the entire internals was heavy with a slimy oil film. No doubt this is because I (foolishly) shot lubricating oil into the key part to help with a sticky mechanism.

All is cleaned, reassembled and a liberal dose of JB Weld to anchor the base plate firmly...Tomorrow we road test....
 
That's a good story. Good job finding the problem (a bit tricky) and in fixing it by repairing the "unrepairable" switch. Nice.

Barron
 
The switch is actually a beautiful piece of engineering. These intricate little levers etc.
I tested it out this morning and all is well. I think what happened is that the 'bakelite' type material that makes up the base gets brittle over time, causing it to loosen up and wiggle. Plus the filty contacts...A cleaning and JB Weld did the trick. Beats spending $$ for a new switch)
 
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