Gord
When you get a chance to inspect the wire harness, if you notice what appears to be a cloth loom covering, take a close look at it. I used to own a Chev 15-cwt Wireless, built in June 1944, which turned out to have been a vehicle that had served overseas and ended up coming back to Canada after the war for whatever reason. When I bought the truck, I noticed the left headlamp had a distinct yellowish look to it, whereas the right side was a bright white. The markings on it were the typical xx-xxx CFR Number and the round orange circle with the black capital P in it.
After sitting in the back yard for the first winter, I was shocked in the spring to notice a white star and segmented circle appearing through the paint on the drivers side roof and overseas TAC and Formation signs on the front cowl.
Then, when stripping the wiring out of it, the first thing I noticed was all the wire clad loom and grounding straps connecting everything, everywhere. When I got to the headlight assemblies, more pieces of the overseas puzzle came together. The driver's side headlamp was a newer assembly than the left side. It had a cloth loom and was the only such piece of wiring harness on the entire vehicle. I thought that was really odd considering the intent of the wiring loom was to reduce electrical noise as much as possible. When I took this headlamp assembly out of the vehicle, I discovered that underneath the cloth loom, was a full wire loom covering.
The Chev Master Parts List shows a series of wiring components replacing one another over time. I think that early war production used two unique wiring harnesses: a standard cloth system for all vehicles not carrying wireless equipment and a second wire loom system to be used in all vehicles equipped with wireless. It may have become easier at some point to produce just one, universal wiring harness capable of being installed in any vehicle.
Good luck with the project.
David
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