246CCC console/dash re-wiring

[Georgie]

Ok guys....starting to plan my console wiring overhaul project and wanted to solicit a few opinions.  My current console dash layout is obsolete, but the panel is in good shape and in the spirit of my "traditional" restoration plan I want to update it without completely re-inventing it.  Pic of current condition below:



Currently the dash has two tachs and two trim gauges with no more space for additional gauges from what i can tell.  At the very least I want to replace the tachs with new gauges (not necessarily "state of the art") but new old stock is fine, and remove the trim gauges so I can install matching fuel and battery gauges.  I also want to replace the existing lever switches and glass fuses but wasn't sure what to replace them with that wouldn't require me to completely overhaul the dash layout.  To simplify things I've been browsing E-bay and looking for existing wired dash panels so I don't completely blow my "lack of" budget and spend a million hours buying all the parts and piecing it together myself.   Most importantly, I want the finished wiring to be sound, clean, reliable, easy to service if necessary, and properly sized for all existing circuitry as well as conceivable add-ons.  Found the SeaPro dash below and think it might be a great option given the features it has and my goals:






It has Teleflex Amega series tach, speedo, fuel and battery gauges, and enough lever switches with boots and push-to-reset breakers to fill all 7 of the existing openings on my dash panel plus one spare.  Additional tachometers of this series gauge are available for about $60 to accommodate my twin engine setup.  I would plan to pair this wiring with blue seas 5026 or 5029 12-circuit fuse box depending on where I want my negative/ground bus to be located.

My big question is whether or not anyone can thing of any MUST-DO's or DO-NOT's, any lessons learned, or any design suggestions that I should take into account as I move forward re-wiring the console (and ultimately the rest of the boat).

Thanks in advance, and Merry Christmas Eve to all!! :santa:

[flounderpounder225]

Ryan
Your on the right track, the press to reset  breakers are good, and the newer booted toggle switches will work fine if you are keeping with the traditional look, the lighted rocker switches are nice, but would require more mod to the dash panel.  One thing I would do, is call The Marine Connection in ft. Pierce http://themarineconnection.net/Gauges.html and find out how much they are charging for the switches, breakers and gauges you are looking for.  I think, standard tachs are around 35$ booted switches $7ish and breakers $5ish.  They are very helpful, will ship, or you could run up there, it's a great place to spend some time, especially if you are going into a refurb, you could save a bunch of time and money getting a lot of the stuff you will be needing all in one place.  If you contact them, tell them you are a member of the classic aqua sport forum/club, we are beginning to get a presence in there because of the business we have done, I was in there Saturday morning talking with Ronnie the owner and he knew me from previous visits, and the aqua sport reference.
Marc

[seabob4]

Ryan,
There are a million ways to wire a console, many of them correct and sound in practice, even more a textbook case of what NOT to do!  I've re-wired probably 50 or so (as well as wiring hundreds of new consoles), I've seen pretty much the gamut of wiring jobs.

Obviously, the key to longevity is to use quality materials from the start, as well as sound installation practices.  Top quality marine rated stranded and tinned wire, adhesive-lined heat shrink terminals, that sort of thing.  Don't really think I'm telling you something you don't already know here.

One of the things I do with ALL re-wires is to get the components of the electrical system that the owner/user is going to most likely have to access in the future in a convenient place for him to work on or too perform any trouble-shooting.  Take for instance this 250 CCP, which, although it has a large console, it really doesn't have any real, workable room inside it.  So what I have done is gotten all the potential trouble spots all in one place, in a relatively easy position to access and deal with...



Some boats, because of the design of the console, totally open up the wiring locations and routing, and just naturally lend themselves to ease of access and future installs/trouble shooting.  This 23 Cape Horn I did is a perfect example...



Climb inside the console, sit down on a bucket, everything is right there in front of you.  So console design and access dictates quite a bit as to how to wire it, and what you can do with the wiring...

One thing I ABSOLUTELY do on all re-wires is install a ground bus aft, which just makings grounding all the aft components that much easier.  Single 8 GA to tie the fore and aft buses together, instead of running all separate grounds to one single bus forward...



Also makes TS'ing a lot easier when you need a ground aft to check voltage.  Most boats I work on these days have the batts under the console, so the ground terminal on the batt just simply isn't available without running a jumper...

Another thing that is an absolute must for me is getting rid of the in-line fuses off electronics units and stereos.  They are often buried amongst the wiring high overhead, in real PITA places to reach.  I cut them all out, extend the power leads, and fuse them at the fuse block...

I could go on and on...

Oh , my "partner in typing" Marc...

Merry Christmas Marc!!    

[Georgie]

Marc - great ideas.  I'm heading back to Ft. Lauderdale from Jax on wednesday. If I can get on the road early enough that would be a perfect time to visit MCL for the first time assuming they've reopened after the holiday.   Great place for price comparisons and brainstorming (as well as "buying") from what I've heard.  Just realized the terminals/connectors on the SeaPro panel are not waterproof heat shrink so I'd probably want to redo all the connectors anyway.  That makes it worth my while to price out some other panels or even the individual parts themselves a-la-carte.

Bob - This makes me sound foolish, but it didn't even dawn on me to locate all my switches, fuse boxes, etc. where they'd be easier to access.  Probably would've tried to locate them somewhere as "out of the way" as possible so I don't snag them with gear when tossing things inside the console.  The aft busbar was already part of my plan but I'll also need a console busbar since the batteries will be in the transom.  Better to get the BlueSea 5026 with neg bus, or 5029 without?  Was leaning towards 5029 considering it may be cleaner and simpler for me to install the bus and fusebox in different locations once I've determined the layout.  Is 8g sufficient for the run from splashwell batteries to console and transom busbar?  Also, any thoughts regarding the specific components in that seapro dash panel?

btw - I look at the artwork you posted and laugh at my ignorance....I have absolutely NO idea what several of those electrical components are, but I guess that's the product of having only owned/worked on small center consoles with minimal "frills" til now. So far, I'm anticipating only a 3 position battery switch, a busbar, and a fuse box.  Are there any other "must haves" that I should consider for a vessel this size? I don't plan to add radar or expensive electronics any time soon.

Thanks again guys. :rendeer:

[seabob4]

Ryan,
You have a good working knowledge of what you want to do.  I won't go into P/Ns with you (they bore me, sorry!), but I have certain "preferences" that I generally go by.  For instance, in electronics boxes, due to limited size, I go with the Blue Seas fuse block w/ ground bus, 6 gang.  What I did on that same 250 CCP, and what I do in most e-boxes...



Down in the helm, I'm going to have quite a bit more equipment to ground, yet I'll still need a fuse block to circuit protect the additional equipment that was not part of the original build, so there fore the breakers/fuses on the switch panel aren't sufficient.  So I use the plain Blue Seas fuse block with no ground bus, and use a separate ground bus, as you saw earlier.

8GA is more than sufficient to tie the fore and aft buses together.  Could probably get away with 10, but I like 8.  Remember, you are not going to be running all your chit at the same time, so 8 will more than get the job done without any appreciable voltage drop.


If you install all your electrical components properly, with the proper clamps and the tie-wrapped in the manor you see in my pics, you end up with a VERY stiff skeleton, yet can move easily with the inherrent vibrations and pounding of the boat, even in the heaviest of seas.  You can toss whatever you want into the consoles I wire, and whatever it is is NOT going to bother my wiring.  The key is to NOT constrain the mechanical connections such that they do not have the ability to move with the boat.

Finally, the reason I mount EVERYTHING of importance within easy reach of the owner or electrician.  Equipment WILL crap out on a boat.  Period.  Fuse blocks, regardless of the manufacturer, will corrode and eventually fail.  Batt switches fail (trust me, I had that occur), wire corrodes and fails.  So you want that stuff to be relatively easily accessable to replace when it comes time, and you also want it easily accessable to maintain that stuff!  Yearly or seasonal inspections comes to mind...

Chit's gonna break.  Be prepared so that when it does, you don't cuss yourself out because of where you located it...