Neg Batt Cable - painted or not?

[GGeesey]

Should the negative battery cable on my '70 T/A 340 have 3-6 inches of engine paint on it where it bolts to the block, or should the entire cable be left unpainted? I know that some other engines (like the Hemi) had the neg cable attached prior to painting so that the engine paint covered the end of it. How about the 340 neg cable? I've seen it done both ways, and was curious as to which way was "factory correct" since all the T/A's were built back to back at one plant (thus potentially eliminating the "it depends on where it was built" ambiguity).

Thanks!!!!

 

[Grady Cain]

There are many "opinions" on this subject and I have seen both versions on known original/survivor cars. The general consensus seems to be this: negative cables that have the big rubber protector sleeves where they mount to the block did not get painted and the ones with the exposed ends did get painted. I should add that this is theory and should be taken as such. As we all know in Mopar world, anything and everything is possible...

 

[GGeesey]

I spoke to Tony D'Agostino at Tony's Parts. He researched some photos of original T/A's for me. He reported that the negative terminal was painted at the block on all of the survivor vehicles he examined. Although I'm sure that there might be a few that escaped from the assembly line unpainted, Tony made me feel comfortable that the painted cable is the more likely scenario on the vast majority of T/A's.
Shout out: I'd like to thank Tony for helping me with this! He is a class act and a hell of a nice guy, too!

 

[Grady Cain]

Once again, this subject has been discussed over and over and many "opinions" have been formed. Tony has helped me with many things as well and is a wealth of knowledge and a trusted source for in-depth Mopar information and history. He has reported what he has seen. I have seen them both ways. Which is right? Any Mopar historian will tell you this: anything was possible back in the day of hand-assembly in Mopar-world. The theory of the sleeved cabled not getting paint vs. the unsleeved cabled getting painted is just that - a theory. Without 100% positive evidence, neither choice is wrong so it comes down to what you believe to be correct for your car. If you believe the majority of negative cables were painted, then that's what you should do. I personally will be painting the negative cable on my engine once I finish building it. It is one of the many interesting things about Mopar - there is always something to research, discuss and learn. Looking forward to seeing your progress...

 

[moparleo]

The reason that the cable was painted is because the cable was attached to the head while the head was bare metal to get a proper ground.