Old wiring

Dec 29, 2012
148
Hunter 37 Jacksonville
I have an 86 legend 37. The forward nav lights were not working. I worked and worked. Finally ran a new set of wires and all is well. Now the bilge pump was not working. Traced and debugged. The wire only shows 1 volt from panel.

So the question is: Do wires loose their connectivity over time? Or am I just pointing to the wrong solution/problem?

Thanks in advance.

Dave
 
Sep 15, 2009
6,243
S2 9.2a Fairhope Al
I have an 86 legend 37. The forward nav lights were not working. I worked and worked. Finally ran a new set of wires and all is well. Now the bilge pump was not working. Traced and debugged. The wire only shows 1 volt from panel.

So the question is: Do wires loose their connectivity over time? Or am I just pointing to the wrong solution/problem?

Thanks in advance.

Dave
don't know what kind of wire you have but back when your boat was built a lot of the manufacturers used none tinned wire and over time they become corroded inside and break down ...you can bet that the wire in question is green and black in the copper ...so you may need to replace it to get back in good working order....i see you are in Jacksonville so you may want to check out Genuinedealz in Brunswick Ga for your wire needs...i have no connection with them but am a happy customer........he supplied all my wire to rewire my 30 ft boat and his response time is fantastic usually the next day
 

Rick D

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Jun 14, 2008
7,188
Hunter Legend 40.5 Shoreline Marina Long Beach CA
Similar

My 1994 Legend 40.5 has bad nav light wiring. I found that there is good tinned wire up to the pulpit but the wire inside is not. I suspect the jobber who built the pulpit ran the wire. Regardless, after 20 years of living in a tough environment, I should hardly complain that the wire is bad.
 
Jun 14, 2011
76
Hunter 37.5 Legend 1993 TX
Copper wire itself doesn't "go bad". There are generally 2 possibilities:
1) Poor connection between the wire and a connector, due to corrosion.
2) Broken wire due to sharp turns and/or repeated stress at a single point.

You said you measured 1 volt, which implies there is some connectivity. So with no other details, I'd say it is a poor connection, either due to corrosion at a connector or a partially broken wire.
 
Dec 29, 2012
148
Hunter 37 Jacksonville
Copper wire itself doesn't "go bad". There are generally 2 possibilities:
1) Poor connection between the wire and a connector, due to corrosion.
2) Broken wire due to sharp turns and/or repeated stress at a single point.

You said you measured 1 volt, which implies there is some connectivity. So with no other details, I'd say it is a poor connection, either due to corrosion at a connector or a partially broken wire.
I had taken the connectors off. Was holding the multimeter probes directly on the wire. But there would have been connectors on the other ends.
 
Nov 26, 2012
2,315
Catalina 250 Bodega Bay CA
OK. load or no load the wires should not read 1 volt. Should probably replace these wires and connectors as well. Chief