Looking for electrical wiring diagrams for a 1979 C30?

Aug 15, 2012
7
Catalina 27 Dinner Bay on Mayne Island
I am about to embark on rewiring our Catalina 30 and have discovered a number of wiring anomalies. I would appreciate finding recent C30 wiring diagrams to use as a guide when I take this on... Thanks in advance -- JohnG
 
Feb 26, 2004
22,759
Catalina 34 224 Maple Bay, BC, Canada
What part of the wiring? Panel...alternator to batteries...cockpit panel...???

Have you done a Google search on Catalina 30 wiring/electrical?

There are three or four C30 'sites that have the info you are looking for.

There are also a bunch of great C30 skippers here who have done extensive electrical upgrades on their boats who should be able to chime in.
 
Dec 28, 2010
462
Catalina 380 san pedro
First off...the engine wiring diagram will be found in the particular engine manual. The Catalina wiring diagram for the boat is found in the owners manual and to put it bluntly....it is less than satisfactory. A lot will depend on what mods have been done on your boat by previous owners and how it is equipped. Good luck and happy research.
 
Nov 7, 2012
678
1978 Catalina 30 Wilbur-by-the-Sea
We rewired everything on our boat, literally. Just saying. Not diagram, ripped out the old and put in all new except a few of the bigger battery cables, those we just re-terminated and rerouted as a PO had bodged them.
 
Jan 18, 2016
782
Catalina 387 Dana Point
Whatever diagram there was, is likely wrong due to whatever the P.O.s did to it.

One of the PO's of my boat rewired the engine wiring to remove the 'trailer plug.' That was a good thing. They left all the old wire, which was not a good thing. I removed all the dead wiring to simplify debugging. The PO had also run some real nice 120v stuff with romex and wirenuts. I removed that too.

I completely rewired my boat except for the wiring that's embedded in the deck for the lighting. New panels, battery fuses, light fixtures, all new 110 (with GFCIs even...), etc...

It really depends on what you wish to accomplish and how bad the current wiring is. A diagram is not all that helpful - it's basically common sense.
 
Oct 22, 2014
20,992
CAL 35 Cruiser #21 moored EVERETT WA
it's basically common sense
Very True Jeep... but in my experience common sense is disappearing. I heard on the radio this morning that some 20-30 something's needed to attend a class to learn how to "Properly Fold" a fitted sheet... And they were having trouble doing it after instruction... Maybe holding the class in a brew pub may have contributed to their challenges...

But no diagram is not a stopping point as you indicate. Maynestay... Look on line for ideas. Get a good voltmeter and flashlight.... Maybe some beer, a tablet of paper and pencil. Start with the nearest wire and trace where it goes recording your discovery. Having a friend to discuss these events and share the beer is what all the fun is with boats.
 
Jan 18, 2016
782
Catalina 387 Dana Point
Oh, and on a '78 I betcha I could tell you where every wire in the boat goes. ('cept for engine if you have a diesel since I've got the A4)

There's not much from the factory other than engine. Just the engine and lights. Then you get to whatever was added later.