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VetteLT193
10-12-2007, 08:17 PM
My brother Eddie's 22 seems to have a short.

Everything works fine except for starting. I get a very slow crank, and symptoms of shorting.

Anyone have ideas for me before I dive into the engine compartment?

The engine is freshly rebuilt with a fresh starter. We went out just a week ago with no problems. I see no obvious signs of wiring problems. The boat has 2 batteries. One is brand new, the other is a couple years old out of my Minx (I have a single battery and wanted a new one for peace of mind, but it worked fine.) The boat has the same symptoms on battery 1, 2, or All. Voltage on the Gaffrig reads just over 12 with the key on.

Any pointers would be appreciated. The engine compartment doesn't have the room that my Minx does!

Lenny
10-12-2007, 09:21 PM
A short going to your starter would surely eat up and BURN up the wire feeding it. You have a ton of cranking amps there. Especially on both. Are they wired correctly (the Perko switch) ? Sounds like a bad cell or two on a battery and it remains IN the circuit regardless of the switch position. Disconnect the switch and run it (or crank it) on only the one NEW battery. See if it is the same.


... or not... :)

VetteLT193
10-12-2007, 10:26 PM
It is a perko switch... I can't say it's wired correctly because I didn't wire it myself, but I know it was fine before the engine install and I doubt the installer did anything to change things.

I had no problems with the old battery on the Minx. I just swapped it out because I'm used to boats with 2 batteries. I planned on installing that battery as my 2nd with a switch until my bro rolled into town light one battery.

Based on your post I am now wondering if the new battery is just defective. When we went out in the boat we literally installed it, ran it on the hose, and went out... the old battery could have supported things during that time.

thanks for your help!!! any more suggestions are welcome

MOP
10-12-2007, 10:35 PM
Go over all your electrical connections especially the grounds, clean everything and re-tighten. Heat, moisture, vibration and bouncing all take there toll on your electrics, a good going over once a season is a must.

Phil

BigGrizzly
10-13-2007, 09:19 AM
Here is a easy test. After cranking grab the wire going to the starter, if it is hor or very warm the new starter is an issue. this happened to the
Corsican. Today it was fine next day not.

MOP
10-13-2007, 01:07 PM
Wondering if there was anything wrong with the old battery!

VetteLT193
10-14-2007, 02:07 PM
Here is a easy test. After cranking grab the wire going to the starter, if it is hor or very warm the new starter is an issue. this happened to the
Corsican. Today it was fine next day not.

Griz: It's hot on either battery after trying to crank.

Pull the starter for a new one? The starter is brand new, we only used the boat for maybe 2 hours run time.

I have run over all the wiring, found some minor issues here and there (horn, subwoofer, and blower) for accessories and fixed them. All the major wiring (Batteries to switch, switch to starter, etc) is fine.

MOP
10-14-2007, 05:39 PM
Before you pull the starter try a star washer under one of the bolts to insure good ground!

VetteLT193
10-15-2007, 06:47 AM
Before you pull the starter try a star washer under one of the bolts to insure good ground!

Will do, that sounds about a million times easier than pulling the starter.

I'm not sure if it's standard, but my brother's boat has a box in the engine compartment to store stuff. It's on the same side as the starter so it's going to be a real PITA to get in there.

MOP
10-15-2007, 09:59 AM
Will do, that sounds about a million times easier than pulling the starter.
I'm not sure if it's standard, but my brother's boat has a box in the engine compartment to store stuff. It's on the same side as the starter so it's going to be a real PITA to get in there.

Most rebuilders paint the entire starter, if you did not clean it off where it contacts the block/bolts it can cause a problem.

Phil

VetteLT193
10-15-2007, 11:20 AM
Most rebuilders paint the entire starter, if you did not clean it off where it contacts the block/bolts it can cause a problem.
Phil

I'll run through all the bolt connections tonight... hopefully it is easy.

Here's a pic of what his engine compartment looks like with the box in it on the left. Is this standard?

MOP
10-15-2007, 11:27 AM
I'll run through all the bolt connections tonight... hopefully it is easy.
Here's a pic of what his engine compartment looks like with the box in it on the left. Is this standard?

Another thing I always recommend is to have separate grounds to the block for each battery, with battery grounds jumped together you have no redundancy. Dual batteries should always be considered separate systems.

Phil

VetteLT193
10-15-2007, 11:39 AM
Another thing I always recommend is to have separate grounds to the block for each battery, with battery grounds jumped together you have no redundancy. Dual batteries should always be considered separate systems.
Phil

His is like that, sort of. For some reason battery #2 has to be connected. Battery #1 can be connected or disconnected. For obvious reasons I'll check the ground out on battery 2 first.

VetteLT193
10-18-2007, 08:30 AM
I finally got in to check the grounds, I was working at night with a flashlight so I only checked one. Basically, the guy who installed the engine has got to be an idiot.

The ground was connected to a painted bracket. That bracket is bolted to the block so I really have to get the whole thing off to see if the block is painted behind that. I did a quick sand of the bracket and wire end, put it back and it was already cranking better.

Hopefully I'll have time to finish tonight, if it isn't raining:lightning

RedDog
10-18-2007, 08:49 AM
Here's a pic of what his engine compartment looks like with the box in it on the left. Is this standard?

Isn't that box on the "right" / "starboard" side? :wink::wink::wink:

No I don't think that the box is a standard feature. The only 22 I have seen with a box under the hatch is yours and mine - and I put the box in mine

VetteLT193
10-18-2007, 08:52 AM
Isn't that box on the "right" / "starboard" side? :wink::wink::wink:

No I don't think that the box is a standard feature. The only 22 I have seen with a box under the hatch is yours and mine - and I put the box in mine


Ya got me there, yep it's starboard:bonk:

The box is a great feature, it fits all kinds of crap. I'm thinking of adding one to my Minx

RedDog
10-18-2007, 09:40 AM
Ya got me there, yep it's starboard:bonk:
The box is a great feature, it fits all kinds of crap. I'm thinking of adding one to my Minx

My box started out life as one of those boxes found at discount stores for packing away your Christmas decorations. It has a 2 part top, hinged on each side. Where the halves meet it loosely interlocks. This keeps things from flying out.

VetteLT193
10-23-2007, 02:34 PM
Thanks for everyone's help. I got it running. Bad grounds were the culprit.

I took it out Sunday without problems:)