MacGregorSailors.com

I just got back home last night with my new !! The trip back was fairly uneventful, I managed to dodge many of the area's terrible storms.

When I got home I naturally started playing around inside and I couldn't get any of the electronics to work other than the CB.

There is a stereo and of course plenty of lights but none of them work. I didn't have much time to investigate further but the fuses I did check all looked good.

The engine turns over and the part that raises and lowers the engine works so I know the battery is fine.

Is there some secret switch I am missing? The owners said that the boat electronics are stock.

Boats from factory don't even come with an OB. Just the hull and a main sail (pretty sure thats all) Anythign else would have been dealer installed.

eaglerocknerd wrote:When I got home I naturally started playing around inside and I couldn't get any of the electronics to work other than the CB.
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The owners said that the boat electronics are stock.

CB? I hope it's a marine VHF, and not a CB. And don't EVER say 'breaker breaker' or 'good buddy' on channel 16.

As to the electronics, the factory didn't put any electronics on the boat, AFAIK. Not even the tachometer, as the dealer installed the outboard.

You're going to have to invest in a multimeter, learn how to use it, and go hunting.

None of the electronics are stock. The only stock items are the lights. Everything else added by the dealer (like the motor) or the previous owners. Good idea to start with your fuse/breaker panel. Make sure the switches are on, if this does not work, then check the fuses. Of course, this assumes the items you are trying to power are wired to the panel.

What's your 20 Good Buddy?

Also if you have a dedicated starter battery and battery selector switch make sure the house battery is connected and or selected A/B ect.

Apologies for the incorrect reference.

It looked like a CB to me. :/ They sailed on the bay so I'd imagine its marine.

Anyway, what I was referring to were the lights primarily. The radio they installed and it looks to be just a car/boat type so my guess is that it runs off of the same circuits as the lights as they appear to be 12v as well.

What I found odd was that none of them work. Guess I will need to trace them all down.

Ah, the joys of owning a MacProject boat. Many of us started with a bare shell and added miles of wire and a variety of electronics - some of which we actually use. You have the additional pleasure of figuring out what someone else has done.

Good luck.

Look for a red rotary switch, usually near the battery, that says "A, B, A+B, O" or "1, 2, 1+2, 0". The switch is usually branded "Perko" or "Blue Heron". It's an owner-installed cutoff switch for isolating the battery from the electronics. It's common to wire the outboard directly to the battery so that it will work even with that switch off.

Otherwise, well, the stuff you have is relatively inexpensive to fix.

It may be that both the engine and VHF are directly wired (with fuses) to the battery and that there may a fuse between the battery and the main panel which has popped.

I had a similar issue once with my and it took me a while to find this "master" fuse which was located above the aft birth, near the 's steering mechanism.

I used to have an , but don't remember the wiring setup. As mentioned, there could be a number of variations, all depending on the installation. Note that the panel switches do light up, at least they are supposed to when you switch them on.

Congrats on the new boat!

OK. I found the wiring "glob" and traced everything back to the panel.

I got the interior lights working. It was a matter of corrosion and a spade clip had fallen off.

The cd player/radio must just be bad because it is getting power but doesn't work. No biggie there.

The only odd thing is that there doesn't seem to be any wire(s) running to the front and rear running lights or to the mast light.
The fuse panel seems to be the stock one that MacGregor's manual mentions but other than the wire running out to the interior lights there is nothing else leaving that fuse panel.

I suppose this may have been an oversight by the PO but I thought those things were required... Where would I begin looking inside for these wires? Do they run under any particular seats or panels?

They don't seem to be anywhere around the galley where all the other wiring is.

That's pretty strange. I don't know if the Colregs specifically say you have to have nav lights installed (I don't think they do), but if you're out after sunset, you have to have them (sunset to sunrise when under way). They would have been installed and wired at the factory. Or should have been.

There's no deck connection for the masthead (steaming) light on the front of the mast?

From the Colregs:

PART C - LIGHTS AND SHAPES

Rule 20 - Application

(a) Rules in this part shall be complied with in all weathers.

(b) The Rules concerning lights shall be complied with from sunset to sunrise, and during such times no other lights shall be exhibited, except such lights which cannot be mistaken for the lights specified in these Rules or do not impair their visibility or distinctive character, or interfere with the keeping of a proper look-out.

(c) The lights prescribed by these Rules shall, if carried, also be exhibited from sunrise to sunset in restricted visibility and may be exhibited in all other circumstances when it is deemed necessary.

(d) The Rules concerning shapes shall be complied with by day.

(e) The lights and shapes specified in these Rules shall comply with the provisions of Annex I [to these Regulations | of these Rules].

Edit: I've heard, but can't find written in any rules, that if lights are there, they have to work. Not something to worry about until you're boarded by the harbor police or CG, but obviously it's in your best interest to get them working. Bad weather can pop up any time, and that constitutes restricted visibility (sub-paragraph c). And you never know when you'll get back later than planned. And it always seems to take longer to get where you're going than you think, especially under sail.

mastreb wrote:Look for a red rotary switch, usually near the battery, that says "A, B, A+B, O"

No, you're thinking of the blood transfusion switch next to the battery switch, for when you peel your scalp off on the hatch cover, coming up the companionway.

DaveC426913 wrote:

mastreb wrote:Look for a red rotary switch, usually near the battery, that says "A, B, A+B, O"

No, you're thinking of the blood transfusion switch next to the battery switch, for when you peel your scalp off on the hatch cover, coming up the companionway.