Sudbury switches

[mikeandanne]

Has anyone replaced their 12 volt main shut- offs and if so what with--- I think one of mine does not shut off properly--- stbd engine still powered up when it is off--- also would it be possible for these old switches to go bad and create a voltage drop as I just put three new batteries and I tested the volts at the back of the gauges and got 1.5 to 2 volts less than batteries--- they are the original Sudbury,maybe they can be rebuilt ??? ---Mike

[comodave]

I am going to replace my battery switches with a Blue Sea panel that will support 3 banks and charge them automatically when the engines are running and separate the banks when the engines are shut down. As to the switch dropping voltage, I suppose it is possible, but I would check the voltage on both sides of the switch to see if it is the switch or the wiring to the switch that is causing the voltage drop. If the battery cables are undersized, they will cause a voltage drop. When our boats were built, they did not use as much electronics and accessories so lower voltages were not as important. I will be using 0000 battery cable when I rewire mine, particularly since I have a bunch of 0000 cable left over from my last boat

[mikeandanne]

I will try to take panel apart this weekend to get at the back of these switches--- not sure how though,looks like maybe the switch handles come off first I hope--- that sure is one overwhelming mass of wire back there--- I am much more comfortable with mechanical stuff----Mike

[Paul]

Mike,

I believe that I may still have the original Sudbury switch that I removed from my boat a few years back. If you're interested, I'll see if I can find it and its yours.



I replaced it with a pair Blue Seas M series switch pictured below, one for each bank. These switches are small and can carry allot of current. I think that they would be a good choice for a direct replacement of your existing Sudbury switches. Swapping them out would require removing the leads from the 2 lugs on the existing switches and transferring them over to the new ones as well as a new hole pattern over the existing one on the panel. http://www.bluesea.com/products/categor ... s/m-Series

[mikeandanne]

Paul thanks for that---- I like that installation, it looks great , nice and clean, just what I would like---- once the old switches are out and can be inspected closely , the stbd one feels funky when it is operated ,I think the blue seas are the way to go----- what amp rating did you go with---- no hurry for me as the alternators have to be taken in to get checked, not sure if they are internal regulated as I cannot find a regulator and it looks like the alt charge feed goes to main engine plug then to sudbury batt switch--- I would like nothing better than to rip out all the old stuff and put new updated but have to draw the line somewhere dollar wise--- Mike