SoCal Jet Boats

Tech Talk => Engine Mechanical / Electrical => Topic started by: Vegas on July 17, 2012, 07:49:32 PM

Title: Building boat wiring harness
Post by: Vegas on July 17, 2012, 07:49:32 PM
So I just got my new auto meter marine gauges for my boat, and while I am at it I am going to re-do the original 1976 wiring harness.  I have a couple questions though, first, how should I go about rewiring the original ammeter for the new volt meter?  If I am going to be redoing the harness, can't I just delete that wiring altogether?  Second, would the new gauges be compatible with all of my old senders? My old gauges are basically junk, and the only gauge that I hooked up was the fuel gauge, and my old one read 1/4 tank while the auto meter is barely above empty.  Is there a way to adjust them?  I am fairly certain that there is more gas than that in the tank.  I appreciate all the help I can get on this!  Thanks!!
Title: Building boat wiring harness
Post by: weezy950 on July 17, 2012, 09:55:27 PM
I did this project not too long ago myself.. Very tedious work n took my time (about 3 days lol) but ya i would def recomend replacing all ur sending units while ur at it. And just rip out all ur wiring and do it right.. Dont skimp n shortcut on anything electrical!
Title: Re: Building boat wiring harness
Post by: GT Jets on July 17, 2012, 10:25:50 PM
Throw the ammeter into your neighbors back yard.... :sly:

The voltage drop they cause is hurting everything on your boat including ignition performance.

You can't buy the wire for what these cost....   http://bpi.ebasicpower.com/c/ALL6I/Instrument%20Panel%20Harnesses (http://bpi.ebasicpower.com/c/ALL6I/Instrument%20Panel%20Harnesses)   I have used these in every build to date. Nice quality. The one I have for my Carrera is jacketed and a bit nicer than the last two I got, I got it from a buddy in the Northwest...If memory serves (rarely does) it was under $80. It is about 4' too long, so it's pretty universal.
Title: Re: Building boat wiring harness
Post by: Vegas on July 18, 2012, 07:03:18 PM
Awesome!  Thanks for the replies everyone!  GT, are you referring to the harnesses that they have listed that all begin with the part number MAR6117?  If so, that is a damn good deal, and I was expecting to pay around that just for the supplies to build my own.  That may be a better route for me to go.  As far as the senders, I will look in to replacing them, so everything from the sender to the gauges is new, and accurate.  That may be my best bet.  I will probably pull the fuel sender and see what it looks like, and see if I can play with the float on it and make the gauge respond to it.  Thanks for the help again!
Title: Re: Building boat wiring harness
Post by: GT Jets on July 18, 2012, 09:48:01 PM
Awesome!  Thanks for the replies everyone!  GT, are you referring to the harnesses that they have listed that all begin with the part number MAR6117?  If so, that is a damn good deal, and I was expecting to pay around that just for the supplies to build my own.  That may be a better route for me to go.  As far as the senders, I will look in to replacing them, so everything from the sender to the gauges is new, and accurate.  That may be my best bet.  I will probably pull the fuel sender and see what it looks like, and see if I can play with the float on it and make the gauge respond to it.  Thanks for the help again!

They make numerous different kits, so it's best to really research what you need and make the decision based on your requirements...

And yes, you would be hard pressed to even purchase the materials for what these cost and the quality is a solid 9 of 10 on my scale...

GT
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