Larry Brandt has suggested I post this article as a lesson of " the case in troubleshooting: sometimes the most probable cause turns out to be a distraction".
I upgraded the electrics on Rushale", our Catalina 36 Mark II as we spend many weeks ever summer cruising and anchoring in Lake Ontario and the St Lawrence. We installed a Balmar Smart Ready 70 volt alternator, a Balmar Max Charge Digital Multi-Stage regulator and four 6 volt batteries. I adjusted the "alternator range switch" from "B" to "C" to allow for the change in the "poles" in the new alternator. The upgrade performed very well as we seldom need to run our engine to generate power even when we are at anchor for 4 days at a time. After a few hours of engine running time after all of these changes, the tachometer failed - presumably because of the changes. Despite all the advice from professional marine electrical people and many sailors, no one could fix the problem.
This week, I had the tach bench tested and found it was workly perfectly so the problem had to be in the wiring. We traced all of the wires from the alternator to the regulator to the tach. We found a brown wire on the "send" terminal of the tach but when we traced it back to the terminal box, we found it was connected to a grey wire. But there was no grey wire either on the alternator nor the regulator. However, inside the flexible conduit behind the alternator, we found a disconnected grey wire. When we reconnected it, the tach worked! Apparently, the grey wire is the "sender" from the engine to the tach.
Hopefully our experience may be of help to someone in the future.
Jack Rossall
Tachometer Failure
Fri, 09/16/2011 - 13:26
#1
Tachometer Failure
Jack. So the gray wire just came disconnected? Trouble shooting something takes time and experience. Something as you just had is a good teacher but sorry it cost you some dollars. You will never forget that one now. Thanks for sharing.
Randy Sherwood
Mutualfun 1990 # 1057
T/R W/K M35a
Home. Charlotte, Mi.
Boat. St Augustine,Fl.
Stuff happens. That's why I always draw a wiring diagram.
[url]http://c34.org/bbs/index.php/topic,3398.0.html[/url]
That's why I did this when I upgraded my alternator in 2006.
[url]http://c34.org/bbs/index.php/topic,4548.0.html[/url]
OK, OK, I take back the ALWAYS.
[url]http://c34.org/bbs/index.php/topic,4821.msg31105.html#msg31105[/url]
Stu Jackson, C34IA Secretary, C34 #224, 1986, SR/FK, M25 engine, Rocna 10 (22#)
[QUOTE=stu jackson c34;10126]Stuff happens. That's why I always draw a wiring diagram.
[url]http://c34.org/bbs/index.php/topic,3398.0.html[/url]
OK, OK, I take back the ALWAYS.
[url]http://c34.org/bbs/index.php/topic,4821.msg31105.html#msg31105[/url][/QU...
AND, why I always have a digital camera on board; plus my cell phone camera. It has a much better memory than I do :o
Gary and Cathy Price
1997 C36 Mk II Tall Rig/Wing Keel Imagine...
Hull # 1617
Worton Creek, Md.
Northern Chesapeake Bay
Gary, photos are sometimes very helpful, but I find both are necessary for electrical work. Wiring diagrams, I have found, are far superior to photos. I am having a discussion with a C27 owner over on co.com about just this issue. He took photos, but they have been of little help. Why? 'Cuz unless you are absolutely vigilant in your photography and documentation, you usually can't see BOTH ends of the wire, which is the most important information that wiring diagrams will give you: where it starts and where it ends, and, of course, what color it is.
Here's his sad story: [url]http://forums.catalina.sailboatowners.com/showthread.php?t=133879[/url]
My links, above and to him, show some questionable wiring colors that even the Seaward & Catalina diagrams don't show, and unless you know what's at each end, all the photos in the world won't help.
That's why I added the third middle link to my post before you quoted it. It's a good example of how simple sketches can really help you later on down the road.
I encourage you all to add wiring diagrams to all your electrical work, in addition to whatever photos you take. Also, label everything while you're at it.
Stu Jackson, C34IA Secretary, C34 #224, 1986, SR/FK, M25 engine, Rocna 10 (22#)