trim sender switch install

[whiskeyRichard]

I am working on installing my new trim sender and limit switch. They are complete new install including the wires going back through the transom....yes, that was fun.

When I first started I had the key turned to the on position and the switch was disconnected....the gauge read pinned at the drive up position. When I plugged in the new switch, the gauge went to reading that the drive was all the way down, which it was.

After raising and lowering it a few times (guage working properly), I went to the back of the boat to adjust it some. Now the gauge is just pinned in the up position as it was when the gauge was not plugged in. I did double check my wires to make sure they are still connected....and as far as I can tell, there are no fuses in this system.

My boat is a 1980 SKV day cruiser with a mercruiser 260.

Any troubleshooting advice is appreciated.

Thanks,
wR

 

[tpenfield]

Put the outdrive in a mid-position and then disconnect the corresponding wires for the sender inside the engine bay and check the resistance between the 2 wires that come through the transom with an ohm meter

 

[alldodge]

Maybe have the trim limit switch wires swapped for the trim gauge sender wires?

 

[whiskeyRichard]

With the trim sender switch removed from the bell housing and with its index marks aligned the wires in the engine compartment reads 0.00 resistance.

I double checked and I did not switch the wires for the trim limit and trim sender.

I also checked the wires going back to the gauges for resistance and they read 0.03.

Thanks for the help,
wR

 

[harringtondav]

I changed my position and limit senders last winter. I also had a bad position gage reading. Apparently I repositioned the new position sender one spline tooth off. If the sender's contact fall off the potentiometer coil on either trim extreme, the gage receives zero voltage. Pegged one way or the other, I can't remember. Up I think.

By trial and error, I pulled the position sender, rotated the splined shaft until it gave a gage reading at mid trim point. Then I trimmed my drive to match. I plugged the sender back into the pivot pin spline and rotated it until I could get the retaining screws into the tapped holes. I was able to get it adjusted into range.

Last summer when operating I noticed my gage intermittently pegged at full up when I was trimmed full down/in under power. It read OK when idling or no wake. When I first adjusted the gage I was on my driveway, and couldn't trim full down. Apparently I was on the ragged edge of the contact falling off the pot. coil. When under power my drive pushed in enough to cause the sender to change position. So on my lift I trimmed full down, pulled and set the sender to read full down on the gage, buttoned it up and tweaked the adjustment. All good now.

I believe I had to go through the same gyrations to get my trim limit switch to work.

 

[alldodge]

The gauge sender connects to Brown/White going to gauge and Black going to ground.

With some long jumper wires, connect meter leads to sender wires. Align marks on sender and slowly rotate the sender and see if the resistance increases/decreases as it is turned. If does, then sender is working, and now adjust sender for mid range resistance and install on drive.

Reconnect wires to boat and the gauge should be somewhere in the middle. If its not check power and ground leads going to gauge

 

[whiskeyRichard]

I got sidetracked doing something else on the boat and just got back to this.

Thanks for the information.

I checked as you said and the sender appears to be working.

I noticed that when the key is in the 'on' position, there is voltage at the wires going back to the gauge. It read just over 9 volts. Is there supposed to be voltage there?

Still no indicator on the gauge that it is connected to the sender. Still just pinned at the top of its range.

Does the sender need to be installed on the gimbal ring to function properly or should I be able to hold it in my hand and watch the gauge move while I manually turn the knob on the sender?

Thanks,
wR

 

[achris]

... should I be able to hold it in my hand and watch the gauge move while I manually turn the knob on the sender?

Yes.

 

[alldodge]

I noticed that when the key is in the 'on' position, there is voltage at the wires going back to the gauge. It read just over 9 volts. Is there supposed to be voltage there?

The gauge should have 12V on purple. ground on black, variable voltage on brown.white. Should see 12V with meter on purple and black