B28 - wiring diagram

[Wingnut]

I know I'm asking for hen's teeth here but does anyone have a wiring diagram for a mid 70's B28?

I have no running lights and am currently stumped as to why. I have juice at the fuse but nothing at the bulbs. I ran out of time to fully inspect / trouble shoot the switch but it is my main suspect at this point.

I spent a few hours removing all sorts of old stuff that had accumulated over the years. Its amazing what was under that helm!

Open to suggestions!

Thanks,

JD

[MarkD]

Wingnut:

I saw the pictures of your B28. Looks good. Where are you keeping her in Mass? I have all of the wiring diagrams for my 1988 B28. Not sure if they will help but let me know if you think so. And, on your leaking windows dilemna, I have a snap shade for the front widnshield and that keeps any leakage out (on mine, at least).

Mark (203)856-1757

[Skipper Dick]

Wingnut,

I have an 83 diagram some where on my computer if you think it might help. I'd bypass the switch and then check the lead at the other end. I've found deteriorated wires that have broken in the casing and replaced them with marine grade wiring. Check the ground for continuity if the hot lead is hot after bypass if the bypass doesn't work. Even check to see that the wire hasn't corroded at a butt connection. It shouldn't be too hard to find if you can fallow the wires.

Bad wires are such a problem on older boats that I've made a bypass wire with aligator clips just for that reason.

Dick

[Ed Curry]

I have 13 pages of wiring schematics from the 1973 28 manual all scanned and ready to go. Just need an address to sent it to.

[Wingnut]

Dick, Ed and Mark,

Thanks so much for the helpful suggestions and offers! You guys are amazing. I love this site!

Mark,

The boat was in Haverhill, MA and is now in Rock Hall, MD! I had it shipped two weeks ago.

The boat has a new 160 gallon aluminum tank as of 2007 and more or less new (2004) 300 HP Crusaders with about 240 hours. Much of the really big stuff is done. So I'm excited! I am currently fixing the loose ends and getting to all the annual maintenance.

Thanks again,

JD

[Leigh]

JD: I have a complete B28 Owners Manual with what looks like the original factory wiring diagrams. My boat is an '85, but the date on the prints in the manual date back to '69. I'll e-mail it to you. My contact info is LHSavage@BurketSavage.com. Regards, Leigh

[HilaryS]

I'm looking for wiring diagrams and any other manuals for my mid 70s B28.

[Yannis]

Hilary,

Here's a short display of the many pics during my b28 complete rewiring that took place last year.
I started off by wanting to remedy a pump issue, and little by little, wire by wire, we removed all the boat's cables. You simply CANNOT imagine what 40 years of trial and error as well as incompetence can surprise you with.
Don't panic; a complete rewiring takes about a week and does not cost more that a few separate cable changes. I calculated 100 meters of new wire put in.
Good luck.



In this first pic you can see what was taken out !



And from here on you can see the progress as it occured. Note my electrician inside the fb compartment...

[Bruce]

In 30 years of boat electrical work, only a handful of times have I ever needed a wiring diagram. And then only if I suspected a break in the wire or it changed color along the way.

Less than 1% of the time it would be a cut wire. The other would be 70% a bad ground, the other a bad feed.

A couple of simple procedures can solve the issue.

Using a test meter make sure you are sending power out to the lights past the switch at the switch on the load(lites) side.
If you are not then check, feed side of switch, if power, bad switch. If no power check fuse, breaker and your connection back to the main power +12. ie a buss bar or battery.

If you have power at the load side of the switch, then check at the lite. If no power individually check both the ground and hot separately using a known good connection. It can be as simple as running a wire from the battery ground to check the hot side of the lite socket and switch it to hot side of battery to check the ground side of the socket.

If either one of these gets you power then check either the connectors at the socket leads for corrosion or a break, or back where they tie into their prospective connections like a buss bar.

If you measure power at the socket but when you put a bulb in and the power goes away then your looking at a corrosion spot at a connection. The corrosion spot has enough of a connection to show voltage but when you add a load(amps) that connection opens and no voltage.

A note on older copper non tinned(anti corrosion coating) wire. All wire can act like a wick and moisture can travel back as much as several inches under the insulation. If you cut and strip the wire to install a new connector look at the bare wire carefully. One clean the discoloration off the wire before crimping a new lug. That discoloration can act as an insulator. Two is when you look at the wire it should be stiff and not brittle. If when you touch the stripped end and wires just seem to break off, you have corrosion and you have to get past that by removing more wire till you get to good wire.

[Navatech]

In 30 years of boat electrical work

Bruce, what are you thoughts on leaving a bit of extra wire coiled up at the end (when rewiring) so as to allow for future cutting?!...

[williamcash]

I rewired my 31 last year, used over 4 large rolls of wire, don't know the exact lenth though. Your wiring looks nice and neat.

WC

[Bruce]

Bruce, what are you thoughts on leaving a bit of extra wire coiled up at the end (when rewiring) so as to allow for future cutting?!...

If your using tinned wire with tinned lugs that incorporate heat shrink, no need to leave extra wire. There always seems to be enough slack for at least one lug replacement.

[Ed Curry]

I have the manual for a 1973 28 fbc. Send me an email address and I'll send the scanned pages. The wiring is pretty robust throughout these boats and as Bruce said the problem is rarely in the middle of the wire run. If the wiring s a mess after 40 years of fixes at least these schematics will give you an idea of how the wiring was supposed to be.

Leaving extra wire at the termination point for future repairs leaves me thinking you're not confident your repair will last. The better reason would be for a drip loop or so there is no undue strain on the connection. Sometimes the repair location is a bitch and the extra length of wire allows you to work in a more convenient location. I'll never admit to leaving something extra for future repair. It does come in handy though!

[Hyena Love]

I can relate to being in the "hole" in the flybridge of a B28. More than once, I got in there and thought I was trapped. Fortunately, I have not had to cut my way out yet. Nevertheless, I no longer go in there without a spotter.

What I really need is a more subservient wife or smaller friends. Maybe a well trained monkey.

[Yannis]

Ed,

If it's really no trouble to you, I'd appreciate your sending me those scanned docs.
I wish to compare what I've done to what Napier and Dick had in mind...Thanks.

yet@otenet dot gr

[Yannis]

Hyena,

There is absolutely no way I can fit in there; I'm 6'2" and 200 lbs and my shoulders just can't go past the opening.
I'm seriously thinking to enlarge that opening, at least the one on the port side that you can reach more easily (the stb one is blocked by the seat anyway) so that I can fit through if need be, in the future. A trained monkey, though, is something I should also consider ! Trained in cocktail making too, so us to minimize the ups and downs...

[Charlie J]

In 30 years of boat electrical work, only a handful of times have I ever needed a wiring diagram. And then only if I suspected a break in the wire or it changed color along the way.

Less than 1% of the time it would be a cut wire. The other would be 70% a bad ground, the other a bad feed.

A couple of simple procedures can solve the issue.

Using a test meter make sure you are sending power out to the lights past the switch at the switch on the load(lites) side.
If you are not then check, feed side of switch, if power, bad switch. If no power check fuse, breaker and your connection back to the main power +12. ie a buss bar or battery.

If you have power at the load side of the switch, then check at the lite. If no power individually check both the ground and hot separately using a known good connection. It can be as simple as running a wire from the battery ground to check the hot side of the lite socket and switch it to hot side of battery to check the ground side of the socket.

If either one of these gets you power then check either the connectors at the socket leads for corrosion or a break, or back where they tie into their prospective connections like a buss bar.

If you measure power at the socket but when you put a bulb in and the power goes away then your looking at a corrosion spot at a connection. The corrosion spot has enough of a connection to show voltage but when you add a load(amps) that connection opens and no voltage.

A note on older copper non tinned(anti corrosion coating) wire. All wire can act like a wick and moisture can travel back as much as several inches under the insulation. If you cut and strip the wire to install a new connector look at the bare wire carefully. One clean the discoloration off the wire before crimping a new lug. That discoloration can act as an insulator. Two is when you look at the wire it should be stiff and not brittle. If when you touch the stripped end and wires just seem to break off, you have corrosion and you have to get past that by removing more wire till you get to good wire.

right on the money bruce

[JH_B28]

Ed,

If its not too much trouble, I would like a copy too. My email is: hdepfishingteam@gmail.com. Coincidently, I own a 73' and will be working with the wiring soon.

Thank you,


-G

[JH_B28]

Hilary,

Here's a short display of the many pics during my b28 complete rewiring that took place last year.
I started off by wanting to remedy a pump issue, and little by little, wire by wire, we removed all the boat's cables. You simply CANNOT imagine what 40 years of trial and error as well as incompetence can surprise you with.
Don't panic; a complete rewiring takes about a week and does not cost more that a few separate cable changes. I calculated 100 meters of new wire put in.
Good luck.

Yannis,

Thats some nice wiring ya got there. I am thinking of doing something just like that. My DC panel is currently in the wall next to the head door. It had a plastic box in the back to cover all the wiring but I don't like the idea of having 120V right next to me when i'm showering. I'm still deciding on whether to move it (lots of new wire) or make a better water tight cover.

-G

[Yannis]

JH,

You've got a '73 and you got a shower? I had to go through hell to create my own !

If you plan to change worn cables or make improvements in general, you will see that its easier to start from scratch.
In my case, we would start off with a black cable which would change into red along the run, and the person on the other side would see a blue one move ! I shouldn't describe the intermediate connections' quality and I can assure you that in the event of fire the insurance company would simply not cover you.
I was lucky to have a super competent electrician; oh, and by the way, we are running 220 volts here, a mistake can be fatal. Not that I use 220 much, as my solar installation is exactly what I was looking for.
Good luck.

[Ed Curry]

Ok guys, I found the file and I'll be sending emails tonight. If you don't get an email from me by 9 then I screwed up your address. Feel free to mock me.

Quick story about 120ac. I was hired to finish a job on an older boat. When I got to the marina I found out the guy who started the job got electrocuted removing a stereo. Young guy with a newborn, real tragedy. When I got under the helm I found the unprotected back of a lightswitch that someone installed into the shore power. It seems the guy crawled into this tight space and wiggled his arms up over the copper steering lines. At some point his arm hit the back of the lightswitch and he was trapped. They said they had to disconnect the power because the fuse never tripped. Moral of the story is be real careful with AC on boats.