theprolineguy.com

Guys,
If any of you living in the Tampa Bay area need some electrical work done to your boat, some re-wiring (or complete re-wiring), electrical trouble-shooting, pump replacements, deck or hull rigging of any sort, new engine installation, electronics installations, or any rigging that you just don't want to tackle on your own, or pay a high dollar Marina to do it, give me a call, or drop me a line. Orlando, too.

Bob Christiansen
13098 Sun Rd.
Brooksville, FL 34613

(352) 340-4370, Home
(727) 808-1429, Cel
seabob4@tampabay.rr.com

I think you are limiting your market how about mass..---lol

Hi Bob: I've been absent from the forum for awhile - unfortunately, working on the 2950 (again). Took it to the marina and launched it. (By the way, the marina is 280 miles away, round trip)......Went back a couple of days later and found two dead batteries (house and port engine start batteries). All 3 were checked out a month ago, and tested good. Now I've spent over a week crawling over the motors trying to trace those G...D... electrical problems. Here's a quick rundown of the results: 1. Found the bilge pump float switch laying on it's side, in the "ON" position. Former owner didn't mount it, he just wired it to the bilge pump and set it in the bilge. Changed the float switch and mounted it to the bilge pump. Tested operation -- didn't work. Checked fuse - fuse is good, but fuse holder came apart due to corroded wire. Replaced fuse holder and fuse. Works OK now. Plugged into shore power to charge the batteries. The onboard Newmar charger system doesn't work! Managed to reach through one of those "handy" round deck access ports and get the front cover off of it. The only thing holding it together is the thick coatings of corrosion on the terminals. Bought a portable battery charger and hooked it up to shore power. Charged batteries. Checked voltage on all 3 -- 12.7 volts on all of them. Tried starting engines. Starboard engine just gives me a slow "grunt", like the battery is nearly dead. Switch that battery to the port engine, and it cranks and starts the motor just fine. Checked all the cables, and replaced the + cable. Nothing. Looks like a bad starter! Took a battery out of my pickup, and managed to force enough amps to the starboard engine to get it to start by paralleling 4 batteries. Checked dash gauges. Tachometer on portside shows zero. Removed alternator and had it bench tested -- tests good. Put it back on engine. Took boat out and ran it for 3 hours in the ocean. Tachometer started working after about two hours. Parked the boat, checked the volts on all 3 batteries. All showed 12.7 volts. Came back two days later -- two batteries at 11.2 volts, one at 12.67 volts. Removed battery from pickup, and hooked up as house battery to check out other systems. Baitwell pump not working. Checked for power. Got 12 volts to pump. Bought new pump and replaced it. New pump doesn't work. Checked for power to it -- no power. Traced lines until they disappear into the bilge - no luck. Can't find a fuse, and can't follow the wire to the switch, since it disappears into that hole in the bottom of the firewall (the one that requires a midget to reach.....), and emerges under the helm as a different color wire to the switch. To hell with it for now. Decided to check Livewell pump. Didn't work. Found bad fuse and replaced it. Pump runs great now, but doesn't pump any water! Just sits there "whirring away". To hell with it also. Checked other instrumentation. Discovered GPS/DF unit quit working. Checked leads and fuses. Wires showed continuity, and fuse good. Removed it and took it to marine electronics store. Bench tested good. Reinstalled it. Finally found bad connection to the fuse on the fuse block.
Current status: Two batteries won't hold a charge, one starter probably bad, and requires a midget contortionist with metric socket set to reach the bolts. One step forward and two steps back so far! The ocean is flat -- the salmon and tuna are biting, and I'm sitting at the dock. I'm going back to the boat later this week when my mood improves, and try once more to get the mess straightened out -- will undoubtedly be throwing more $$$ at it, and maybe a few wrenches. If I don't get it solved this time, I will either load it back on the trailer, haul it back home and park it for the year, or I may just hire a diver to pull the drain plug and just walk away. I am obviously tired of this crap. I guarantee you that if I were within 1000 miles of you, I'd park that 2950 in your driveway and let you "go at it"......

Jim,
I'd love to do it for you...

My buddie's 2950 O/B that he got rid of, and I worked on all the time, was beautifully maintained, inside and out. But the wiring? One day his neighbor knocked on the door. "Uh, the wipers and Nav Lgts on your boat are on"...obviously, the switches were off...

OK, status report: Back to the boat yesterday, with two friends. Worked on boat all day. Pulled the "suspect" starter, and prepared to install the freshly rebuilt unit that came with the boat. One friend says "Hey, the way things have been going, maybe you should have that rebuilt starter tested before putting it in the starboard engine". My reaction: "I can't believe that would be necessary, but "why not"? So, off to the battery shop with two starters and all 3 batteries (Remember, I had those checked a month ago, and all were good). Result: The rebuilt starter was bad, the one I just removed from the engine was good, and two batteries had dead cells, and the third one was marginal. So, why would the marginal battery start the port engine, but not the starboard engine? Battery shop owner suggested adding another ground wire from the starter negative lug to one of the starter mounting bolts. He made one up. I also had him make up a new heavier negative battery cable, using #2 welding cable. Back to the boat with three new batteries, new negative cables and the old starter (left the rebuilt one @ battery shop for another rebuild). Installed all --- Both engines start great !!! I strongly suspect that the ground lug on the starter wasn't making good contact with the negative cable. Maybe there is some hope after all.... Went for a 3 hour fishing trip on the Columbia. One fish -- a 30 pound plus Chinook salmon. The boat has been "baptized" ! Going fishing again Saturday. Oh, did I mention that the bilge pump quit? It has juice, and tries to run, but bearing is bad. Will install a new one Saturday... The livewell and baitwell pumps ?? Those will have to wait...

Jim,
As much as a PITA it is, it really is good PM to go around and put a wrench on every connection you can get your hands on at least yearly, including hose clamps. And per chance you've got wingnuts on those 4Ds, get rid of them and use hex nuts...

Bob C wrote:Jim,
As much as a PITA it is, it really is good PM to go around and put a wrench on every connection you can get your hands on at least yearly, including hose clamps. And per chance you've got wingnuts on those 4Ds, get rid of them and use hex nuts...

Hi Bob: Yep - got the hex nuts on the batteries. And I'm going to do a bit of research on removing stern drives / engines. If it isn't too much of a hassle, they are coming out this winter, and I'll be in the bilge running new wiring, replacing connectors, etc. I want that bilge to be "like new" both physically and electrically before next Summer. And If I can find (or create) a route, I'll re-run the electricals from bilge area to the rest of the boat well above bilge water level. I'd like to abandon that electrical passageway that is in the bottom corner of the bilge. I don't like submerged wires...

Hi Bob
Just wanted to wish you GoodLuck. If I was in that area you would definitly get my work.

Double Trouble wrote:Hi Bob
Just wanted to wish you GoodLuck. If I was in that area you would definitly get my work.

DT,
I picked up 4 jobs off THT so far...

Go Bob, Go! I have a feeling that winter and customer referrals will bring you good fortune

Okay I need a guy I can trust to install a Mercury 25 Four as a kicker on my 2000 251. I just now saw this section. Problem is I'm in Naples. How long would a job like this take, Bob? Of course I'd want electric start, remote steering, etc. There's a Optimax on the back now. The wolves in Naples are waiting. I'm down for a week mid-November.

Frank,
When in November? There's a little more too it, obviously, then just hanging the motor. She'll need an engine harness, key switch panel...how were you planning to do operate shift/throttle? New Merc dual binnacle? Teleflex makes a nice little steering kit to tie the kicker into the big motor...some food for thought. I'd like to do the job, but some planning is necessary...

Bob

Can't just bolt that baby on and yell "yeeeehawwwww I got me a kicker"? LOL. Well, I guess I could, but that would be it. A motor bolted on.

So I'll do some research, run my thoughts by you, when you quit laughing you can tell me how it needs to be done, and we'll go from there. So until then I'll stay within 35 miles of shore...amazingly I get SeaTow radio check from there. Now that I'm hooked on trolling I don't have the need to get too far out. Heck I'm told this time of year some nice kings are caught fairly close to the beaches.

Thanks Bob.

The next job...'93 Talon F22. Excellent hull and deck, complete rewire, re-plumb, re-gauge, re-everything!





She needs a little work...but she has a great owner, and we'll get her done right! Everything you see in those pics? Coming out! I'll post again when she gets a clean bilge, ready for new equipment...

BTW, here's how the Aquasport 19-6 helm came out...

Ain't rewiring a blast? I love it when it all comes together and everything powers up

Hugh wrote:Ain't rewiring a blast? I love it when it all comes together and everything powers up

...and doesn't blow up!!!

Well, she's about empty now...






Owner is ordering all the cable, wire, bus bars, switches, and breakers tomorrow so I can start building her harness and switch/breaker panels...

You've been a busy sumgun! Nothing like a clean slate to begin a new wiring job. Are you gonna shine up the console and bilges before you wire it up?

I think it's time for you to set up a website for your business replete with before/after photos of client boats, comments from happy clients, business cards, contact info, and a link to this site.

Hugh,
The owner is not really concerned about "bright, shiny" bilges, so today was fun putting shit in, instead of ripping it out!

Built a main accessory harness, built a new switch panel, here's a before...


and after...




I'll have to get creative with the plumbing, as he will have 2 Bait Sentry 1100s coming off those pickups (the PVC valve will be changed to bronze), and I know they don't have enough room...think I might use 2 bronze elbows off the shut-off valves and have then stand vertically. Not a "No Step" area. One will feed the washdown pump from the second port...