Overview: Reproduction battery cables are available for the 65 GS. Skip to the last paragraph if you’d like to see only the bottom line. If interested in “the rest of the story”, continue reading.
For those of you that have been searching for “correct” reproduction battery cables for your 65 GS, you are aware that the search has been lengthy and without much success. I’ve been searching on and off since 2017, just before the Brookfield BCA Nationals, where I shared information on a set of cables I had purchased from CustomBatteryCables.com in Arizona. They were functionally correct, but had differently shaped tin plated copper battery terminals, instead of cast lead, that were soldered to the cables. The attachment of the auxiliary ground lead to the negative cable was not like the originals and they lacked part numbers on the insulation of each cable. I installed them on the Steve Shuman car the day before archival judging, removing the old cables that had aftermarket clamp-on replacement battery terminals installed, threw in the bag and forgot about them.
Since then, I’ve been working on and off with Vince, the owner of CustomBatteryCables.com, to find the correct cast lead terminals, thinking if we could overcome that hurdle, I could have some stamps made to mark part numbers on the cables. But this spring, Vince admitted that he was out of options for the lead terminals. So I thought I’d take one last crack at finding more original reproductions. That research has led me to American Autowire in Bellmawr, New Jersey, “the premier automotive electrical manufacturer for OEM/Restoration, Modified Restoration, and Street Rod/Custom vehicles.” I searched their catalog and found cables for our 65 Gran Sports, so I called and talked to them. The sales rep went through all the questions I had, trying to confirm that these cables were indeed correct in length, markings, etc. In that process, he sent me images that were parts of the original GM drawings for the cables, which gave me confidence. So, I happily ordered a set, only to be called a day later by their engineer explaining that even though the negative cable was in the catalog, they don’t have the die to cast the lead battery terminal around the cable with the auxiliary lead. The cost to create the die is more than they are willing to invest for what would be a small niche market. I was disappointed, but remembered that they offer a cable for a 1963 Wildcat 425 application that is exactly the same as used on our GS’s, but without the auxiliary lead and with a different part number. I proceeded with the order of the positive cable and this almost correct negative cable with two custom modifications. I had the correct part number for the 65 GS negative cable applied to it and, since they couldn’t attach it in their process, also had them include the correct auxiliary lead separately. I knew I would have to find a way to attach the auxiliary lead in a way that looks good and creates a proper electrical connection. After receiving the cables I was very pleased.
The terminals at the opposite end of the cables from the battery are not exactly like the originals, but are much heavier duty than the lugs I’ve seen on aftermarket cables. The finishing of those terminals is correct, with black heat shrink tubing on the positive cable and none on the negative. And the auxiliary ground lead has the correct internally toothed eyelet for attachment to the inner fender.
My plan for attaching the auxiliary lead to the negative cable was to drill into the end of the lead battery terminal and either solder the lead or attach it with electrically conductive adhesive. After researching adhesives, I wasn’t convinced they would result in the desired conductivity and they were quite expensive. The engineer at American Autowire strongly advised me to not try to solder it, as the melting point of lead is very low and the terminal would almost certainly be damaged in the process. In talking with Loren about this, he suggested that I try to crimp the wire into the battery terminal by using a tool designed to crimp copper rings on PEX tubing in plumbing applications. I happen to have one and measured the OD of the battery terminal and the ID of the PEX crimping die and found the die for the ½” PEX would compress the diameter of the terminal by about 0.015 – 0.020”. Long story short, I drilled the end of the terminal with a long bit to avoid damaging the cable insulation, tinned the end of the auxiliary lead with solder, inserted the tinned lead into the hole in the battery terminal (a tight fit), then crimped the terminal with the PEX tool. The result is a secure connection that, although not exactly like the original, looks good and has good continuity as measured with an ohmmeter.
And regarding the part number markings, I first confirmed with Loren the correct part numbers before ordering the cables. After receiving them, I thought they looked really good, but wasn’t sure how original the markings were. In searching for some old lead terminals to use to test my attachment approach with, I ran across the cables I had replaced on the Steve Shuman car while in Brookfield. And looking at them closely, I found that they were original cables that had been modified with the clamp-on replacement terminals, but with part number markings. So I now have a direct comparison of the part number markings of the originals and the reproductions. They truly appear to be exactly the same size, font and applied by the same process that indents the markings in the cable insulation while applying the part numbers.
Bottom Line: I’m certain these are as close as we will find to original cables. The positive cable is absolutely correct, except for the slightly different lug terminal. The negative cable must be special ordered and walked through the fabrication process by the engineer at American Autowire, so I don’t think it would be feasible for multiple individuals to do this custom order process. If there is sufficient interest here, I’d be willing to buy a quantity of the cables from American Autowire, modify them to attach the negative auxiliary lead, and make them available to you. I estimate the cost of the pair to you would be about $150. Please respond here if you are interested in purchasing a pair of cables. If there is enough interest, I’ll confirm costs, order the cables, attach the auxiliary leads to the negative cables, and ship them to you.
Note pictures in the following posts.
A great weekend to all!!
Chuck
