Wiring help....

PoppaSmurff · 06-01-2011, 06:20 PM

Just started working on our sunline. I have to run new wiring for it from my TV. Tha problem is.....there is NONE to start with..... We have a T3100 from 1984 ands there just is NO wiring on this thing to plug a TV into. I have to string a set bumper lights on the rear of it just to get it home. Please help....I'm at a a loss now...

**JohnB** · 06-01-2011, 08:45 PM

You mean there is nothing at all in the way of clearance lights or tail lights? Not even old holes in the camper?

As far as wiring goes, even in 1984, the camper to a 7 wire plug with electric brakes is wire'ed the same.

See here on page 55 for the 7 wire plug http://www.bargman.com/content/downl...cal_Wiring.pdf

This may help too
Catalog Download - Bargman

Do you have a battery on the A frame of the camper? Do the electric brakes work?

John

PoppaSmurff · 06-02-2011, 05:24 AM

Nope, no tail lights, clearance light, marker lights, trailer brakes, 12V charging curcuits....nothing. I have started wiring and found the tail lights, they were cut out and buried in the wall about 3 foot from the "A" frame on the drivers side. All the rest is buried in the walls.

PoppaSmurff · 06-02-2011, 05:30 AM

So...just to reasure you...I don't need a trailer plug diagram...lol I have that figured out.....I need to figure how the trailer wiring is run in the walls so I can find them with out tearing the rest of my trailer apart from the inside out!!!

**JohnB** · 06-02-2011, 11:16 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by PoppaSmurff

So...just to reasure you...I don't need a trailer plug diagram...lol I have that figured out.....I need to figure how the trailer wiring is run in the walls so I can find them with out tearing the rest of my trailer apart from the inside out!!!

Hi Poppa

H'mm OK now we see what you are up against!! Sorry I thought the old ones where gutted off the camper and you where trying to re-create.

I looked up a 84 T3100 http://www.sunlineclub.com/forums/documents//ec_tmp/84.pdf

It is not listed in that brochure but if the numbers hold true it is around a 31 foot camper and a 6,440# GVWR TT.

You may have a custom special order unit which "might" explain some of this.

Going to gave to send a life line to or forum Sunline Historian, Sunline Fan to maybe fill in the missing pieces of what you have.

Now to your predicament...

I’m making some wild assumptions here…. If you had a special order camper that may have been built to be on a permanent site that might explain why nothing exists on the outside of the camper, even holes where the wires would come out to a clearance light etc. Odd they would build it that why, but obviously you have one in front of you….

If there are no holes in the siding of where the clearance lights, tail lights etc would have been if they installed them, this is going to be tough…. We have not run into this before here on the Club or at least that I recall.

I’m assuming you have found original abandoned wire in the wall. Yes/No? And you can tell from the bottom of the camper which area it heads up into the floor from?

On mine, 20 years newer…. They ran the wires up through the floor, sill plate and then up the wall cavity to poke out through the siding to a clearance light etc. There is a about a 1” hole drilled in the siding where the wires hang out. Depending on how brave you want to be…. If you select where you want the new light to go and it lands in that wall cavity you might be lucky to fish the wire up through a hole you add. If that falls apart and does not work then you would have to create a hole in the floor system up into that wall cavity and push/pull a fish wire (hard wire) up to the hole in the siding, grab it and then tie on wires and pull it back through.

That might work for the lower side clearance lights, the rear tail lights. The high up front amber and the top 5 red in the back…. Those will be more of a challenge.

They is one other “wild” possibility. If your camper has the aluminum end corners on the side of the camper. The newer ones have a vinyl insert to cover up the screws. You creating wiring on the outside of the camper, fish it up the vinyl insert and pop out near the lights. The wire would ideally need to be weather rated insulation. OR you can pull the entire corner off to get to a piece of siding to fish the wire under. This means resealing all the corners with new butyl sealing tape but it’s an option even if not an attractive one.

On Mine Sunline ran all the 12 volt DOT marker lights wiring under the camper outside the water vapor barrier. It is exposed except where it heads up through the wall area. I do not know if that did that on yours, if it is you would see it under the camper.

Another options is to create a wire mold type of system inside the camper. They make some decent looking wire mold that you screw to the wall board and then pull up wires in that and drill thru to the outside. Since this is 12 VDC you could rip a wire mold channel out of wood, stain it and use it to cover the wires. This method might be the easier method

Good luck!

John

PoppaSmurff · 06-02-2011, 04:23 PM

Ok here it is.... All the lights are on the trailer ,tail/signal/stop lamps, rear markers, rear clearance light, mid point markes, front markers and front clearance. All lights have wires run to them and I have managed to find the original tail/signal/stop wires, (along with the converer 12V supply/charge lines) they were cut (not even capped closed) and buried about 3 1/2 feet from the front left corner of the trailer. It would apear that some one at on time tried to remodel the trailer and as they were remodeling and replaceing the inner walls and cabnetry they also replaced some of the insulation for the solid blue styrofoam type. That seams to be the deciding factor as to where they cut the wiring. I will upload some pics of my nightmare as soon as I can to help spread the pain.
Thanks for the help.

**JohnB** · 06-02-2011, 08:04 PM

OK at this point, we will wait for pics.... The words, "have nothing", I took a bit too literal...

Sounds like some one along the way did not do much justice to your fine coach.

**Sunline Fan** · 06-02-2011, 08:56 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JohnB

OK at this point, we will wait for pics.... The words, "have nothing", I took a bit too literal...

Yeah, I took the "have nothing" too literal too. I've never seen one without any of the lights because even for it to make it to a permanent destination, it would have to have some sort of lights.

But nonetheless, I'm excited to see pictures too.

Jon

PoppaSmurff · 06-03-2011, 06:15 AM

This is after the dis-assembly of the front left forner of the trailer, I found the wiring bundle from the power converter and tail lights. I took the sealent rail off the corner and opened up the tin, the wiring was cut apart in two places and I ran a new wire to connect the front and center marker and clearance lights and connected them to the main wiring run. Now all I have to do is find the rear clearance lights wiring drop and wire my trailing brakes into a new plug and install my brake controler.

**JohnB** · 06-03-2011, 10:30 AM

Hi Poppa

Did you intend to post pics? They are not appearing. There are 2 ways to get pic up on SOC.

1. You have them on a separate photo server and link them here.

2. You upload them to SOC server and they show up here.

If you have a photo server and they have a feature that creates a img command it is a cut and paste of that address here and it shows up.

Please keep pics to no more the 640 pixels wide to not scroll the screen here on the forum and in the 50K file size range in case folks are on dial up it can overload them.

Here is a post that can help on posting pics http://www.sunlineclub.com/forums/f63/how-to-post-a-picture-on-sunlineclub-7650.html

John

PoppaSmurff · 06-04-2011, 05:44 AM

,

PoppaSmurff · 06-04-2011, 05:46 AM

Ok sorry, this is after the madness, I had to open the tin on the front driver's side to find the original wiring run, then feed a wire from my upper front clearance lights to get most of the others working(the feed was cut). I havent put the interior back to gether yet thats why it looks like a bomb went off.