R-21 EC Battery Cable Issue

[Rick & Karen]

Hi All,

Just discovered yesterday when inspecting the engine compartment that the long battery cable from the STBD side battery that connects to the battery switch in the cabin, had dipped down and been in contact with the prop shaft. The insulation has been torn away and some of the 6 gauge wire strands have been cut. There is plenty of slack in the cable so I am having an electrician come out this weekend and repair the damage with a heat shrink butt splice. I don't know if anyone else has had a problem with this, but I wanted to bring it to your attention so you could make your own inspection. A couple of cable ties should easily remedy things if caught early enough.

Aloha,

Rick

 

[dr. o]

Yup, I have a problem with that... The crimped butt connector adds an extra voltage drop on an already too-long, cable run and is a break in the insulating jacket that will allow corrosion...
If it twere me I would measure the shortest cable run that will fit, and figure out the size of the lugs, and make or have made a, single piece new cable... Keep the old cable and in a few years one of the shorter cable runs will need replacing and you can use one end of this cable for that... After you get the new cable home get a can of liquid tape and seal the lugs to prevent corrosion... Grease the mating surfaces of the lugs/post with Dow DC4 when installing...

denny-o
a really old industrial electronics tech who loves to fix things, but gets really, really, ornery if he has to fix it a second time...