[Rhodes22-list] Inoperative motor lift

[The Rhodes 22 Email List]

Hi Bob in Fairfax

I agree with those who think it's most likely bad wires or bad connections. 

One subtle gotcha that got me once: a voltage reading can be deceiving. You
can have a nice high reading on meter but have a bad connection that, as
soon as it gets a real load with significant amps flowing, acts like an open
circuit. An incandescent bulb with two leads you can use in place of volt
meter leads will usually reveal this problem - volt meter says ok but bulb
won't light.

On tinned wire: Pure coincidence: Just happened to be re-arranging some old
Practical Sailor mags yesterday and my eye was caught by a discussion about
tinned wire for marine purposes. The PS official answer was that it was
mainly a gimmick dreamed up by Anchor to help sell their wire. It's not
necessary.

In same article, they said a good set of properly crimped heat shrink
terminals (even better with built in adhesive) is the best marine connection
- soldering is not required. For this you want a proper crimper  with
different spots for different size wires. Shouldn't let you disconnect from
crimping until a certain closure position is reached. Don't try to get away
with crimping with pliers - too much crimp can be as bad as too little. Once
crimped, test by trying fairly hard to pull apart - then apply heat gun to
shrink material and make sure it really shrinks and seals the connection. 

Got my crimpers at West Marine - just looked and no name????   But they're
well made and make little clicks when squeezed and will not release until
squeezed firmly shut. Should see notches for 3 wire sizes: 22-18, 16-14,
12-10. 

When I was doing a lot of this I got parts from genuinedealz.com   I used
them quite a few times and was always pleased with service and quality. They
make up custom cabling reasonably. Yeah I know dealz sounds sleazy - but
they're not. A lot cheaper than West Marine if you're buying in quantity.

Also a great idea to spray any open connections with a real corrosion
inhibitor - like Boshield T-9 or CRC Heavy duty corrosion protection. WD 40
may be ok but memory says other two were better. Pull plug connections apart
and spray there too, also battery switches, any screw terminals. 



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