Routing Wires

[Nanserbe]

Just wondering if anyone has any good examples of how they ran their wires cleanly under the gunnels.

The PO on mine did a less than stellar job doing all the rigging and I'd like to clean it up. There's wires tucked under the gunnel that are just zip tied every once in a while.

The main outboard wiring is also pretty wrapped and stuffed up there too and tends to drop down.

[HalfCaff]

Assuming you have plywood on the underside of the gunnel like I do, I just got some cable anchors and a bunch of zip ties from home depot, and some stainless screws short enough to not go through the top of the gunnel.  Screwed the anchors into the plywood on the bottom, put some zap straps through and tied it all up tight. 

[croaker stroker]

I have been using these cable clamps for several years. I only screw down one leg and leave the other open so I an add/remove cables and wires.  (they are slightly flexable)

[disposable]

screw these, using appropriately short screws, along the full run of your cables.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07ZKNQ949

then, just apply/add/remove zip-ties as needed.

under the gunwales, i use woven mesh split looms, wherever exposed in the house/bilge/etc, i use corrugated plastic looms. like these:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B08887TZH7
https://www.amazon.com/Alex-Tech-10ft-1-10ft-3-Conduit/dp/B07TWB5MKD

[fishmeister]

I have been using these cable clamps for several years. I only screw down one leg and leave the other open so I an add/remove cables and wires.  (they are slightly flexable)

That's actually a conduit strap for PVC electrical conduit.  They are UL listed for outdoor use and are sunlight resistant.  I'd be a little hesitant to leave one side unsecured with the idea of bending them to add more wires.  The do have a tendency to get a bit brittle as they age.

If using zip ties, do get the black ones that are sunlight-resistant.  The clear/translucent ones will get very brittle and break quite easily after some exposure to the sun.

[croaker stroker]

I have been using these cable clamps for several years. I only screw down one leg and leave the other open so I an add/remove cables and wires.  (they are slightly flexable)

That's actually a conduit strap for PVC electrical conduit.  They are UL listed for outdoor use and are sunlight resistant.  I'd be a little hesitant to leave one side unsecured with the idea of bending them to add more wires.  The do have a tendency to get a bit brittle as they age.

If using zip ties, do get the black ones that are sunlight-resistant.  The clear/translucent ones will get very brittle and break quite easily after some exposure to the sun.

I hesitate to use zip ties because they can bind the control and steering cables if too tight.

[davidsea]

 

   X2 on the black zip ties.  Don't pull them real tight - it's easy to damage some of the more delicate things.  I have 2 pressure tubes in the mix, one for water pressure - which isn't included in NMEA data - and the other for speedo.  It's better to use more ties closer together to support the bundle.   Be very careful with any small co-ax cables , like NMEA or transducers - it's easy to crush the insulation and short them out, and a ***** to troubleshoot.
   I've had good luck with 2 1/2" stainless rubber-lined clamps.  I think I used 5 or 6 about 2' apart, and they're about $3 each.  The bundle is well-supported and never any abrasion or compression damage to anything.
  The control cables are rigid enough not to sag much at all, so they're run through the clamps but not zip-tied to the wiring bundle. I haven't had any electrical interference with power/ground/motor harness/NMEA data/transducer coax, so haven't needed to isolate anything.
  On my boat, the PO had mounted the VHF antenna next to the helm, and there was considerable interference - needed way too much squelch to keep it quiet.  If you have a choice, mount the antenna portside - away from the helm and as far away as possible from other wiring. Keep as short and direct route to the radio as you can.  Use a high-quality cable, like RG8 quad-shield with good solder-on connectors.  The only time you need VHF is when you - or someone else - REALLY needs it.

 https://www.amazon.com/uxcell-Stainless-Rubber-Cushioned-Insulated/dp/B07T2JJ3P7/ref=sr_1_1?crid=

[Nanserbe]

Since the rigging wires for most outboards are insanely long, where is everyone bundling up the remaining coil of wires that goes to the front at?

And where the gunnels meet the cubby/shelves inside the helm, how are people securing the wires that come out from under the gunnel cap? Mine are currently laying on the bottom of the cubby.

Just looking to clean things up a bit.

[DevMah]

I just use UV resistant tie straps and clips if you are concerned about the tie strap cutting into the cable either use duplex cable that has the extra sleeve, loom the wires or use wire wrap tape in the areas you tie strap

Dev

[AJFishin]

Cable anchors and zip ties, works great and if you ever need to replace some wires or need to get into that wire harness, having those makes easy work. I just had to remove my wire harness to replace both my throttle and shift cables and if I had use anything else, it would have made a bigger job for me.
I also used the sticker back cable anchors for my wires at the stern to hold all of those wires in place. (bottom picture)

[AJFishin]

Since the rigging wires for most outboards are insanely long, where is everyone bundling up the remaining coil of wires that goes to the front at?

And where the gunnels meet the cubby/shelves inside the helm, how are people securing the wires that come out from under the gunnel cap? Mine are currently laying on the bottom of the cubby.

Just looking to clean things up a bit.

Hope my drawing makes sense, my rigging wires are coiled under the gunnel in a long loop suggested to me by the shop I had my motor installed on my last boat. The loop is about 16" long, zipped tied with my wire harness, this way there is no excess coil or loop in the stern near the battery or at the helm.


Here's inside my SR19 and how I have my wires. You can see my wires coming in from the top shelf.


For my wire harness, I ran my wires under the gunnel, then they lay on the upper shelf behind my control, then into the cuddy, and into the my "electrical box" behind the helm. But since I did a rewire, I calculated how long my wires would be to make that run inside the cuddy to not have a bunch of excess wires. You might be able to coil your excess wires on the shelf or in the box.
(orange represents the wire harness going to switches and into cuddy box. Black represents motor rigging.)

[davidsea]

 
   Same for me, but I had a lot more circuits to deal with - mostly because I don't want multiple items on the same circuit.   If a fuse blows, I don't want lots of stuff to shut down, and it makes troubleshooting quick and easy.  There are NO glass fuses with crappy plastic fuseholders anywhere in the boat.  There are 3 ATC fuses in WP fuseholders aft, only because that's where they really needed to be - the 2 outputs from the onboard charger, and the (-)fuse for grounding the ACR.  Every other fuse is visible on the fuseblocks, on the back of the hinged helm panel.  All the helm wiring, except for the ignition switch/idiot lights/killswitch panel at the helm, is behind the hinged panel.  A later addition was a short strip of LED lights back there, after discovering that holding a flashlight in my mouth while working with both hands wasn't fun...


   

[58Johnson]

For wiring loom there is black loom with a blue stripe that meets the ABYC standard 8.15.19 for marine use. ABYC is the highest standard for electrical systems on boats. The blue stripe loom is flame resistant. It is not overly expensive.

https://www.maneywire.com/convoluted-split-loom-ul-94-fire-retardant-black-with-blue-stripe#1

[Nanserbe]

Thanks everyone!