[atsmith18]

Guys, I"m getting ready to replace my wiring harness on my 74 CJ5. I just had some general questions as to how hard it is to tackle on your own, things to look out for, best way to start, approx time it will take, etc...

Any info to a newbie would be greatly appreciated.

[JeepHammer]

Depends on what you are aiming to do...

1. Rebuild Yourself?
Wire, terminal ends, crimpers, heat shrink, solder and a few specialty tools will net you a MUCH stronger harness!

Remember to 'UP SIZE' about every wire you run across by two AWG (American Wire Gauge) sizes.

If it's a 16 Ga. wire, upsize to a 14 Ga. wire,
If it's a 14 Ga. wire, upsize to a 12 Ga. wire when you replace it.

There are virtually no molded plugs in your harness, they are all 'Component' connectors.
You will need the actual terminal ends (Termination of the wire run at the component),
The little tool to get the old wire/terminal out of the connector,
Then your new wire/terminal will snap right into the old connector housing.

Since you won't be able to find the wire sizes/color coding you want locally,
You will probably have to reuse some wire colors.
One way to keep things straight as you go is to use colored 'Zip' ties on the wire bundles.
A wire bundle with 4 colors of wires will be identified by the color of 'Zip' ties holding that bundle together.
'Blue' zip ties might mean 'Headlights' while the same 4 wire colors with 'Red' zip ties might mean 'Ignition' wiring...

If you do it yourself, make SURE you go with one section at a time,
Like replacing the head light/park light wiring from the fire wall up to the head lights/marker lights...

Then work on the engine harness wiring back to the firewall or ignition switch.

Since in a vehicle as old as yours, you might want to work from engine back to engine connector (Back of the engine near the fire wall),
Then worry about the connector to the dash later to save on confusion...

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Personally, I do my own, but I install a fuse block into the system.
Vehicles as old as yours don't have a fuse block,
They have stray fuses and breakers all over the harness, and it's MADDENING to try and find a failed breaker or blown fuse,
Or to rewire with all those stray breakers/fuses all over the place.

So I usually use a 6 or 8 port fuse block,
Replace fuses with breakers in key positions like head lights,
And wire from there.

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Then there is the 'Pain-In-Azz' variety of 'Universal' harness...
One size fits NOTHING...

You have to make or reuse so many of the old wiring harness parts you might as well have done it all yourself type kits...

[Mike Romain]

I put a centech kit in my 86 which is a bunch more complex than yours and it went in very easily. The wires are all labeled with printed circuit ID on them and the centech kit comes with a dedicated ground wire for everything in the tub, no more relying on rusty bolt connections for grounds. Taking lots of photos of how things are now sure can't hurt.

I took my dash right off for the job. Had the steering shaft already disconnected due to changing the frame at the same time so it was easy to just drop the steering column out.