^Bright lights after replacing with some LED bulbs (
http://a.co/7VMIsYI)
The alternator wasn't charging. It was only reading 11.9-12.5v at both the battery and alternator positive post. After making sure all my grounds were good, wiring was all going to the right places and doing a bunch of research i was able to find the problem. I'm using a Front Wiring harness for a 1963 truck since that's when they started using alternators. The firewall plug is the same so i was hoping that it would work seamlessly. Well the external voltage regulator needs a 12v feed from the ignition switch, this doesn't exist in the 1961 dash wiring harness, at least not on mine. So first i tried to make a patch of my own by running a wire from the Front Harness to the ignition switch. It gave the regulator power alright, enough to start it smoking after about 5 seconds when the key was turned to "On". In the end I figured that now that i knew what the issue was i should just go with what everyone told me to do in the first place. I picked up the internally regulated, single wire alternator and it works like a champ. After removing the now unnecessary alternator wires from the harness i wound it back up with electrical tape and you can't even tell it was modified.
With that problem fixed, i took the rest of Sunday afternoon and drove around the neighborhood. Driving video:
https://youtu.be/tNjguboyxIs
She makes a lot of noises while driving, most of which is the bed hardware bouncing around but there are a few clanks and clunks that i'll be investigating. The exhaust note is really nice.
I have a month and a half to get ready for the first road trip, a 3 hour drive from Seattle to Manson, WA for their annual Rat Rod Show.