1978 Terry Bass Boat-electrical problem

[chris151]

Ok, here it goes. I just finished restoring my '15 Terry Boat. Reinforced stringers, new decking, and applied marine grade carpet all by my lonesome self. I didn't touch the shotty looking electrical stuff. I bought boat this way a few years ago and haven't changed any electrical. Tough job, but the beers tasted good while working...lol. My problem is I put everything back together, hooked up batteries and now I'm not getting much of anything. I can hear and see the Solenoid clicking but no starter crank and no trimming ( The trim button clicks itself, but nothing). Would anyone have any ideas on a possible problem and solution. Or, would it be best for me to just rip the old wiring out and re-wire using a generic wiring daigram (would that be safe). Thanks for any advice on this.

Chris

 

[glenn property of pam]

Re: 1978 Terry Bass Boat-electrical problem

both starter and trim are power hungry so if you can hear the relays click on both i would check my battery connections and the other end of the cables. positive is on the motor one side of the solinoid (trim is proberly on same bolt). negative is on side of motor somewhere. new wiring in the boat will not fix anything on the controller to motor or battery to motor side (unless you are planning to replace some expensive parts)

 

[chris151]

Re: 1978 Terry Bass Boat-electrical problem

Thanks Petty Officer Glen. I was thinking the battery could be the problem, but was hoping something lose or maybe even a $10 dollar replacement. I have a good crank battery, but i don't think it's holding a charge when completely charged up long enough. I thought about doing a charge and then leaving a float charger on it just to keep it going. I think i'm better off just buying a another marine crank battery and not worrying about the little stuff. Just out of curiousity, would it make a difference on the trim working if I had manually lowered the trim (by turning manual screw to lower it) because it was not hooked up to battery to lower down? I don't won't that to be an issue either. I thank you for the help and was able to get the starter to turn the crank, but only had a little juice left in battery. Trim is just not doing anything yet. I will get a new battery and let you know if that fixes the problem. My wife is bugging me about not putting anymore money into boat, but gets onto me for us not being able to go fishing....lol. Keep you posted. Thanks again.

 

[Silvertip]

Re: 1978 Terry Bass Boat-electrical problem

If the battery cranks the engine it will run the trim. You are already on a budget so don't spend money until you PROVE you need to replace a part. Troubleshoot -- don't SHOTGUN and hope you hit something. I see the word "think" used alot in your post. That means you are guessing. If you don't have a test light or meter, I suggest you buy one and learn how to use it. Multi-testers can be obtained at any home improvement store for less than $15. If you own a boat, you need one.

 

[chris151]

Re: 1978 Terry Bass Boat-electrical problem

Shazam....I did check circuits with digital multimeter previously. All circuits were good. I changed out starter battery and replaced old one. The motor was starting just fine, but trim still did not work. I decided to open the top trim motor and found that the coil was full of water and looked pretty bad. Would drying it out and applying more oxidizing lube possibly fix or is this a lost cause that will have to be replaced all together? Thanks for the advice.

 

[NYBo]

Re: 1978 Terry Bass Boat-electrical problem

Even if it does come back to life, the motor will be on borrowed time. Replace it.

 

[chris151]

Re: 1978 Terry Bass Boat-electrical problem


Well, like I was advised, it was sure to just give out. I could have gotten it rebuilt $125, but found a new one on Ebay for $139. I attached pic of old and new trim motor. I do have a few technical questions though about the install of new trim motor. I hear a lot of folks say to use so many types of fluids to fill the reservoir with. should I just fill this sucker with hydrolic fluid or is there a specific fluid to use? Also, what are the exact directions to properly filling the trim motor and bleeding the air out? Thanks for the tips guys.

 

[Remedy911]

Re: 1978 Terry Bass Boat-electrical problem

Hey Chris, i've got a '77 Terry that i picked up from a neighbor about 6 months ago. It was sitting in his backyard for 5+ years without being used. I bugged him so much about it (for about a year), he ending up giving it to me !! After purchasing a battery for it and draining out gas and replacing with fresh gas, it started right up ! The only priority problems were that the steering was frozen ($200) and trim was bad ($200). The rest is minor and cosmetic stuff. Needs new seats, carpet, etc. From what i saw in your pics, your trim looks alot like mine. From researching, i believe Terry had 2 options/brands they were using. I think one was Calco and the other was Prestolite. Also, from your pics, it appears that you have the same color Terry as mine, the blue with the glitter in it. Do you have more pics ? I would like to see what it should look like. I also want to re-do the electrical