'63 75Hp Johnson not Charging Battery

S

samuelcosmoschiff

Seaman Apprentice
Joined
Mar 19, 2013
Messages
31
Hey all... my name is Sam and I just bought an 18 foot Browning bowrider with a 75 horse Johnson, model V4al-15e. My first boat! Hoping someone here can help me out with a problem I'm having.

The engine runs great but it won't charge the battery. The previous owner told me that it was the voltage regulator, so I tracked one of those down and swapped it out to no avail.

Here are some things I've noticed so far:
-When the ignition is in the run position, running or not, the amp gauge reads -10
-At idle I get 11.88 volts across the battery terminals, and when I rev the engine I get about 11.84
-Probing the "field" terminal of the regulator shows nothing

Any help would be greatly appreciated, thanks in advance!
 
Joe Reeves

Joe Reeves

Supreme Mariner
Joined
Feb 24, 2002
Messages
13,262
Re: '63 75Hp Johnson not Charging Battery

Disconnect the positive cable(s) from the battery so as to avoid any voltage short mishaps.

Disconnect and check the four diodes in the junction box. There should be a ohm reading in one direction and no reading in the opposite direction of all of them.

Check the 60 ampere fuse that's attached to the insulated diode plate.

Let us know what you find.
 
S

samuelcosmoschiff

Seaman Apprentice
Joined
Mar 19, 2013
Messages
31
Re: '63 75Hp Johnson not Charging Battery

Joe, thanks for the response!

Ok, the diodes test good.

I see the marking that says 60 amp fuse, but I don't see anything that looks like any fuse I've seen. There's a little square ceramic looking thing with two metal connections.... If that's the fuse, its toast. The ceramic is cracked in half. (see picture)

Then there's a wire leading from where the "60 A" marking is to a little metal can that is connected to the case. That measures 15 MOhm from the lead to the case. (see picture)

What's what here? Thanks again!

2013-05-12 19.57.14.jpg
2013-05-12 20.07.45.jpg
 
W

Willyclay

Captain
Joined
Sep 8, 2006
Messages
3,240
Re: '63 75Hp Johnson not Charging Battery

Welcome to the iboats.com forum. The members here are great and the experts which I am not can help you with any questions. Fortunately for you, forum master guru Joe Reeves has posted in your thread so you are in good hands. Good luck!
 
Last edited:
Joe Reeves

Joe Reeves

Supreme Mariner
Joined
Feb 24, 2002
Messages
13,262
Re: '63 75Hp Johnson not Charging Battery

samuelcosmoschiff said:
Ok, the diodes test good. I see the marking that says 60 amp fuse, but I don't see anything that looks like any fuse I've seen. There's a little square ceramic looking thing with two metal connections.... If that's the fuse, its toast. The ceramic is cracked in half. (see picture)

Then there's a wire leading from where the "60 A" marking is to a little metal can that is connected to the case. That measures 15 MOhm from the lead to the case. (see picture). View attachment 193602
Click to expand...

That square ceramic thing is the 60 ampere fuse. The fuse portion in the center part that is actually blown/broken such as you would see in the center of a regular glass tubular fuse. So you do need to order the fuse. If you don't have the part number let me know and I'll look it up. The heavy wire attached to the fuse via the screw on the left side of the picture is the voltage lead.

Keep in mind to have the battery disconnected when fooling with that stuff... wires have a habit of flipping around.

The other picture (capacitor)... I'll need to refresh my memory on that tomorrow and will get back to you.View attachment 193603[/QUOTE]
 
S

samuelcosmoschiff

Seaman Apprentice
Joined
Mar 19, 2013
Messages
31
Re: '63 75Hp Johnson not Charging Battery

Thanks for the welcome Willy!

Joe, that's what I figured after looking at it for a little while. Thanks so much! So conceivably I should be back in business after I replace that fuse, ay? I'll take the part number if you have it, but I could probably use any 60 A fuse right?

You guys are good...
 
Joe Reeves

Joe Reeves

Supreme Mariner
Joined
Feb 24, 2002
Messages
13,262
Re: '63 75Hp Johnson not Charging Battery

samuelcosmoschiff said:
Joe, that's what I figured after looking at it for a little while. So conceivably I should be back in business after I replace that fuse, ay? I'll take the part number if you have it, but I could probably use any 60 A fuse right? You guys are good...
Click to expand...

The original part number was 378456 but was superseded up to 379623. Unfortunately it has been listed as Not Available since 1998 and at that time listed for an outrageous $75.00. So if you're real handy and safety conscious, wiring in some other type of 60 ampere fuse would be the way to go.

That capacitor? Unfortunately I don't have the wiring diagram for that model any longer so I am not positively sure of what it attaches to.
 
Joe Reeves

Joe Reeves

Supreme Mariner
Joined
Feb 24, 2002
Messages
13,262
Re: '63 75Hp Johnson not Charging Battery

Joe Reeves said:
That capacitor? Unfortunately I don't have the wiring diagram for that model any longer so I am not positively sure of what it attaches to.
Click to expand...

Correction.... I found my copy of the wiring diagram. The lead of that capacitor is attached to the fuse screw "IN BACK OF THE FUSE ASSEMBLY" which in effect simply grounds it to the diode attachment plate. So, whatever type 60 ampere fuse you come up with... simply ground that capacitor to the diode plate.
 
S

samuelcosmoschiff

Seaman Apprentice
Joined
Mar 19, 2013
Messages
31
Re: '63 75Hp Johnson not Charging Battery

Awesome. I have a fuse that should be pretty seamless to mount coming in at the parts store tomorrow. I'll report back when I test it out!
 
W

Willyclay

Captain
Joined
Sep 8, 2006
Messages
3,240
Re: '63 75Hp Johnson not Charging Battery

I hope they are cheap since you do not know what caused the OEM fuse to blow. Good luck!
 
Joe Reeves

Joe Reeves

Supreme Mariner
Joined
Feb 24, 2002
Messages
13,262
Re: '63 75Hp Johnson not Charging Battery

Willyclay said:
I hope they are cheap since you do not know what caused the OEM fuse to blow. Good luck!
Click to expand...

Usually caused by NOT disconnecting the battery when working (or tinkering :) ) with the wiring. One hot wire flipping around, touches a grounded area.... goodbye fuse.
 
S

samuelcosmoschiff

Seaman Apprentice
Joined
Mar 19, 2013
Messages
31
Re: '63 75Hp Johnson not Charging Battery

It worked! 13 Volts at idle! Woo Hoo! Now the next problem....

After I got it running and checked that it was charging, I turned the engine off after about a minute and a half. When I went to start it again, it cranked, but wouldn't catch, and then nothing. Not even a click from the starter. Both the 60 A fuse and the 20 A fuse are good, and the battery measures 12.1 volts.

Granted, this is after I cranked the engine a handful of times before I fixed the charging problem. Did I run the battery down too low? Is there another fuse I can check?
 
Joe Reeves

Joe Reeves

Supreme Mariner
Joined
Feb 24, 2002
Messages
13,262
Re: '63 75Hp Johnson not Charging Battery

No other fuse UNLESS someone added one under the dash or elsewhere. If you have 12v at the "B" terminal of the ignition switch, the fuses are okay. There is a cutout switch on the engine, screwed to the side of the distributor (or close by). It disengages power to the starter solenoid if the engine is in gear... also (possibly) if too much throttle is applied... a little too far back for me to remember which, or both.

Usually has a white wire running to it.
 
S

samuelcosmoschiff

Seaman Apprentice
Joined
Mar 19, 2013
Messages
31
Re: '63 75Hp Johnson not Charging Battery

I noticed that little cut off switch.... interesting.

I'm pretty sure I just ran down the battery when I was cranking it the other day before the charging situation was taken care of. Will report back!
 
Joe Reeves

Joe Reeves

Supreme Mariner
Joined
Feb 24, 2002
Messages
13,262
Re: '63 75Hp Johnson not Charging Battery

Careful on the cranking bit...... Cranking for over 20 seconds can damage the armature of the starter (overheats, melts solder) and that type starter is as hard to find as hens teeth.

Also cranking with a very low battery will cause the inner contacts of the starter solenoid to arc, eventually resulting in the solenoid sticking in the closed/cranking position.
 
W

Willyclay

Captain
Joined
Sep 8, 2006
Messages
3,240
Re: '63 75Hp Johnson not Charging Battery

Joe Reeves said:
There is a cutout switch on the engine, screwed to the side of the distributor (or close by). It disengages power to the starter solenoid if the engine is in gear... also (possibly) if too much throttle is applied... a little too far back for me to remember which, or both.Usually has a white wire running to it.
Click to expand...

BTDT with a 1962 Johnson V4AL-14. My manual says it prevents starting with throttle advanced too far and, since the OP's model is electric shift, that could possibly be in gear also. A quick test would be to disconnect the white wire from the switch and try to start it. NOTE: tape the end of the wire so it does not ground the circuit. If the motor starts then test the switch for proper function and, if okay, you should perform a "link&sync" to insure throttle linkage adjustments are correct. Good luck!
 
Last edited:
Joe Reeves

Joe Reeves

Supreme Mariner
Joined
Feb 24, 2002
Messages
13,262
Re: '63 75Hp Johnson not Charging Battery

Willyclay said:
A quick test would be to disconnect the white wire from the switch and try to start it. NOTE: tape the end of the wire so it does not ground the circuit.
Click to expand...

Willyclay... The purpose of the switch is to disconnect from ground when in gear etc, which eliminates the ground circuit of the starter solenoid. To bypass the kill portion of the circuit, one would need to ground that white wire to complete the solenoid circuit.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top