1983 Sea Ray 270..I killed it...waaah

J

julierecker

New Member
May 22, 2010
12
Ohio/Florida
Boat Info
Sea Ray 270 Sundancer
Engines
Dirty
:smt100
HI Folks, I have some questions that I hope someone can answer...Here's my story..I bought the boat a few weeks ago because when I seen it I loved it.Classic old boat with fantastic floor plan on a trailer. The fellow that sold it to us started both motors with no problem. We moved the boat to the back of the driveway out of the way, plugged into shorepower and I spend the last couple weeks cleaning and polishing.Lights, fridge all working. My husband went to start it and one motor wouldn't start, no power,no click, notta. He pulled the panel off where the ignition switches are mounted because he thought the key felt funny,therefore opening this can of worms. :wow:
I ordered another new marine ignition switch with 4 prongs like the old one,a bunch of heat shrink, tin copper ends etc... and am now in a state of confusion as to where all these wires went and came from. ??? Aww, crap...Now the whole boat is dead even when plugged into shore power. Batteries are ran down and the charger doesn't come on even. No House lights,no gauges,notta. Dead in the driveway.:smt089
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Front weird homemade panel ( needs replaced,it's a peice of plywood with a vinyl floor tile... looking for thoughts or ideas on that issue too later on)

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Back of panel, start of the confusion.


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Back of panel

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Note: 2 red w purple wires hooked to nothing, taped off.Original igntion with wires that started. I did not touch these wires,this is how it was. A fuse holder, a reset switch, and emergency stop switch.

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Found these two sneaky lil push button meemies behind the panel hiding against the wall....wires are still connected.



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More issues down the line, on top of engine with circuit breaker below...but would this unnamed thingamabob make the whole boat dead?



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Location, bottom left of photo (on engine ) of unnamed thingamabob.Red wire is no longer connected to this peice. Peice looks corroded to the max.

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Dead boat reading with shore power plugged in to 110 outlet.

Okay, so at this point, can I get this sorted out on my own?

Or haul it to a marine mechanic (which I hate the thought of),I love sweating and bloody knuckles,hunting tools,no space to work and this 46 year old body being crowded in too tight places and being overall frustrated by a boat) LOL :smt021

There's some real crap wiring in this boat,some corrosion etc... including a 110v outlet in the bilge, that I intend to replace over the next few months,but most of that seems simple compared to this ignition area disaster.

Bottom paint is here,waiting on strip and barrier coat on backorder.

Any thoughts ,suggestions or ideas?

Julie in NW OHIO ( Sea Ray killer )
 
This is why you get survey to see what you are getting into upfront...sorry.
 
Well, I am known for my stubbornness and determination....just ask my husband..haha..:grin:

I think I will tinker over the weekend and then give the guy a call on Tuesday...

Thanks for the replies to date....
Julie
 
If you have lots of time and some background in basic wiring you might be able to get this thing back together. You have quite a challenge ahead of you.

In case you are unclear 12 volts DC and 120 volts AC are different issues. If the 120 volts is not working do not connect it to the house you might get more bang for the buck than you wanted.

Do not try and start this thing if there is any gas leaking or pooling in the carb.

Try and find the manual for this boat.

http://forums.iboats.com/showthread.php?p=1693398#post

here is a link to a link for old merc manuals. you should be able to find yours.

Get a good 12 volt book. I like Powerboaters Guide to Electrical Systems by Ed Sherman.

Take it slow take lots of pictures.

A cheap wire chaser signal generator would help a lot. It is a clip on signal generator that has two parts one generates the signal and the wand beeps when you find the other end.

A volt ohm meter is also a have to have.

oh that thing held together with the hose clamp in the white tube looks like the main electrical plug to the engine. I would look here first its looks like it needs to be repaired if it is being held together with a hose clamp.
 
Hey Thanks guys ! There's the spirit ! :smt038

The wire finder sounds like a great idea !

It is unplugged from the shore power to the house now. I have not smelled nor seen any fuel on the motors or bilges. I have a basic concept of AC wiring ( having replaced every receptacle and switch in our house) and ran all the lighting and switches in our garage.

Okay, new plan of attack, heading to find the service manual and looking for the boat electrical book.

THANKS GUYS ! I have renewed hope! Julie
 
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Incoming from harness along wall. The wires on far left and to far right are very fat.

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2 ignition switches,fuse holders, kill switch with 2 black in and out.

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Original ignition bottom left...wired how it was. Note white wire runs to fuse off igntion. Is this right? I have no white wire on the second ignition ran to a fuse??? Anchor wires in black tape at top right.
 
Front of panel I am working on, note fuse holders? One push button dealie, one insert fuse dealie. One kill the motors switch.
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I can appreciate that you want to fix this yourself, but ya gotta ask yourself how much frustration and aggravation you're willing to put up with. You bought the boat because you loved the look of it. Don't let that go away by having the spend the entire first summer sorting and replacing wires.

If I were in your shoes I'd take it somewhere. Just my opinion.
 
As a PS to my last post, if you want to get a new panel made that will truly look first class, PM me and I'll send you the name of an engraver who is also a boater. I've seen some of his work and he's fantastic.
 
http://www.amazon.com/Gardner-Bender-GET-4110K-Wire-Tracker/dp/B000BO6Y1O

here a link to the wire tracer I have. I got mine at lowes.

The emergency start is a button for combining batteries to start an engine with dead batteries.

What engines and years do you have?

Try the link I gave you to find your manual it will have all the MERC wiring colors and the proper terminations. I do not think you can count on any of the solid colors actually doing what they are intended to. I can not imagine what a marine electrician would cost you.

There is a sponsor on this site that makes panels also that when you get it sorted out would be a nice addition.

I rewired a 1973 Crestliner and enjoyed it very much. Much more than polishing my boat.
 
Thanks Mike !
I will make a run to Lowes tomorrow and grab one of those and start again. I am sure that will end some of the confusion. So thanks for the great idea there ! Sounds like if you rewired your own boat you have some patience, and determination also , huh ? :thumbsup:
I believe we have original 1983 twin 260 motors. (Chevy 350) with hour meter of a bit over 500 on both.
Its such a cool old boat, lots of perfect interior teak, perfect layout, 2 bedroom, lol, nice thick cushions throughout,vacuflush head, AC/heat reverse cycle, 4k genset,full camper cabin with glass and screens. Just needs some loving care here... :grin:
Thanks for the where to start advice....will be on it tomorrow.
Julie
 
Did you try and download the manual it looks like its close to 200MB. It will have the wiring information for your motor.

You can trace out the wires with a volt ohm meter set on beep and a long jumper wire. The nice thing about the wire tracer is that it will beep when you put the probe near a bundle of wires and will let you know if the wire you are tracing is in it.
 
Yes, I downloaded the manual and it shows me one ignition and I am assuming that both twin ignitions will get the same color wires coming from the wall...I am still not sure how they both can tie into the fuse part though. I can see how one can tie into the fuse, but other than splicing wires together, am unsure where the second ignition gets a fuse from. Unless, the first ign. ties to the second ign. somewhere in there,hence getting it's fuse from the first? and I am missing the picture still? I wish the manual showed twin ignitions. When I get done, I will probably look back and think how simple this was and feel like a real dummy. :smt001


On the other starboard engine bunk part ( OH, HOW MANY JUNK PARTS ARE THERE? lol ), this says ELGEN 16V 10000uF.It has the size and appearance of a C battery, with a broken off red wire from one end and a black wire from the other. In Googling, I found no part that resembles this. A capacitor? The port motor same part is enclosed in blue plastic coating and looks new.

Also, on the switch I thought was the kill switch, it isn't? It is an emergency start switch which enables it to connect all 4 batteries? House and motor batteries?

I am going to Lowes tomorrow to get the wire finder and to the auto parts store to see if they can have this other part for me, or can order in.

90* here today, 103* in camper cabin where I am working. I love this boat. :grin:

Can I connect the 15HP Yammie to the transom or swim platform and just go? Hahaha.Joking...my arms are too sore from running the buffer on the hull to lift anything right now... :grin:
 
If the manual does not show the capacitor then it probably is for noise suppression for the radios so the ignition spark does not translate to pops on the radio. I do not think it is required for starting.

Each engine should have its own starting and ignition circuit with circuit breakers and fuses and seperate batteries etc. So whats in the manual double it and the colors will be the same for each side.

What did the original owner have to say about your no start condition?

Battery switches turned on and gear shifter in neutral?
 
I would like to stress that even working with 12 volt power the amps from a battery can start fires and hurt electronics. Please be careful and double check you do not short out your cables.:smt021

Take your batteries out and make sure they are cleaned up and fully charged. Start from the source and the heart of the 12 volt system the batteries and start working forward to the starting circuit and then the ignition.:thumbsup:
 
Okay, I went today to Lowes and no Wire Tracker. The two employees that helped me said that their Lowes store used to carry alot of electrical tools that they no longer have. There was nothing even similiar to what I was looking for. Menards was a bust as well as Walmart. I will be going back to the Amazon.com link at this point for the wire tracker.

In talking to the previous owner today, he says that he never messed with any of the wiring whatsoever except to replace the one key ignition switch. He said that he unhooked wire by wire to replace the ignition and changed nothing behind the panel. He has had the boat since 1998, and was clueless why it wouldn't start.

Should I try to pull all four batteries out and put them on the trickle charger?
 
Sorry to hear about your electrical issues. As for the batteries, they will only be as good as the weakest one is. A bad battery will kill the remaining good ones.
 
Hi all,
Okay, it goes to the marine mechanic on Thursday. Hes going to go through the system and see what is going on with the old girl. In the meantime, teak work...

Thanks for all the help everyone, and the good spirit to give it a try ! :smt038
 
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