Dangar Marine those belts reminded me of my boat! It was a 1986 Chris Craft. I was on houghton lake in MI and there are some shallow spots! I was young but I was in charge of driving the boat. We were going full speed. I was kneeling on the seat to help me see. I saw a shallow spot so I started slowing up my father insisted we would just skim. Over the sand bar. We argued for a minute and he got behind me a pushed the throttle on full. We hit the sand bar and came to a full stop.i said that long story because we hit the sand bar so hard it knocked the belts off the motor and I bruised my ribs on the windshield.
"Spring washers became quite fashionable since I ran out of flat washers this morning..." Only this can make me giggle while watching someone mounting an alternator... :-)
i remember someone proving spring washers add nothing when it comes to stopping a bolt or nut from backing off a while ago . wish i could remember the source :/
A true blue legend of perseverance is what you are Stu. I went back to the beginning of the metal boat series last night - bloody hell that boat has aged you mate. Keep up the good work and cant wait to see you chugging around the Hawkesbury - hopefully before you are 85 ;)
Stu: For the oil pressure gauge - I recommend taking off the wWire from the sender where it lands on the gauge and read the resistance (ohms) to ground. That should be 240 ohms to ground for a Stewart-Warner style gauge, which drops to 33 ohms at full scale, presumably 100 psi. Then start your engine, the resistance should drop as the sender sees pressure. If it does, then you have the sender wired correctly and the problem is probably with the power supply to the gauge. (as an aside, if I had to make a guess, I would say your problem lies in somewhere having a ground problem which is affecting everything in your panel - but that's just a guess.) If you don't see 240 ohms, go down to the sender, take the wires off and see what resistance you have from the S (Sender) terminal to ground - is it the same as what you saw at the gauge? I also have a VDO sender which is a combination S(switch) and W (gauge) where both functions use the engine block as ground - is it possible that you have something similar? For the tachometer, I would take the sensing wire at the tach and check it for AC voltage at the terminal when the engine is running. Now I lust after a Detroit Diesel... Your videos are GREAT please keep them up. Good Luck and carry on!
Yep (although his ground should carry back through the battery negative wiring from the motor to the dash) those senders do usually need to have a solid ground to work properly (had a car with an issue where the gauges would go wild, turned out the ground strap from the body to the engine at the gearbox was intermittent high resistance (one bolt was loose)
@@DangarMarine Stu, sender resistance specs: Stewart Warner spec. 240 - 33.5, ohms. VDO spec (which you have on the engine) 10 - 180 ohms. So if you still have the specs for your gauge, see which "standard" it's looking for. On your alternator pilot light, make sure you picked up the 24 volt feed, and not accidentally a 12 volt feed. Verify that all your DC grounds are bonded togeather. A system for turning the gauges and alternator excitation on would be to install about a 10 PSI N.O. pressure switch on the secondary fuel filter, and use that to turn the +12 VDC on and off for the gauges. For the alternator excitation, install a 5 PSI pressure switch in the oil gallery. Run the common terminal to the +24 VDC and the N.O. terminal to the pilot light. This will turn things on and off without having to remember to turn switches on, or forgetting to turn them off thus draining the batteries.
@@newjerseybill3521 hi Bill, I don't really see the point in having the exciter light when you have a battery gauge. If you see decent current when the engines running you know the alternator is running.
I love watching you work. I'm a soft hand engineer and that maybe an overstatement. I learn so much. I would love you to do a video on how to pack the dishwasher and put the garbage out. According to my wife I don't have a clue.
You should be fine with 8 gauge wire. If I remember right, my old E350 Powerstroke with the ambulance package used a 150 amp alternator and 6 gauge. Also, I had no idea that chickens perched on sticks! I learn something new from this channel all the time.
It must be something about the world situation that makes watching chickens for 9 minutes so delightful and you just have to smile. Great bonus ending.
Toptip for neat heat shrinking "in the field": Get a solder iron that runs on gas(like a weller pyropen or similar). Its not only handy for soldering without electric power but they usually come with a heat shrink tips. Shrinks it just as neat as an electric heatgun.
Or you can leave the regular tip on, and use the exahaust port for the job. Also, a great way to clean the tip in the field is poking it through cardboard or wiping it on your leather work boots.
I hate mine. It's a pos. Hard to start and performance badly deteriorated with little use. The gas regulator on it goes up and down as normal but the tips just don't get hot unless you heat it up for 30mins. Next field one will be a battery one. See how that one goes.
@@ThePaulv12 Yep, you need to spend AU$100+ to get a half decent gas iron. Portasol irons are decent. If you go an electric one, try the TS80 or TS100 - they're great value for money to use in the field - and reliable temp regulation too whereas gas tips tend to get white hot pretty quickly even when manually 'regulating'...
@@maxpwr_fpv4987 well mine cost $135 and used to get hot but after say 10 uses over say 4 years it is useless. Even need to use a lighter to get it to go. I hate it. Anyway enough of my rant, ill buy the exact one you recommend lol.
@lbds3407 Yep, but my idiot one won't light half, low or full. It clicks and sparks alright but the effing see you next Tuesday won't effing light and then it won't heat up properly. It actually reminds me of a cheap (non transformer thermostatically controlled) 240v soldering wand outside on a cold day with a wind - ie it just heats up and as soon as you touch the job it's all over. It also reminds me of what my 'ole nan referred to as a two bob watch - except it wasn't two bob if you know what I mean ... Yep its that brand name one in the nice case an all with the little tub and sponge and the selection of tips. I hate it.
Had similar issue having to rev up my engine a lot to turn off the light, because it was a car alternator apparently they are built to be used at higher rpms than these diesel engines. Changed to a truck alternator and it turns off light at idle. Cheers from Brazil mate ! Keep up the great channel!
I had a car alternator wiring fault once and the exitation current to the rotor wasn't happening but it started from the residual magnetism once revs exceeded ~3000 which was a bit much on a cold engine. I couldn't be bothered to fix the wiring and fed about 30ma to get it started using a 500 ohm resitor to +12v. I was surprised how little current was needed through the rotor to get it going.
@@rhiantaylor3446 in my case the electrician working on it told me these modern alternator for cars doesn't reach peak power unless you reach their peak RPM... so a Truck alternator was more appropriate for my MercedesOM314 engine as it is maxed out at 2500 rpm...and car alternators with my pulley setup would need 3500rpms to reach peak current.
@@peteramberley9952 Already fixed mine as i said in first post, using a truck generator designed for peak power at lower rpms... changing the pulley was not an option, as it would affect the water pump and radiator fan rpm.
Instead of soldering, compression fittings work great on those fuel lines. Love all your videos. Its looks like a lot of hard work but I am a little jealous of what you have now. Good job.
I have spent all my working life in the world of technology working on massively complex global systems. Frequently, normally on the back of change, we would suffer a technical failure. Time and time again "divide and conquer" would yield a solution. I can't wait to see your next project boat.
That is the fun part, and also the tricky thing with boats. They are quite complex systems so it forces you to learn about a lot of different things. It's hard to master all of them but you can become good enough to get the job done in the end.
As projects on the boat reach completion, it’s giving everything a tidy purposeful look. Very satisfying to watch. P.S. Where’s the ‘dang’ shirt I ordered? Lol. Thanks for the longer video, I think everyone appreciates it. Be well.
Keep your hands in your pockets is good advice. Thinking about what you touched or did last before the problem is another good bit. My go to when I give mechanical advice is keep it simple. Start with the easy stuff. Charge and check the battery before changing the starter. Check the level of fuel in the filters as well as condition before adjusting or replacing fuel system components. All of this type of advice is found in most of the good engine and vehicle manuals out there, but all to often it is skipped over to go right into the troubleshooting section. Stop and have a beer and a think if you get frustrated. That usually gets me by. Glad to see you close to your first cruise.
Hi Stu, A lot of people are guessing things, first thing to check is battery VOLTAGE ( tested at the battery terminals ), if it rises after starting the engine the alternator is charging and you've got some weird reversed connection on the battery monitor shunt. Rotation won't affect alternator output but will affect the cooling fan, you may need a reverse rotation fan. I'm a bit out of the loop with the Wema tacho but VDO used to need a connection to one phase of the alternator ( not W terminal ) which meant an internal soldered connection to the rectifier plate and running a wire out the back of the alternator. You may also need to calibrate the the tacho for pulley ratios to get accurate engine rpm. Good luck Stu :-))
Regards your problems with gauges. Her is a top top tip. Divide and conquer. Remove the gauge from the dash, take it down next to the senor and wire it up with temp wires. If it works you have ruled out the gauge and sensor. Then you can move the gauge up the circuit towards the dashboard. Somewhere along the journey, you will find the fault This technique is worth its weight in gold. Good luck from York, UK.
Hi Stu. The reason your Balmar is reading -15 amps is that you wired the alternator directly to the battery, so when the alternator is supplying the current the battery monitor thinks it is a discharge from the batt. To make the battery monitor read the correct charge/discharge you need to wire the alternator output to the load side of the batt monitor 24 volt shunt.
Great channel Stu love it, heres something to consider, my mate had a massive service battery bank which took most of the charge current so we wired the alternator direct to it and the split charge to the starter battery, it doesnt need much current if the engine starts easily worked really well cheers Roy.
Beer test to judge whether boat is large enough, perfect. All kidding aside, I think there are very few on this planet that could take on a project of this size and complexity. Well done!!
You know it's funny. I'm an electrician as living, and at the end of the day watching somebody else do electrical work in their own boat. And it's interesting to me, thank you!
My 90amp alternator was retail nz$3000 so I had to refurbish it. Turned out everything was bronze but still a ridiculous price. Cost me a new bearing, new brushes and resoldering the connections. Total cost $40.00 and a day of my life rinsing it all in contact cleaner.
www.qualitypowerauto.com/catalog.php?category=1 I used shop USA to get one from here 24 volt 120 amp however aussie dollar was stronger at time of purchase
Stu, have you considered putting a steel bulkhead door from your forward compartment to your engine bay? May make it easier to get in and out. Love the work you’ve done so far!
I love your sense of humor and your dry wit! If it wasn't for that I would have left a long time ago! ;) My wife and I want to get a live aboard to retire on and do the great loop, and a few of the boats we are looking at have detroits. So I love watching you work on yours.
Stu, I recommend running some galvanized 75mm cable tray to run your cables down to the engine with a couple of brackets it is nice and ridged and easy to cable tie to another great video thanks Paul
Stu, I have only one request.... At some point when the fuel issues are fixed I'd like a good 5 minute audio clip of that sweet beast running. I know boat owners don't usually post exhaust clips like car geeks do but that grumble sounds amazing.
You make the installation of an alternator look fun! We just did put in Balmar 165, and it was pretty straightforward, but it wasn’t as fun as you make it look! -Rebecca on SV Brick House
"this is physically identical to the old one so mounting it should be pretty straight forward.." At 50 seconds in I am predicting this is going to be a six part video! ;)
😂 it's a fourty minute video after editing, so You're about right I reckon. 😂 It would anyway be the first old boat with a "pretty straight forward" mount of any part whatsoever ....
Good to see you again Stu, I won't go into the wiring it's a mine field and I don't know anything about it. I got an electrician to completely rewire it had to take out a mortgage on it but it worked . Good vid regards John
I recently started watching the Trawler rebuilt. I have had some experience working on a plywood Chris Craft Copy I bought in Houston Texas years ago. I patched the bottom. It had an inline 235 chevy engine and was a 20 foot fishing boat. I also own a 1954 chevy 210 that I have put a new motor in, as well as bolted a new front end under... I am a Professional Land Surveyor in the Kansas City Missouri area. In my area water basically consists of the Missouri River and the Lake of the Ozarks. I have lived and worked 10 years in Houston Texas and weekends on the Gulf Cost. I have had a desire to take a boat down the Missouri to St. Louis, Then the Mississippi to the Gulf, and back. A somewhat Huck Finn kind of thing. I'm 66 so I don't know. Nice to meet everyone.
Hi Stu, my engine has two oil pressure sender units, one for the oil pressure gauge and the other to an audible warning for loss of oil pressure. You also need a push button to turn the alarm off whilst starting the engine to protect your ears until oil pressure shows on the gauge. Cheers
lol Love the spring washer becoming quite fashionable because I ran out of flat washers this morning! Classic Stu comedy! Thanks for another great video. So nice to see the boat coming together! I reviewed basck a year for perspective and wow what a ton of work you have done. Good on ya brother! I'll keep cheering for you throughout this build and keep an eye open for you r next slightly longer boat project!
G'day Stu my experience with GM's [marine] was the fuel return was back to tank[near top] with a dedicated line.The 71's have about 90% return to tank for injector cooling.If your system return is feeding back into supply line then fuel will be hot with high power run.Also[after filter maintenance] the air in system will keep circling until it pumps out the injectors not back to tank and out tank vent. Also putting an emergency remote shutoff to tank supply valve is a bonus for pipe fail/engine room fire.Can be a rod or cable/wire system[not necessary for sheathed type].Cheers EJS ps she's looking pretty schmick!
I had this problem with the ammeter once and it turned out to be that the ammeter was wired backwards. Switched the two wires and it worked perfectly. The meter was showing discharge at start and increased discharge with increased rpm.
Also if you have a clamp meter, clamp it around the alternators positive wire to the battery you should see the current flow to the battery. Plus the alternator plus volts should be around 27 volts dc
@@ekaftan put a volt meter on the big alternator terminal and if the volts rise when the engine runs it is charging. If the ammeter says negative then its lying (connected backwards).
Stu, It was suggested to me by an auto electrician to use that AC pulse wire for a tacho also but as I pointed out to him that as the crank pulley was larger than the alternator pulley so it throws the calibration out. It would work fine so long as the crank pulley and the alternator pulley are the same dia. Hope this helps. Cheers mate, Bruce.
@@DangarMarine I should have realized you would have been on top of that one Stu, but you never know who knows what sometimes. Mind you I didn't realize that Tachos were that smart these days either. Comes from living in the sticks I guess mate. Cheers.
Hi Stu, a mechanical oil gauge on the engine is a brilliant idea!! However, can I recommend that you mount it away from the engine with a small / short flex hose to reduce the chance of the engine shaking it to pieces. Just a thought!
Hey Stu - it might have been worth annealing that copper line before you brazed the fitting on. It is always worth removing the burr after you cut copper pipe. That burr not only affects flow (not directly important in this application) but it does act a lodgement for debris. Love yer vids.😀👍⛵️
Might be a good idea to put dielectric grease on all those push on connectors. You will never have an issue with moisture attacking the terminals if you apply liberal amount to both male and female ends. I've been doing it for 40 plus years , and never regretted it. Great video👍👍👍👍👍 Thanks for keeping us entertained.😷🙏
Exactly. The first rule of fixing anything is to start with the easy things first. Too many mistakes are made and tons of unnecessary money spent around the globe by people buying and or paying for fixes that aren't needed. Good example is in my field of work, that people come in and ask for charge ports etc. to be changed when the real problem is dust and lint that one can easily remove with a little bit of compressed air. I've gotten so many thank yous over the years for doing those minute things for free when people expected to spend a a few hundred on the repair.
A tip for when you want to branch some wires out at one point like you did to the alternator and pressure sender, is rather than splitting the outer insulation off for the rest of the length like you did, is slit it where the branch is and pull the cables you want out from inside- this works for fairly short lengths (as they are usually lubricated inside the outer sheath with talcum powder) If the continuing run is too long to do this, slit it a bit further towards the end you don't want your branch cables to run to to, at the length the branch cables need to be, carefully spread them at that point and cut the branch cables off and pull them out of the slit and cable tie or tape it closed again (superglue works on many of them, use a few dabs here and there, not a continuous run- bingo one still intact main cable (I have in the past cut off a bit of the leftover cable off the roll and pulled its cables out, just to slid the sheath over the branch line cables- just to make it 'look good'- that was in a show car where everything had to look pretty lol) With your dash light, its best to put a resister in parallel to the bulb (just in case it blows the bulb, that way the alternator will still get its D+ (also marked as F+ or IND on some brands), plus your typical dash light usually is only 1w, which isn't really enough to excite it reliably, 3w or 5w is better if not using the resistor (use a 5w resistor, for your 24v system around 120 ohms, for a 12v system, use a 39 ohms one) this allows the alternator to still start charging even if the bulb blows (once it is charging, it doesn't need it, there are diodes inside that provide the field current
Sounds like a good way to go. In the end I used all the cores in that one spot (used the red and yellow for the flow alarm) but I'll keep it in mind for the future.
Stu, I had the exact same alternator charging issue on my boat. Took me ages to actually track it down. It is getting too little excite current threw the charge indicator lamp. The reason it works with revs is less exciting current is needed as RPM climbs. This took me a while to work out, as my Gear/Throttle is on a single link. I solved it by putting a ~10 Ohm 5 Watt Wire wound resistor (from Jaycar) in parallel across the charge lamp (downside is, makes the charge lamp even dimmer, so will probably change to an LED). I actually bought a range of resistor values, and changed to the highest resistance value to get it work.
Yes, that is exactly what I did this morning and it fixed three of the problems. Only the oil pressure gauge is left to fix and I think it is a faulty sender after doing some resistance checks.
I would consider changing over to a notched belt - will not need to be as tight as a standard "V" belt (so less wear on the bearings) and pulley alignment will not be as critical. Keep the old on as a spare.
Notched belts (ax/bx) are meant for belts that need to conform around smaller pulleys while keeping their integrity. They actually have less surface area meeting the pulley sheave so belt tension is more important. Alignment is also more critical because the cogs increase chances of it jumping off the pulley.
Alternator: check the voltage at the B+ terminal before and after starting. Before should be battery voltage and after should be higher. If its higher after starting (after the light is out) then its working. I don't recall if your system is 12 or 24V. For the negative numbers on the Balmar Gauge, check the orientation of the Balmar current sensor. Maybe your 0.4A into the batteries on solar is actually a 0.4A drain? Also as others have said, an "As-built" wiring diagram is essential. Thanks for the entertainment during these trying times!
It has to do the the paddle wheel. I bought them and then was getting ready to install and read that they had to be installed level. This caused me to have to spend a lot to re-route the intake piping. It became a big job. Just trying to help you. I think it would make a great show for you to figure this out and help others get it right. I am in Sacramento, CA. in the Divided States of America. I have an old 52' 1968 Chris Craft Constellation. It has two Detroit 6-71's. When I bought it it had lots of deferred maintenance. It has been a big project. “I really don't know why it is that all of us are so committed to the sea, except I think it's because in addition to the fact that the sea changes, and the light changes, and ships change, it's because we all came from the sea. And it is an interesting biological fact that all of us have in our veins the exact same percentage of salt in our blood that exists in the ocean, and, therefore, we have salt in our blood, in our sweat, in our tears. We are tied to the ocean. And when we go back to the sea - whether it is to sail or to watch it - we are going back from whence we came. Gene Armstrong
Interestingly, this one doesn't have a paddle wheel as such, just a paddle. Mounting it horizontally good actually help me though as I could use a 1 1/2" T and then make the new horizontal pipe also act as the reducer avoiding so many joins. Leave it with me!
Best investment I have made for doing heat shrink and soldering. In my boat or under car dashboards and engine bays. Weller Portasol. Doesn't burn the heat shrink easy to control the heat and no wires to screw with. Also, a can of butane is cheap and it lasts forever.
It is worth checking the impedance of your dashboard + and - feeds back to the battery terminals. A dodgy ground could give you some of the problems you are experiencing. You can extend the probes of your DVM with a length of wire right back to the battery. One of the issues with measuring voltage with a DVM, is that they have an input impedance of many mega ohms, you can have a few kilo ohms in a ground or supply line and not measure a voltage drop at the far end. At least that will eliminate one possible cause. Check the output voltage of the Alternator, as I’m sure that it pushing 10A into your battery, not the other way round as your dash gauge is suggesting. A DC clamp meter is also very useful for fault finding. The UNI-T UT210E is about £35 and works very well. I’m sure you’ll get this fixed fairly quickly. Good luck. Nick.
Hey Stu. Voltage drops across switches are negligible, 5v is way too high something is going on with that switch. As for the tachometer, things get complicated. If your tach is 12v and your alternator is 24 you going to have an issue. I had a similar problem with my boat when I decided to change the tach with a cheap eBay one. The output of W signal was way too high and “noisy” blowing the signal input of the tach. I only discovered this after i hooked up an oscilloscope to the W output. I ended up having to build a low pass conditioning circuit to limit the voltage pulse and filter out the noise. Plugged in a new second tach and it worked first time. You will also have to adjust the expected pulse ratio according to your pulley ratio to get the correct rpm reading. Keep up the good work.
My father taught me that when working on cars.....pretty much anything really but cars specifically.... the simplest fix is usually the correct one. Guys who can't get their cars to idle smoothly start fiddling with the idle mixture screw, then move to jets, then move to fuel pumps then check for vacuum leaks. They almost NEVER check the fuel filter. Especially in older cars there is usually a brass screen in the fuel line directly mounted to the inlet bowl on the Carb. that gets clogged occasionally and has to be cleaned out. Almost no one checks that. They spend hours climbing all over the car from engine to fuel tank messing with everything when 9 times out of ten it's that stupid little brass screen at the Carb.
Nice one Stu,not sure about a camera in the pigeons bedroom though LOL. Pigeons on the boat too now how very posh. Stay safe in these dark times and thanks for the extra uploads,take care.
Stu: "now.. I am going to... cut the blue wire..." Me: braces for explosion I have spent too much time on Netflix already, right? Good to see you and Renko and the Clucks!
Thought the same thing... I think Benny Hill did a WW2 UXB (unexploded bomb) skit running through the procedure reaches “cut the blue wire” massive explosion...... turns the page “before cutting the blue wire........”
If it helps I call it "earth" in house electrical. Hard to call it earth when working on auto's, been a "ground" wire all my life! But it is cool to hear all the other terminology for common objects!
Its neither ground or earth but negative :) if you want to be technical, a ground or earth is a protective / safety conductor not normally used to carry current
@@leebougneit5205 There shouldn't be any stray current ;) If there is then a problem exists, hence "not normally used to carry current" the current flows back to the battery through the negative, there should then be a bond between battery negative and the boats earth/ground plate, You do not want to use a steel (or even more so aluminium) boats hull at the return path. A car is different as the chassis isn't bonded to ground and auto makers are cheap, saves wire to use the chassis as the negative return path. On fuel tankers the chassis cannot be used as a return path, all grounds must be isolated from the chassis(fun fact for the day}
Oh yes! spring washers are far more fashionable than a boring flat washer! you're always on the lead end of fashion Stu! I can't think of another scientific method to determine the correct size of an engine room either...logic well applied once again. Sound advice that hands in the pocket thing, and i'm eager to see how this electrics thing unfolds...there's an area i need education in. Oh, and D Squad surveillance system! they're gonna complain to their union! Thanks for sharing once again!!
This has all the looks of a bad ground somewhere. Double check if anything might be insulated by paint. If you have the capability I'd look into making a Deutsch plugs on the end of wire coming from the Wheelhouse and making a custom harness for your engine. Easy for me to say as I have all the stuff at work. :) Keep up the good work, you're doing great.
The negative (-) reading on the amp meter is because the alternator is charging the batteries...you set the system up to read output (usage) as positive and input (charge) as negative. Don't forget that if you need to charge your batteries you can do so with your generator...they usually have an additional DC output of around 8 amps for that purpose. Howdy to the D-Squad Girls! Their reactions to the camera is just too funny :)
See if you can find a tube of 'Di-electric Grease'. I always squeezed a bit into a crimp fitting before inserting the wire and never had a problem with corrosion at the exposed terminals even after years at sea...The stuff is relatively cheap, as you only use a small dab for each butt or terminal fitting. Once crimped, the wire and fitting will be in complete contact, the grease will only fill the voids and keep out moisture...I don't know if you would think it 'necessary', but the use of spring loaded idler pulleys take up any stretch or wear on your belts, saving you having to keep checking your new belts as they 'wear in', or your old belts as they just 'wear'. I had to do weekly adjustments on the six drive belts that coupled a 200 HP motor to the drive on a three axis lathe. I finally made up a bank of six spring loaded rollers running on the back or each belt and didn't have to adjust it for a whole year...Less time in the bilge is more time diving on wrecks...
Your negative amp reading could be your negative from the alternator being wired direct to the battery and not to the shunt on the other side of the battery, I have seen it before
On our 8v71, at idle it could turn slow enough to stop the alternator from charging. We put a momentary switch to send 12v from the battery to the exciter circuit to get it charging again once the rpms were up. Otherwise it would require a bigger engine pulley or smaller alternator pulley.
Measuring voltage drops can be helpful, but also knowing the current flow of a circuit is very beneficial for troubleshooting. It would be good if you could beg, borrow, steal, or buy a clamp on amp meter that measures DC amps (usually has a hall effect sensor in it). This will not only tell you the amount of current flow, but also the direction the current is flowing in the wire. You probably already know this, but at the risk of sounding obvious, that current meter on the dash is sensitive to the current direction, so if you have the 'in' and 'out' wired backward in the circuit for some reason, you will see the minus when it's really positive.. Oh, love the sound of that diesel engine! Good luck with your electrical problems.
Hi stu, don't know how other people would fault check, but i would start engine and check first for positive or negative charge coming from alternator, after that I would disconnect all gauges and reconnect one at a time, just in case one is shorted internally, it seems like the alternator is at fault, if the alternator was working correctly the light should be out, so you either have a short to ground on the loom or a short in the alternator itself, hope this mail finds you well, hope my logic is correct on the fault, thanks for the excellent content, best wishes
great vid stu hand in pockets top of the pops my motorbike brokedown stripped the carb scratched my head , no fuel that was many years ago hands in pockets great info i agree with Michael canto ,thanks stu
Stu, the AC Delco alternators here in the US have 2 wires. One is for the charge light and the second is a switched 12 positive terminal. The switched 12 volt is what indicates system voltage to the regulator. The tach signal should read in a/c current on a standard multimeter.
You know, it's just occurred to me that I'm powering the tachomoter from 12v to read a 24v alternator. I wonder if that is an issue. It's a dual voltage alternator so I'll change it over today.
@@DangarMarine I listened to you're video at work a second time and realized you said it has a German alternator. What kind and model is it? I had assumed that since it is a GM Detroit engine, that it would have GM parts. My mistake, but I do know that a lot of alternators are setup that way. Not just the GM ones.
That for all the suggestions relating to these problems. They are all fixed now, explanation in the next video!
Dangar Marine those belts reminded me of my boat! It was a 1986 Chris Craft. I was on houghton lake in MI and there are some shallow spots! I was young but I was in charge of driving the boat. We were going full speed. I was kneeling on the seat to help me see. I saw a shallow spot so I started slowing up my father insisted we would just skim. Over the sand bar. We argued for a minute and he got behind me a pushed the throttle on full. We hit the sand bar and came to a full stop.i said that long story because we hit the sand bar so hard it knocked the belts off the motor and I bruised my ribs on the windshield.
Love your bilge rat 🐀 ❤️
"Spring washers became quite fashionable since I ran out of flat washers this morning..." Only this can make me giggle while watching someone mounting an alternator... :-)
I was laughing loudly at that comment too.
I just about spluttered beer on my monitor when he said that.
That was good
paulotex19 same here🤣
i remember someone proving spring washers add nothing when it comes to stopping a bolt or nut from backing off a while ago . wish i could remember the source :/
Nice to see Billy overseeing your electrical connections. He is a plethora of naval knowledge.
Why is the D squad the best part of your videos? Kidding but they put your hard work in a lovely perspective. Cheers Warren.
Keep them coming Stu. We would watch you change oil to break up the day.
Will do. :)
A true blue legend of perseverance is what you are Stu. I went back to the beginning of the metal boat series last night - bloody hell that boat has aged you mate. Keep up the good work and cant wait to see you chugging around the Hawkesbury - hopefully before you are 85 ;)
Stu: For the oil pressure gauge - I recommend taking off the wWire from the sender where it lands on the gauge and read the resistance (ohms) to ground. That should be 240 ohms to ground for a Stewart-Warner style gauge, which drops to 33 ohms at full scale, presumably 100 psi. Then start your engine, the resistance should drop as the sender sees pressure. If it does, then you have the sender wired correctly and the problem is probably with the power supply to the gauge. (as an aside, if I had to make a guess, I would say your problem lies in somewhere having a ground problem which is affecting everything in your panel - but that's just a guess.) If you don't see 240 ohms, go down to the sender, take the wires off and see what resistance you have from the S (Sender) terminal to ground - is it the same as what you saw at the gauge? I also have a VDO sender which is a combination S(switch) and W (gauge) where both functions use the engine block as ground - is it possible that you have something similar?
For the tachometer, I would take the sensing wire at the tach and check it for AC voltage at the terminal when the engine is running.
Now I lust after a Detroit Diesel... Your videos are GREAT please keep them up.
Good Luck and carry on!
Thanks mate, I'll do the sender tests today and see how they go.
I was thinking the same thing...a grounding problem as the cause...maybe connecting the ground lines directly to the block to test/fix the issue.
Yep (although his ground should carry back through the battery negative wiring from the motor to the dash) those senders do usually need to have a solid ground to work properly (had a car with an issue where the gauges would go wild, turned out the ground strap from the body to the engine at the gearbox was intermittent high resistance (one bolt was loose)
@@DangarMarine Stu, sender resistance specs: Stewart Warner spec. 240 - 33.5, ohms. VDO spec (which you have on the engine) 10 - 180 ohms. So if you still have the specs for your gauge, see which "standard" it's looking for. On your alternator pilot light, make sure you picked up the 24 volt feed, and not accidentally a 12 volt feed. Verify that all your DC grounds are bonded togeather. A system for turning the gauges and alternator excitation on would be to install about a 10 PSI N.O. pressure switch on the secondary fuel filter, and use that to turn the +12 VDC on and off for the gauges. For the alternator excitation, install a 5 PSI pressure switch in the oil gallery. Run the common terminal to the +24 VDC and the N.O. terminal to the pilot light. This will turn things on and off without having to remember to turn switches on, or forgetting to turn them off thus draining the batteries.
@@newjerseybill3521 hi Bill, I don't really see the point in having the exciter light when you have a battery gauge. If you see decent current when the engines running you know the alternator is running.
If you watch the clock it shows how much editing work you have to do to every video. brilliant vid again thanks Stu.
Yes, it's amazing how days of work ends up a 30 minute video.
I love watching you work. I'm a soft hand engineer and that maybe an overstatement. I learn so much.
I would love you to do a video on how to pack the dishwasher and put the garbage out. According to my wife I don't have a clue.
Electricals have always been a complete mystery! It is amazing to me how easily you are sorting this maze.
You should be fine with 8 gauge wire. If I remember right, my old E350 Powerstroke with the ambulance package used a 150 amp alternator and 6 gauge. Also, I had no idea that chickens perched on sticks! I learn something new from this channel all the time.
It must be something about the world situation that makes watching chickens for 9 minutes so delightful and you just have to smile. Great bonus ending.
Thank you for all the extra videos during the “lock down”
Toptip for neat heat shrinking "in the field": Get a solder iron that runs on gas(like a weller pyropen or similar). Its not only handy for soldering without electric power but they usually come with a heat shrink tips. Shrinks it just as neat as an electric heatgun.
Or you can leave the regular tip on, and use the exahaust port for the job. Also, a great way to clean the tip in the field is poking it through cardboard or wiping it on your leather work boots.
I hate mine. It's a pos. Hard to start and performance badly deteriorated with little use. The gas regulator on it goes up and down as normal but the tips just don't get hot unless you heat it up for 30mins.
Next field one will be a battery one.
See how that one goes.
@@ThePaulv12 Yep, you need to spend AU$100+ to get a half decent gas iron. Portasol irons are decent. If you go an electric one, try the TS80 or TS100 - they're great value for money to use in the field - and reliable temp regulation too whereas gas tips tend to get white hot pretty quickly even when manually 'regulating'...
@@maxpwr_fpv4987 well mine cost $135 and used to get hot but after say 10 uses over say 4 years it is useless. Even need to use a lighter to get it to go. I hate it.
Anyway enough of my rant, ill buy the exact one you recommend lol.
@lbds3407 Yep, but my idiot one won't light half, low or full.
It clicks and sparks alright but the effing see you next Tuesday won't effing light and then it won't heat up properly. It actually reminds me of a cheap (non transformer thermostatically controlled) 240v soldering wand outside on a cold day with a wind - ie it just heats up and as soon as you touch the job it's all over.
It also reminds me of what my 'ole nan referred to as a two bob watch - except it wasn't two bob if you know what I mean ...
Yep its that brand name one in the nice case an all with the little tub and sponge and the selection of tips.
I hate it.
Had similar issue having to rev up my engine a lot to turn off the light, because it was a car alternator apparently they are built to be used at higher rpms than these diesel engines. Changed to a truck alternator and it turns off light at idle. Cheers from Brazil mate ! Keep up the great channel!
I had a car alternator wiring fault once and the exitation current to the rotor wasn't happening but it started from the residual magnetism once revs exceeded ~3000 which was a bit much on a cold engine. I couldn't be bothered to fix the wiring and fed about 30ma to get it started using a 500 ohm resitor to +12v. I was surprised how little current was needed through the rotor to get it going.
@@rhiantaylor3446 in my case the electrician working on it told me these modern alternator for cars doesn't reach peak power unless you reach their peak RPM... so a Truck alternator was more appropriate for my MercedesOM314 engine as it is maxed out at 2500 rpm...and car alternators with my pulley setup would need 3500rpms to reach peak current.
Can't you just change the pulley size?
@@peteramberley9952 Already fixed mine as i said in first post, using a truck generator designed for peak power at lower rpms... changing the pulley was not an option, as it would affect the water pump and radiator fan rpm.
@@andrezan9448 how can it affect the other pulleys rpm? The crankshaft dictates that,
Instead of soldering, compression fittings work great on those fuel lines. Love all your videos. Its looks like a lot of hard work but I am a little jealous of what you have now. Good job.
I have spent all my working life in the world of technology working on massively complex global systems. Frequently, normally on the back of change, we would suffer a technical failure. Time and time again "divide and conquer" would yield a solution. I can't wait to see your next project boat.
It just amazes me how many things you need to know and be able to do, to make this boat functional. It's really impressive!
That is the fun part, and also the tricky thing with boats. They are quite complex systems so it forces you to learn about a lot of different things. It's hard to master all of them but you can become good enough to get the job done in the end.
As projects on the boat reach completion, it’s giving everything a tidy purposeful look. Very satisfying to watch. P.S. Where’s the ‘dang’ shirt I ordered? Lol. Thanks for the longer video, I think everyone appreciates it. Be well.
Thanks mate. The Teespring side should have tracking on deliveries.
Good to see you following the rules and self isolating mate. Stay safe.
So looking forward to your first outing! Locked down so excited to see some one out and about.....
Your ducks are so sweet lol. I could listen to the little clucks for hours.
Stu, I’ve got no mechanical or electrical skill so can’t help at all. But I love watching, learning and seeing the progress. Cheers
Thanks Keith. :)
Keep your hands in your pockets is good advice. Thinking about what you touched or did last before the problem is another good bit. My go to when I give mechanical advice is keep it simple. Start with the easy stuff. Charge and check the battery before changing the starter. Check the level of fuel in the filters as well as condition before adjusting or replacing fuel system components. All of this type of advice is found in most of the good engine and vehicle manuals out there, but all to often it is skipped over to go right into the troubleshooting section. Stop and have a beer and a think if you get frustrated. That usually gets me by. Glad to see you close to your first cruise.
Hi Stu,
A lot of people are guessing things, first thing to check is battery VOLTAGE ( tested at the battery terminals ), if it rises after starting the engine the alternator is charging and you've got some weird reversed connection on the battery monitor shunt. Rotation won't affect alternator output but will affect the cooling fan, you may need a reverse rotation fan. I'm a bit out of the loop with the Wema tacho but VDO used to need a connection to one phase of the alternator ( not W terminal ) which meant an internal soldered connection to the rectifier plate and running a wire out the back of the alternator. You may also need to calibrate the the tacho for pulley ratios to get accurate engine rpm. Good luck Stu :-))
Regards your problems with gauges. Her is a top top tip. Divide and conquer. Remove the gauge from the dash, take it down next to the senor and wire it up with temp wires. If it works you have ruled out the gauge and sensor. Then you can move the gauge up the circuit towards the dashboard. Somewhere along the journey, you will find the fault This technique is worth its weight in gold. Good luck from York, UK.
For sure, the process of elimination goes a long way in diagnosing problems.
Hi Stu. The reason your Balmar is reading -15 amps is that you wired the alternator directly to the battery, so when the alternator is supplying the current the battery monitor thinks it is a discharge from the batt. To make the battery monitor read the correct charge/discharge you need to wire the alternator output to the load side of the batt monitor 24 volt shunt.
Great video to watch while being cooped up at home. Hate this lock up. Thanks for the distraction.
Great channel Stu love it, heres something to consider, my mate had a massive service battery bank which took most of the charge current so we wired the alternator direct to it and the split charge to the starter battery, it doesnt need much current if the engine starts easily worked really well cheers Roy.
Sounds like a good setup.
Beer test to judge whether boat is large enough, perfect. All kidding aside, I think there are very few on this planet that could take on a project of this size and complexity. Well done!!
Thanks mate, it's certainly been a trial...
Thanks for putting out your videos during our coronavirus lockdown. I look for them each day. stay safe.
You know it's funny. I'm an electrician as living, and at the end of the day watching somebody else do electrical work in their own boat. And it's interesting to me, thank you!
My 90amp alternator was retail nz$3000 so I had to refurbish it. Turned out everything was bronze but still a ridiculous price. Cost me a new bearing, new brushes and resoldering the connections. Total cost $40.00 and a day of my life rinsing it all in contact cleaner.
Wow, that's an expensive alternator!
www.qualitypowerauto.com/catalog.php?category=1 I used shop USA to get one from here 24 volt 120 amp however aussie dollar was stronger at time of purchase
@Tony thompson Don't think it's, "Gold Plated" but 9Carrot solid Gold for that money.
Stu, keep up the good work. I find your videos absolutely fascinating. I’m looking forward to coming along on a cruise.
Stu, have you considered putting a steel bulkhead door from your forward compartment to your engine bay? May make it easier to get in and out. Love the work you’ve done so far!
Yep hands in pockets have a quick beer & a long think....sage advice! Good vid Stu looking forward to maiden voyage all the best mate.
I love your sense of humor and your dry wit! If it wasn't for that I would have left a long time ago! ;) My wife and I want to get a live aboard to retire on and do the great loop, and a few of the boats we are looking at have detroits. So I love watching you work on yours.
Thanks mate. I didn''t know about the Great Loop until I visited the US last year, sounds like a great voyage to do.
It’s coming together nicely!! Can’t wait to see it run!! Love the bird cam too!
Stu, I recommend running some galvanized 75mm cable tray to run your cables down to the engine with a couple of brackets it is nice and ridged and easy to cable tie to another great video thanks Paul
Stu, I have only one request....
At some point when the fuel issues are fixed I'd like a good 5 minute audio clip of that sweet beast running. I know boat owners don't usually post exhaust clips like car geeks do but that grumble sounds amazing.
I'll see what I can do. :)
good morning 5.20 in the morning in australia...going for a fish right after I watch an alternator installation.
Have to love your boat sizing techniques
You make the installation of an alternator look fun! We just did put in Balmar 165, and it was pretty straightforward, but it wasn’t as fun as you make it look! -Rebecca on SV Brick House
I've heard good things about those Bulmar alternators, I'm definitely going to upgrade at some stage.
"this is physically identical to the old one so mounting it should be pretty straight forward.." At 50 seconds in I am predicting this is going to be a six part video! ;)
I know, that the way it goes so often!
@@DangarMarine "Nothing is simple." ... another of those universal laws.
😂 it's a fourty minute video after editing, so You're about right I reckon. 😂
It would anyway be the first old boat with a "pretty straight forward" mount of any part whatsoever ....
"its a 5 minute job!"
Good to see you again Stu, I won't go into the wiring it's a mine field and I don't know anything about it. I got an electrician to completely rewire it had to take out a mortgage on it but it worked . Good vid regards John
I may have to call in an electrican too if I can find it, but I'll keep looking for a while.
I recently started watching the Trawler rebuilt. I have had some experience working on a plywood Chris Craft Copy I bought in Houston Texas years ago. I patched the bottom. It had an inline 235 chevy engine and was a 20 foot fishing boat. I also own a 1954 chevy 210 that I have put a new motor in, as well as bolted a new front end under... I am a Professional Land Surveyor in the Kansas City Missouri area. In my area water basically consists of the Missouri River and the Lake of the Ozarks. I have lived and worked 10 years in Houston Texas and weekends on the Gulf Cost. I have had a desire to take a boat down the Missouri to St. Louis, Then the Mississippi to the Gulf, and back. A somewhat Huck Finn kind of thing. I'm 66 so I don't know. Nice to meet everyone.
Hello!
I'd call that progress Stu, when I put a camera in the bedroom I always put a little tape over the red flashing light, Jeff in LA USA
Hi Stu, my engine has two oil pressure sender units, one for the oil pressure gauge and the other to an audible warning for loss of oil pressure. You also need a push button to turn the alarm off whilst starting the engine to protect your ears until oil pressure shows on the gauge. Cheers
lol Love the spring washer becoming quite fashionable because I ran out of flat washers this morning! Classic Stu comedy! Thanks for another great video. So nice to see the boat coming together! I reviewed basck a year for perspective and wow what a ton of work you have done. Good on ya brother! I'll keep cheering for you throughout this build and keep an eye open for you r next slightly longer boat project!
Thanks Buck.
G'day Stu my experience with GM's [marine] was the fuel return was back to tank[near top] with a dedicated line.The 71's have about 90% return to tank for injector cooling.If your system return is feeding back into supply line then fuel will be hot with high power run.Also[after filter maintenance] the air in system will keep circling until it pumps out the injectors not back to tank and out tank vent. Also putting an emergency remote shutoff to tank supply valve is a bonus for pipe fail/engine room fire.Can be a rod or cable/wire system[not necessary for sheathed type].Cheers EJS ps she's looking pretty schmick!
Stu, your mate Steve had sheep and pigs at the end of his last 2 videos! They say imitation is the sincerist form of flattery!
I'll definitely have to give him a serve. ;)
I had this problem with the ammeter once and it turned out to be that the ammeter was wired backwards. Switched the two wires and it worked perfectly. The meter was showing discharge at start and increased discharge with increased rpm.
Also if you have a clamp meter, clamp it around the alternators positive wire to the battery you should see the current flow to the battery. Plus the alternator plus volts should be around 27 volts dc
@@ekaftan put a volt meter on the big alternator terminal and if the volts rise when the engine runs it is charging. If the ammeter says negative then its lying (connected backwards).
Really do appreciate the extra videos!
Stu, It was suggested to me by an auto electrician to use that AC pulse wire for a tacho also but as I pointed out to him that as the crank pulley was larger than the alternator pulley so it throws the calibration out. It would work fine so long as the crank pulley and the alternator pulley are the same dia. Hope this helps. Cheers mate, Bruce.
Fortunately the tacho has adjustment to take into account any difference in pulley sizes.
@@DangarMarine I should have realized you would have been on top of that one Stu, but you never know who knows what sometimes. Mind you I didn't realize that Tachos were that smart these days either. Comes from living in the sticks I guess mate. Cheers.
Hey man,I've been going through a rough patch here (not the virus) and your videos really help me focus on something else,thanks Stu!
Hi Stu, a mechanical oil gauge on the engine is a brilliant idea!! However, can I recommend that you mount it away from the engine with a small / short flex hose to reduce the chance of the engine shaking it to pieces. Just a thought!
Hey Stu - it might have been worth annealing that copper line before you brazed the fitting on. It is always worth removing the burr after you cut copper pipe. That burr not only affects flow (not directly important in this application) but it does act a lodgement for debris. Love yer vids.😀👍⛵️
Its 9pm in the UK, ive got a mid strength beer, and Im settling in. Good work Stu.
Might be a good idea to put dielectric grease on all those push on connectors. You will never have an issue with moisture attacking the terminals if you apply liberal amount to both male and female ends. I've been doing it for 40 plus years , and never regretted it.
Great video👍👍👍👍👍 Thanks for keeping us entertained.😷🙏
Exactly. The first rule of fixing anything is to start with the easy things first. Too many mistakes are made and tons of unnecessary money spent around the globe by people buying and or paying for fixes that aren't needed. Good example is in my field of work, that people come in and ask for charge ports etc. to be changed when the real problem is dust and lint that one can easily remove with a little bit of compressed air. I've gotten so many thank yous over the years for doing those minute things for free when people expected to spend a a few hundred on the repair.
For sure, it's amazing how many mechanical and electrical repairs turn out to be nothing more than a slightly technical form of cleaning.
A tip for when you want to branch some wires out at one point like you did to the alternator and pressure sender, is rather than splitting the outer insulation off for the rest of the length like you did, is slit it where the branch is and pull the cables you want out from inside- this works for fairly short lengths (as they are usually lubricated inside the outer sheath with talcum powder)
If the continuing run is too long to do this, slit it a bit further towards the end you don't want your branch cables to run to to, at the length the branch cables need to be, carefully spread them at that point and cut the branch cables off and pull them out of the slit and cable tie or tape it closed again (superglue works on many of them, use a few dabs here and there, not a continuous run- bingo one still intact main cable
(I have in the past cut off a bit of the leftover cable off the roll and pulled its cables out, just to slid the sheath over the branch line cables- just to make it 'look good'- that was in a show car where everything had to look pretty lol)
With your dash light, its best to put a resister in parallel to the bulb (just in case it blows the bulb, that way the alternator will still get its D+ (also marked as F+ or IND on some brands), plus your typical dash light usually is only 1w, which isn't really enough to excite it reliably, 3w or 5w is better if not using the resistor (use a 5w resistor, for your 24v system around 120 ohms, for a 12v system, use a 39 ohms one) this allows the alternator to still start charging even if the bulb blows (once it is charging, it doesn't need it, there are diodes inside that provide the field current
Sounds like a good way to go. In the end I used all the cores in that one spot (used the red and yellow for the flow alarm) but I'll keep it in mind for the future.
The mechanical oil pressure gauge in the engine room is a very good idea my friend the electric drop across your system is puzzling
Beck track to the last thing you did right...back to basics, prayers of strength Bro.
Stu, I had the exact same alternator charging issue on my boat. Took me ages to actually track it down.
It is getting too little excite current threw the charge indicator lamp. The reason it works with revs is less exciting current is needed as RPM climbs. This took me a while to work out, as my Gear/Throttle is on a single link.
I solved it by putting a ~10 Ohm 5 Watt Wire wound resistor (from Jaycar) in parallel across the charge lamp (downside is, makes the charge lamp even dimmer, so will probably change to an LED).
I actually bought a range of resistor values, and changed to the highest resistance value to get it work.
Yes, that is exactly what I did this morning and it fixed three of the problems. Only the oil pressure gauge is left to fix and I think it is a faulty sender after doing some resistance checks.
Wow stew very complicated prosess. Doing a good job
Not easy at all. Your right do t rush the job. Keep safe Stew ❤️
Thank you for the videos. We are in lock down in South Africa and your video made my day. Like the chicken cam. Keep it coming, cheers Lars
I would consider changing over to a notched belt - will not need to be as tight as a standard "V" belt (so less wear on the bearings) and pulley alignment will not be as critical. Keep the old on as a spare.
Notched belts (ax/bx) are meant for belts that need to conform around smaller pulleys while keeping their integrity. They actually have less surface area meeting the pulley sheave so belt tension is more important. Alignment is also more critical because the cogs increase chances of it jumping off the pulley.
I'll grab a couple today.
Nevermind ō
Alternator: check the voltage at the B+ terminal before and after starting. Before should be battery voltage and after should be higher. If its higher after starting (after the light is out) then its working. I don't recall if your system is 12 or 24V. For the negative numbers on the Balmar Gauge, check the orientation of the Balmar current sensor. Maybe your 0.4A into the batteries on solar is actually a 0.4A drain? Also as others have said, an "As-built" wiring diagram is essential.
Thanks for the entertainment during these trying times!
“Normally, you would use a flat washer. But the use of spring washers has become quite fashionable since I ran out of flat washers this morning.”
Awww that’s an incredibly cute D-Squad video - and good luck for the first cruise!
Thanks! :)
It has to do the the paddle wheel. I bought them and then was getting ready to install and read that they had to be installed level. This caused me to have to spend a lot to re-route the intake piping. It became a big job. Just trying to help you. I think it would make a great show for you to figure this out and help others get it right. I am in Sacramento, CA. in the Divided States of America. I have an old 52' 1968 Chris Craft Constellation. It has two Detroit 6-71's. When I bought it it had lots of deferred maintenance. It has been a big project.
“I really don't know why it is that all of us are so committed to the sea, except I think it's because in addition to the fact that the sea changes, and the light changes, and ships change, it's because we all came from the sea. And it is an interesting biological fact that all of us have in our veins the exact same percentage of salt in our blood that exists in the ocean, and, therefore, we have salt in our blood, in our sweat, in our tears. We are tied to the ocean. And when we go back to the sea - whether it is to sail or to watch it - we are going back from whence we came.
Gene Armstrong
Interestingly, this one doesn't have a paddle wheel as such, just a paddle. Mounting it horizontally good actually help me though as I could use a 1 1/2" T and then make the new horizontal pipe also act as the reducer avoiding so many joins. Leave it with me!
Yeah paddle not paddle wheel. The thought about the Sea was from JFK.
Finally another great video! Haven’t even watched it yet and know it’ll be good!
Best investment I have made for doing heat shrink and soldering. In my boat or under car dashboards and engine bays. Weller Portasol. Doesn't burn the heat shrink easy to control the heat and no wires to screw with. Also, a can of butane is cheap and it lasts forever.
Fantastic project! Great Vids. Thanks :) We call them split lock washers here in Northern Illinois USA
Glad you liked it!
It is worth checking the impedance of your dashboard + and - feeds back to the battery terminals. A dodgy ground could give you some of the problems you are experiencing. You can extend the probes of your DVM with a length of wire right back to the battery. One of the issues with measuring voltage with a DVM, is that they have an input impedance of many mega ohms, you can have a few kilo ohms in a ground or supply line and not measure a voltage drop at the far end. At least that will eliminate one possible cause. Check the output voltage of the Alternator, as I’m sure that it pushing 10A into your battery, not the other way round as your dash gauge is suggesting.
A DC clamp meter is also very useful for fault finding. The UNI-T UT210E is about £35 and works very well.
I’m sure you’ll get this fixed fairly quickly. Good luck. Nick.
The chickens are a genius Eddie programming replacement. Big fan.
@@cmmartti He's fine as far as I know. Chickens are just more interesting (and I'm a dog person).
Hey Stu. Voltage drops across switches are negligible, 5v is way too high something is going on with that switch. As for the tachometer, things get complicated. If your tach is 12v and your alternator is 24 you going to have an issue. I had a similar problem with my boat when I decided to change the tach with a cheap eBay one. The output of W signal was way too high and “noisy” blowing the signal input of the tach. I only discovered this after i hooked up an oscilloscope to the W output. I ended up having to build a low pass conditioning circuit to limit the voltage pulse and filter out the noise. Plugged in a new second tach and it worked first time. You will also have to adjust the expected pulse ratio according to your pulley ratio to get the correct rpm reading. Keep up the good work.
I also have this tachometer and the manufacturer advises it's suitable for 12-24 volts.
My father taught me that when working on cars.....pretty much anything really but cars specifically.... the simplest fix is usually the correct one. Guys who can't get their cars to idle smoothly start fiddling with the idle mixture screw, then move to jets, then move to fuel pumps then check for vacuum leaks. They almost NEVER check the fuel filter. Especially in older cars there is usually a brass screen in the fuel line directly mounted to the inlet bowl on the Carb. that gets clogged occasionally and has to be cleaned out. Almost no one checks that. They spend hours climbing all over the car from engine to fuel tank messing with everything when 9 times out of ten it's that stupid little brass screen at the Carb.
Nice one Stu,not sure about a camera in the pigeons bedroom though LOL. Pigeons on the boat too now how very posh. Stay safe in these dark times and thanks for the extra uploads,take care.
It is a bit pervy. ;) You take care too.
Stu: "now.. I am going to... cut the blue wire..."
Me: braces for explosion
I have spent too much time on Netflix already, right?
Good to see you and Renko and the Clucks!
That must get top comment for the day mate. I was thinking the exact same thing.
Cracked me up completely.
Thought the same thing... I think Benny Hill did a WW2 UXB (unexploded bomb) skit running through the procedure reaches “cut the blue wire” massive explosion...... turns the page “before cutting the blue wire........”
First thing I thought of too!
th-cam.com/video/nXoPEmh39ls/w-d-xo.html
I hope all the US viewer appreciate you calling the earth wire a ‘ground’ for their benefit
If it helps I call it "earth" in house electrical. Hard to call it earth when working on auto's, been a "ground" wire all my life! But it is cool to hear all the other terminology for common objects!
Or earth ground on water😁👍
Its neither ground or earth but negative :) if you want to be technical, a ground or earth is a protective / safety conductor not normally used to carry current
Nick Keur in a boat, doesn’t stray current flow to the water, then earth? I am actually asking not trying to be smarty.
@@leebougneit5205 There shouldn't be any stray current ;) If there is then a problem exists, hence "not normally used to carry current" the current flows back to the battery through the negative, there should then be a bond between battery negative and the boats earth/ground plate, You do not want to use a steel (or even more so aluminium) boats hull at the return path. A car is different as the chassis isn't bonded to ground and auto makers are cheap, saves wire to use the chassis as the negative return path. On fuel tankers the chassis cannot be used as a return path, all grounds must be isolated from the chassis(fun fact for the day}
Lot's of good progress on the boat today. It looks like poor Daffy needs a lower branch so she doesn't have to jump so high to get up to the roost.
Stu it! I'm very excited to see your first cruise. Keep safe!
Oh yes! spring washers are far more fashionable than a boring flat washer! you're always on the lead end of fashion Stu! I can't think of another scientific method to determine the correct size of an engine room either...logic well applied once again. Sound advice that hands in the pocket thing, and i'm eager to see how this electrics thing unfolds...there's an area i need education in. Oh, and D Squad surveillance system! they're gonna complain to their union! Thanks for sharing once again!!
Thanks mate. Yes, I'm sure D Squad have a privacy clause in their contract.
Determining the appropriate size of a boat by the ability to drink a beer in the engine bay; this fan approves. :)
Getting close to seeing it moving! I hope we get to follow you on lots of adventures in Renko.
Thanks mate, plenty of adventures to come!
Thanks for posting these videos...very entertaining!
In Australia do you have to turn the cutter the other way ?
not if you're left handed
This has all the looks of a bad ground somewhere. Double check if anything might be insulated by paint. If you have the capability I'd look into making a Deutsch plugs on the end of wire coming from the Wheelhouse and making a custom harness for your engine. Easy for me to say as I have all the stuff at work. :)
Keep up the good work, you're doing great.
The negative (-) reading on the amp meter is because the alternator is charging the batteries...you set the system up to read output (usage) as positive and input (charge) as negative.
Don't forget that if you need to charge your batteries you can do so with your generator...they usually have an additional DC output of around 8 amps for that purpose.
Howdy to the D-Squad Girls!
Their reactions to the camera is just too funny :)
See if you can find a tube of 'Di-electric Grease'. I always squeezed a bit into a crimp fitting before inserting the wire and never had a problem with corrosion at the exposed terminals even after years at sea...The stuff is relatively cheap, as you only use a small dab for each butt or terminal fitting. Once crimped, the wire and fitting will be in complete contact, the grease will only fill the voids and keep out moisture...I don't know if you would think it 'necessary', but the use of spring loaded idler pulleys take up any stretch or wear on your belts, saving you having to keep checking your new belts as they 'wear in', or your old belts as they just 'wear'. I had to do weekly adjustments on the six drive belts that coupled a 200 HP motor to the drive on a three axis lathe. I finally made up a bank of six spring loaded rollers running on the back or each belt and didn't have to adjust it for a whole year...Less time in the bilge is more time diving on wrecks...
Your negative amp reading could be your negative from the alternator being wired direct to the battery and not to the shunt on the other side of the battery, I have seen it before
On our 8v71, at idle it could turn slow enough to stop the alternator from charging. We put a momentary switch to send 12v from the battery to the exciter circuit to get it charging again once the rpms were up. Otherwise it would require a bigger engine pulley or smaller alternator pulley.
Measuring voltage drops can be helpful, but also knowing the current flow of a circuit is very beneficial for troubleshooting. It would be good if you could beg, borrow, steal, or buy a clamp on amp meter that measures DC amps (usually has a hall effect sensor in it). This will not only tell you the amount of current flow, but also the direction the current is flowing in the wire. You probably already know this, but at the risk of sounding obvious, that current meter on the dash is sensitive to the current direction, so if you have the 'in' and 'out' wired backward in the circuit for some reason, you will see the minus when it's really positive..
Oh, love the sound of that diesel engine! Good luck with your electrical problems.
For sure, last time Leon was here he brought his clamp on amp meter and it was very helpful.
Hi stu, don't know how other people would fault check, but i would start engine and check first for positive or negative charge coming from alternator, after that I would disconnect all gauges and reconnect one at a time, just in case one is shorted internally, it seems like the alternator is at fault, if the alternator was working correctly the light should be out, so you either have a short to ground on the loom or a short in the alternator itself, hope this mail finds you well, hope my logic is correct on the fault, thanks for the excellent content, best wishes
great vid stu hand in pockets top of the pops my motorbike brokedown stripped the carb scratched my head , no fuel that was many years ago hands in pockets great info i agree with Michael canto ,thanks stu
...getting closer to the deep every day, great vid ...keep safe..
Stu, the AC Delco alternators here in the US have 2 wires. One is for the charge light and the second is a switched 12 positive terminal. The switched 12 volt is what indicates system voltage to the regulator. The tach signal should read in a/c current on a standard multimeter.
You know, it's just occurred to me that I'm powering the tachomoter from 12v to read a 24v alternator. I wonder if that is an issue. It's a dual voltage alternator so I'll change it over today.
@@DangarMarine I listened to you're video at work a second time and realized you said it has a German alternator. What kind and model is it? I had assumed that since it is a GM Detroit engine, that it would have GM parts. My mistake, but I do know that a lot of alternators are setup that way. Not just the GM ones.
Love that sound of the Detroit
Thank you so much for sharing more than typically.