Do NOT buy Birdman's 308 Fuseblocks! | FerrariChat

Do NOT buy Birdman's 308 Fuseblocks!

Discussion in '308/328' started by Perfusion, May 17, 2006.

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  1. Perfusion

    Perfusion F1 Rookie

    Oct 16, 2004
    4,151
    Marietta, GA
    Full Name:
    Aaron
    [size=+3][Unless you want your electrical system to function 150% better![/size] :D :D :D[size=+3]][/size]

    I installed mine last night....took an hour - *maybe* - and I was being careful and taking my time so as not to mix up the wires. I had my new fuses ready to go, a bottle of water on hand since the garage was kinda toasty, and my iPod hooked into some little speakers on the garage shelf. First, I did the left...numbered all the wires top & bottom, just like his website suggests, and then removed the old block. I screwed the new one in, installed new fuses, and conneceted new wires. Followed the same procedure for the right side bank, and when all was buttoned up, I turned the key (not all the way on, but just so that the electrical system was working).

    All I can say is WOW!!! My dash lights were brighter, the windows went up and down faster, and since my radiator fans are hard-wired to be on all the time, I heard them as well - even my fans were spinning faster!!!

    "This is incredible," I thought. "How can one little product make such an immediate, noticeable difference?!"

    Although I haven't had an opportunity to go for a drive yet, what I saw in the garage last night was enough for me to be convinced that these are an item that EVERY 308 on FChat *must have.* It's just silly not to.....

    My sincerest thanks to the Birdman for making these available to the Ferrari community at large. Even in "specialty" car markets (i.e., Ferrari, Porsche, Corvette) the older cars are often overlooked by the aftermarket community as being "not worth their time." It's so great to know that there are people out there continuing to make new, improved products for our cars.

    THANK YOU!

    Aaron

    PS - Sorry about the title, Birdman...just couldn't resist. If someone finds this thread via a search in the future, though, they'll surely click on it and be met with yet another glowing review of your fuseblocks. :)
    _________

    Moderator Note: wax made the godsend punchline bigger.
     
  2. BigAl

    BigAl F1 Veteran

    Mar 17, 2002
    6,146
    TX
    Full Name:
    GSgt Hartman
    you def had me going with the title....

    I'll have to get one, what's the web site?
     
  3. Perfusion

    Perfusion F1 Rookie

    Oct 16, 2004
    4,151
    Marietta, GA
    Full Name:
    Aaron
  4. smg2

    smg2 F1 World Champ
    Sponsor

    Apr 1, 2004
    15,476
    Dumpster Fire #31
    Full Name:
    SMG
    it's a shame this doesn't work on the mondials. we do have fuse blocks buts thats only half the problem. the funky circut board is another.

    but in any case i can't say directly how good this upgrade is but looking at it it sure seems to address the issues and you can't go wrong there. cheap to!
     
  5. EuroDino

    EuroDino Formula Junior

    Dec 5, 2004
    328
    Southern California
    Full Name:
    Joseph Fischetti
    My heart almost stopped.... when I read the title.
     
  6. Mongo

    Mongo Karting

    Sep 8, 2005
    144
    SF Bay, CA
    I saw Birdman's page recently and his fuse blocks. That is going to be the first upgrade I will be considering after a 308 purchase. Is the install pretty straightforward?
     
  7. Mike C

    Mike C F1 Veteran
    Lifetime Rossa Owner

    Aug 3, 2002
    6,081
    Southeast USA
    Full Name:
    Mike Charness
    Yep, disconnect the battery, just take the wires off the old one after labeling them as far as the order goes, unscrew the old fuse blocks, screw in the new one, and put the wires on.

    Since I'm a bit lazy and didn't want to label everything, I did it a little differently. I moved the wires one-by-one to the new fuseblocks, then unscrewed the old ones and screwed in the new ones. It's a little more crowded until you get the old ones out of the way, but saves the labeling step and potential mix-ups.
     
  8. BigAl

    BigAl F1 Veteran

    Mar 17, 2002
    6,146
    TX
    Full Name:
    GSgt Hartman
    that's the procedure I was considering....
     
  9. Birdman

    Birdman F1 Veteran

    Jun 20, 2003
    6,687
    North shore, MA
    Full Name:
    THE Birdman
    Sheesh, I was thinking "Oh Sh**, what did I do to screw up Aaron's fuseblocks?" Got my attention!

    Thought I blew up your car or something! ;)

    I'm glad you are happy with them. The real benefits are the ones you will never really realize. Like when the thing still works in a couple years and you don't have to clean all the contacts to get it through another couple of months. Like when the fuel pump DOESN'T stop and leave you on the side of the road because a fuseblock melted. Or your engine DOESN'T overheat because the fans stopped coming on in rush hour traffic. You get the idea. These are all things that happen ALL THE TIME with the crappy OEM fuseblocks.

    I'm getting ready to order another bunch of the aluminum backplates from Fchatter Chris Marsh, who has an amazing machine shop and did the fantastic run of the nice anodized backplates that I'm currently using. I'm trying to order far enough in advance that I don't run out. My stock is getting low and Fchatters can get really bummed out when they need fuseblocks FAST because the car is dead! (You should see some of the e-mails. "PLEASE Birdman, I gotta have them fast, my baby is stone dead!")

    Thanks again for the compliments. I'm truly thrilled this is helping out the 308 crowd. Gotta keep our babies running well.

    Birdman
     
  10. Pizzaman Chris

    Pizzaman Chris F1 Rookie

    Mar 13, 2005
    3,919
    New Hampshire
    Full Name:
    Pizzaman Chris
    Boy, you got my attention.
    I was saying to myself "Nooooo, Not the Fuseblock King!!!!
     
  11. FerrariFrank1

    FerrariFrank1 F1 Rookie

    Aug 15, 2003
    3,887
    Chicago-Phoenix-L.A.
    Full Name:
    Frank
    Definitely sounds like something that I need to order!!!!
     
  12. indaville

    indaville Formula 3

    Oct 6, 2005
    2,309
    Louisville, KY

    I need to install mine, I have been lazy about finding the fuses needed.
     
  13. RVIDRCI

    RVIDRCI Formula 3

    Dec 1, 2005
    1,576
    Long Beach / Phoenix
    Full Name:
    Luigi
    Word......
     
  14. greg328

    greg328 F1 Rookie

    Nov 17, 2003
    4,178
    Austin, TX USA
    Full Name:
    Greg
    Had me going too!

    Mine are working great in my '77....

    Greg
     
  15. Perfusion

    Perfusion F1 Rookie

    Oct 16, 2004
    4,151
    Marietta, GA
    Full Name:
    Aaron
    Ah, good... Didn't mean to give anybody a coronary, but I *did* want to draw as much attention as possible to my VERY POSITIVE feedback on the blocks, and figured a little trickery might be just the ticket.

    Just a quick response to a couple of the posts:

    1) I *completely* forgot to disconnect my battery! I.e., right up until about 30sec. before I posted this, the thought had not crossed my mind. Doesn't seem to be any harm done, though.

    2) I almost did the same deal as previously mentioned where I would swap the wires onto the new block one-by-one and save myself the labeling step. I'm really glad I didn't do this... I'm sure all of the wire lengths are different from car to car, but there were definitely a few on mine that just barely[/b] were long enough to make it over the connectors and onto the new fuseblocks. Had I still had the originals in place, there would've been no way, and I'd have had to backtrack and start over.

    I would just suggest going ahead and doing the labeling... If I did both blocks - from opening the car door to closure - in an hour, I probably spent 5-10 minutes at most doing the labeling. I just used masking tape and a pen - easy on, easy off (the tape, that is).

    Finally, if you are going to buy the blocks and have the crazy idea to not label anything, take all the wires off, and just hope that they "hang" in the order that they were positioned, DO NOT. They don't. They come out of the dash in a big, wadded, bundle o' wires held together by a tie-band. For example, the wire that (when hanging freely) is furtherst to the left might not go to the #1 fuse - it could go to #3, or all the way to the right at #9. It's just best to play it safe, do the labeling, and be done in an hour instead of 50 minutes....

    Best regards to all, and thanks again!

    Aaron
     
  16. freelapl

    freelapl Karting

    May 8, 2006
    88
    Los Angeles, CA, USA
    Full Name:
    Pete Freeland
    Is there a similar item out there for the Mondial 8 fuse box? If so, where can I get it, or will the one Birdman lists for the 2V injected 308 work?
     
  17. Perfusion

    Perfusion F1 Rookie

    Oct 16, 2004
    4,151
    Marietta, GA
    Full Name:
    Aaron
    Go back up to Post #4 of this thread - something about a circuitboard...
     
  18. Birdman

    Birdman F1 Veteran

    Jun 20, 2003
    6,687
    North shore, MA
    Full Name:
    THE Birdman
    Unfortunately the Mondial fusebox contains not just the fuseholders, but the relay board all in one, with a multi-layer PCB under it all. It would be a pretty significant undertaking to build a new Mondial fusebox and one would have to sell it for around $400 to make it worth it. I'm not sure there are enough people that would be willing to buy one that you could recoup the investment in having PC boards made, etc.

    The 308 fusebox is very simply by comparison.

    Birdman
     
  19. spiderseeker

    spiderseeker Formula 3

    Jul 22, 2005
    1,718
    Colorado
    Full Name:
    Steve
    I was lazy as well installing my fuseblocks- I took detailed digital photos and just moved one wire at a time.
    You should also change out the 20+ year old relays as well. About $100 total for all of them at RockAuto.com.
     
  20. Perfusion

    Perfusion F1 Rookie

    Oct 16, 2004
    4,151
    Marietta, GA
    Full Name:
    Aaron
    I was wondering about those relays... Ah, well - I'll save those for another day.

    Oh...I also thought I'd mention (again, for future reference) that the AGC fuses I used to replace the 8, 16, & 25s were 7.5, 15, & 25. Pretty damn close...
     
  21. MalcQV

    MalcQV F1 Rookie

    Oct 11, 2004
    3,292
    Manchester, UK
    Full Name:
    Malc Holden
    I have had a little soldering work (I believe) done by a Ferrari specialist on my fuse box PCB. The fuel pump fuse used to get very hot, I mean very hot. I burned my fingers on more than one occasion swapping the fuse out for a new on at the side of the road. I think that just maybe the extreme heat generated by the ****e fuse holders on the heavy current circuits contributes to the failing PCB. I wonder if by removing the heat problem would preserve the PCB/s.

    I have had the fuel pump fuse and the turn signal lights fuse bypassed and ran through a second small fuse box. This has made the car soooo much better. This is why I think the heat generated, causes other problems because I think thats why the fuse next to the fuel pump (turn signal) failed.
     
  22. Birdman

    Birdman F1 Veteran

    Jun 20, 2003
    6,687
    North shore, MA
    Full Name:
    THE Birdman
    Malc,
    I think you are right that this is where the major trouble is with the Mondial fusebox and this small mod will make life much better for most people with Mondial electrical issues.

    Birdman
     
  23. tuttebenne

    tuttebenne F1 Rookie

    Mar 26, 2003
    3,189
    Bay Shore, NY
    Full Name:
    Andy
    Definitely a weak spot on 308s. Either replace with new ones or simply solder the originals so the rivets aren't the only continuity point.
     
  24. SIVAN

    SIVAN Karting

    Jun 6, 2004
    122
    Lake Forest, CA
    Full Name:
    Si Van Nguyen
    You had me there for a second! I am very happy with my Birdman fuseblock too. It cured almost all of my electrical gremlins. Thanks Birdman!
    SiVan
     
  25. tatcat

    tatcat F1 World Champ
    Owner Silver Subscribed

    Sep 3, 2001
    10,969
    panama city beach FL
    Full Name:
    rick c
    there's a 25? where is it? i only see 8 and 16 on the covers.
     

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