Sudden Shutdown; Won't Restart

[randy.stafford]

Apologies for a new thread on this, but the existing threads didn't exactly match what I observed.

I've got a 1972 C&C 30 MK I with a raw water cooled, mechanical ignition Atomic 4.

When I went out for a sail yesterday, she started right up, as always. But then she cut out heading away from the marina. Initially I suspected a fuel flow problem, as the petcock on the tank has become difficult to turn. After ensuring the petcock was in the open position and the tank was full, she started right up again and ran smoothly for a good 10 minutes. Then she cut out again, and wouldn’t start back up after two cranking attempts of ~5 seconds each. I sailed for a couple hours anyway. When I tried to start her to come back in, nothing happened when I pressed the starter button. I assumed my batteries didn’t have enough amperage for the starter, after the previous cranking, though my other electronics were running fine. So I docked under sail power, pulled the batteries, and brought them home to charge. They both tested at 12.7 volts and 83% charge when I put them on my charger. Now they’re both at 100% and 12.9 volts.

So I now suspect a faulty ignition circuit, and possibly a faulty starter circuit. Perhaps a loose connection or broken wire is having the same effect as opening the ignition switch. I’ve yet to get into the lazarette and start tracing the wiring and testing with a multimeter, but that’s my next step. I thought I’d write this forum first to see if anyone has any quick hypotheses.

One guy on the C&C owners mail list is asking whether I hydro-locked it, but I don't think I cranked it long enough to hydro-lock. Another guy reported about a cracked distributor rotor he'd had causing similar problems, but that wouldn't explain why my starter wouldn't turn over on my last attempt.

Thanks in advance for any suggestions.

Best Regards,
Randy Stafford
S/V Grenadine
C&C 30-1 #7
Ken Caryl, CO

[ndutton]

Please check the keyswitch function. I experienced multiple failures before I got rid of it entirely.

[JOHN COOKSON]

What is the current status? Still no start or will start but having shutdowns?
If no start then check for 12 volts at coil + when the switch is in the on position and also when cranking.
Random ignition shutdowns will drive one nut so. Also you can run a wire from the big battery connection on the starter to coil + and see if the shutdowns go away.

TRUE GRIT

The idea is too see if something in the boat's ignition circuit is causing the problem (most likely cause) or if the problems is in the engine's part of the ignition system.

[Van_Isle]

Sepatate ignition pull switch and starter button, correct? Woudn't explain the cutouts, I don't think, but did you leave the ignition switch on while sailing and fry the coil?

[randy.stafford]

Thanks Neil, John, Van. Yes, Grenadine has separate ignition pull switch and starter button on her engine control panel - no key switch.

Current status is as first reported. I have not been back to the boat since Sunday.

I have to push in the ignition switch (i.e. open the circuit) to kill the engine, and I always leave it pushed in when not running the engine. But the coil could be shot for other reasons.

My next steps, sometime before Saturday, are to:
1. Pull plugs and change oil to assess whether hydro-locking occurred;
2. Test ignition circuitry; and
3. Inspect fuel supply plumbing and carburetor condition.

Thanks for the input and suggestions. I'll post updates.

Cheers,
Randy

[Whippet]

Don advice

Hi

A reminder that Don posted a check-list how to sort out unexpected shutdowns in a prior newsletter.

Hope this systematic approach helps

http://www.moyermarine.com/newsletters/2-1-14.html

[randy.stafford]

Update on this - went down to the boat today, put batteries back in, pulled plugs, changed oil. No sign whatsoever of water in the engine.

Then on testing, she started right up, ran smoothly at idle for several minutes, then shut down suddenly. And wouldn’t restart after a few short cranking attempts (with raw water intake closed). From that I was relieved that the starter and solenoid and starter circuit were working, and the ignition circuits.

Per Occam’s Razor I removed and inspected the fuel petcock, as it’s been troublesome this year (it became increasingly difficult to turn, then suddenly easier to turn, hmmm…). I believe it to be the culprit. It was stuck in what appeared to be a closed position, and turning its handle didn’t change that. I suspect it may have been open just enough to allow the fuel line to fill, given enough time. But once the engine consumed the fuel in the line, it wasn’t open enough to keep supplying the engine.

I bought a new fuel shut-off valve from West Marine and will install it tomorrow and report back. As for my starter not working Sunday when I pushed the button, I’ll let that remain a mystery unless it happens again. Maybe I didn’t have the ignition switch pulled out far enough when I pressed the button.

Best Regards,
Randy

[randy.stafford]

Score another point for Occam’s Razor. With the new fuel petcock she purred like a kitten again today, for an hour with no shutdown or issue. And now she has 50 psi fresh oil at idle. Cleaned her up and got her all ready for CSYC’s Autumn Winds Regatta tomorrow.

Thanks all for the input. Turned out to be a fuel supply issue, and a lucky / educated guess as to what was wrong.

Cheers,
Randy

[sastanley]

Randy, thanks the follow up and also for only doing one thing at a time. Multiple adjustments make it hard to know what actually fixed it.