Kill swtich with LED, how to wire the LED?

Could you describe the ciruit in more detail (draw if you like). That would help giving input on the question.

Shorting the coil is the typical kill-switch, but just curious - what's wrong with a switch that simply opens the + circuit?

As a former juvenile delinquent, the problem with opening the + circuit is that the vehicle can still be hotwired. When you ground the negative side of the coil, which goes to the points, it can't be hotwired unless that ground wire is cut. It makes it even more difficult when that ground wire is disguised to look like the secondary wire going to the distributor. Of course I have no personal experience with this, its what I have been told.

Good Luck, Butch

The car isn't going anywhere as long as you keep the dizzy rotor in your pocket when you leave the car parked somewhere.

Jan

Ant>

too hard and dirty a thing to do, jan,, easier to flip a switch sides, if they see ya with the hood open, they're bound to drop by and see what your up to..

One more reason to keep your engine bay CLEAN....

:D

Jan

On Fri, 04 Jul 2003 02:42:32 +0300, Jan Andersson , who was sitting in a corner eating his Xmas pie stuck in his thumb and pulled out a plum and began to run off at the mouth like so:

Man, I wish I had a link to that picture of you right now where it looks like you just got back from a day of coal-mining, Jan. hahaha!

-- Travis (Shaggie) '63 VW Camo Baja...

All I want is a flashing led to indicate that I have the kill on. I wired the negative (-) coil side and the other end swtiched to ground. It works, but the led, which I wired which has the flashing-type led getting juice from radio accessory fuse and the other end of the led (-) was going between swtich and coil, and then I had it going between switch and ground. It just stayed flashing regardless of the switch.

As a follow up. It started smoking last night and melted. I guess I should have put a fuse in-line. hehe. Everything else is alright. I pulled the fuse out. sigh. that was a close one. I thought the built-in resistor in the flashing 12v led would avoid hazards.

So, the bottom line, if anybody else has a kill switch, hooked up common style of grounding the coil, how can I install the flashing led? It needs to stay on when the car is off, closed ignition, but needs to go on to indicate kill switch is engaged.

Also I just want it to not affect the kill. IOW, if someone pulled out the led or cut the negative side, it wouldn't affect the kill.

thanks again!

you wish is my command:

The circuit is tricky the way you have tried it. If you wire the LED minus side between coil - and kill switch, the led may blink also when the engine is running (the points ground the minus side of the coil when engine rotates). If you put the LED minus wire between the switch and ground, the LED is always grounded and will always be working.

Are you sure that the LED has a proper built-in resistor for 12V? If it does not have, it will more or less act as a short cut and the LED will break or something else will burn.

I would go for an easy solution:

• get a switch that has two circuits, both working simultaneously from the switch but separate circuits. They are available at any electronic component shop. Get a switch where both circuits are on at the same time.

• check existence of the LED resistor and if it is not there, install a one of proper size in series with the LED

• wire the first circuit of the switch between coil - and ground

• wire the second circuit of the switch between radio accessory + voltage and ground.

Now when you turn the switch on, it grounds the coil - and closes the LED circuit lighting it. When you turn the switch off, it opens both circuits, distributor points are again in play and LED circuit is open, and LED won't work.

If someone cuts the LED wires, it wont affect the kill switch because they are in different circuits although run through the same switch.

This one?

Jan

who sez I wash every week in the first place? ;)

Jan

I see. Yeah, they had all kinds of switches at the electronic's store. The guy working there wasn't too informative. Thanks, Ollie for the info! FYI, the led was a "flashing" led with built in resistance and advertised for 12v. I'll pick up a new led and a double circuit swtich. Thanks again!