Looking to upgrade Ignition and Alternator

[rbradley]

Looking for some input on a couple of things for my 75 slickcraft 194ss. It has a ford 302 in it (merc 888) and I want to change it over to electronic ignition, I have been looking at kits, and wonder if it is worth the money to get a complete kit with coil,rotor, cap, and wires (~420.00) or just change over the points to electronic, and update the coil/wires as they need it anyway, prices I've looked at are around 280 for that.

any specific kind you like? or just any marine grade?

second thing is my alternator doesn't seem to keep up eith my new electric riggers along with lights/radio/stereo/sonar running all the time, is there a place I can get mine rebuilt? at the end of the year it didn't seen to want to charge anything over 12.5 volts either, could there be something else wrong? I am running dual marine batteries on a perko switch, thanks for any suggestinos

[fishsniffer]

i have a 77 slick with a prestolite distributer here is a link to a pertronix ignition i just bought for it..also get the 1.5 ohm 40,000 volt coil to go with it..total less than 100

[fishsniffer]

i talked to tech support at pertronix and they said theyre ignition kits are coast gaurd certified also

[Nailer]

Floyds Electric service in Grand Rapids is the place to go for your alternator. 616-534-8691

very reliable. Close to 131 an 54th st.

[BenLubbs]

I've got a 74 slickcraft with the same motor. To me it does sound like your alternator is shot. I run the same setup and have no issues. When the motor is running I run about 13.4V from the alternator.

[luremaker]

Ben

you live in zeeland take the alternator to johns battery on washington he can test and rebuild it for you and maybe do a up grade.

you also should look into the pointless dis system you will be a lot happier with it.And it should only run you less then 150 to have it done.

[Priority1]

Check this place for an alternator. Mine was less expensive to replace than rebuild. No cores needed.

http://www.dbelectrical.com/c-3426-marine.aspx

[Line Dancin]

I second Floyds. When i was at the class 8 dealer that is who we used for any rebuilds. They are quick and reliable.

When i had my electronic ignition put in they just replaced the distributor rotor and cap assembly, and kept the same coil. i did have the wires changed as they needed it at the time. As for brands etc i have no idea i had Johnsons in Ludington do it for me between two weekends of fishing.

[FsnMachine]

I will agree with the other replies. sounds like you need to rebuild the alternator. It should put out over 13 volts. I have also had a slickcraft boat. I had also put the pertronix ignition kit in it. You can use it with your existing ignition parts unless your rotor and distributor should be replaced anyway. The boat ran so much better and got better fuel milage without the points and worth the money on a season of saved gas.

[Idle Time]

Looking for some input on a couple of things for my 75 slickcraft 194ss. It has a ford 302 in it (merc 888) and I want to change it over to electronic ignition, I have been looking at kits, and wonder if it is worth the money to get a complete kit with coil,rotor, cap, and wires (~420.00) or just change over the points to electronic, and update the coil/wires as they need it anyway, prices I've looked at are around 280 for that.

any specific kind you like? or just any marine grade?

second thing is my alternator doesn't seem to keep up eith my new electric riggers along with lights/radio/stereo/sonar running all the time, is there a place I can get mine rebuilt? at the end of the year it didn't seen to want to charge anything over 12.5 volts either, could there be something else wrong? I am running dual marine batteries on a perko switch, thanks for any suggestinos

Rob, I think there's a good chance that you have my old boat! I think we've talked before on another site. Anyway, if your the same guy, the alternator shouldn't be that old. Not sure how long they last but I think that alternator is probably only about 6 years old. We had to replace it while on a Chain-0-Lakes trip.

[sherman51]

i think all you need is the pointless kit for your distributor. and i just got on ebay and bought a new alternator when mine went bad. i got a mando 65 amp for around 100.00 about 4 years ago and havent had any problems. you can get them from about 50.00 up to over 400.00 for a high amp alternator. but i run 4 elec riggers and all the other things on a boat and the 65 amp keeps both my batteries charged. just make sure how many wires goes to your old one. then buy the same thing. some only have 1 wire and some have 3 wires. but i could have sworn there was only 2 wires on mine, but that was 4 yrs ago,LOL. i have trouble remembering yesterday,LOL. all you have to do is go to ebay and type in mercruiser alternator and you,ll get many choices in brands and amps and prices. the main reason i went with mando is because that was the brand that was on it. and it was a 55 amp and had lasted for over 20 yrs. but i did want to upgrade to the 65 amp with all the stuff on my boat. radio, marine radio, lights, 4 riggers and sometimes i even use a 12v cooler to keep my worms freash and cool when walleye fishing the central basin on erie. good luck.

sherman

[BenLubbs]

Larry,

My alternator is fine, I was giving a response to the OP's second question. John's is great though, I've been there for batteries on several occasions.

[BenLubbs]

Hey Don, would you be able to do a "how to" on installing that ignition system? I consider myself a fairly good mechanic, but I work primarily on newer engines and so haven't ever done an install.

[fishsniffer]

Hey Don, would you be able to do a "how to" on installing that ignition system? I consider myself a fairly good mechanic, but I work primarily on newer engines and so haven't ever done an install.

there is a step by step instructions in the package..basically you remove the points and plate and replace with theyre plate and module..connect wires to the coil and check timing...

[Sidetracked]

Rob Get incontact with Dave at Motion Marine in Zeeland. He put a Mallory ignition system in my 80 Sea Ray. I have not fouled a plug since it was installed.

[rbradley]

Thanks for all the input guys,

currently planning on just switching the points with electronic ignition and upgrade coil and wires as they need it anyway.

Jon, if that's a blue pursuit in your profile pic I definitely have your old boat, I'll have the alternator checked before I upgrade or replace. Love the old boat, just something about that old slickcraft style. have done a lot of upgrades in the last couple years, humminbird 957C sonar, two mag 20 riggers, updated wiring, new stereo, new seats with one captains chair and one lounge style then put a 120 qt cooler behind the captains chair.

[Far Beyond Driven]

Make sure they know it's a marine alternator. I had my wife pick one up for me and ended up with a standard, so I ended up taking my junk one and giving it to one of the guys we rallied with. He sent it to someone and they rebuilt it like the rally car ones that are used with 400-500 watts of lighting.

My Four Winns came with Pertronix. In 12 years and 1300 hours I've replaced plugs twice, and they really didn't need it either time.

[rbradley]

Does anyone know if I need to get marine specific (merc 888) plug wires or if a set for a ford 302 will work? I want to get something to handle the hotter spark from a 40,000 v coil, I was thinking a 302 set would work

[sherman51]

Does anyone know if I need to get marine specific (merc 888) plug wires or if a set for a ford 302 will work? I want to get something to handle the hotter spark from a 40,000 v coil, I was thinking a 302 set would work

i just bought a set from michigan motorz off of ebay. but i have also just used the bosh wires on a couple of boats i have owned. so i think its just personal prefrence

sherman

[Far Beyond Driven]

I've had a lot of plug wires short on the rally cars, would not want arcing in the bilge if there's any gas fumes around. Cheap insurance to buy the marine stuff.

[BenLubbs]

You guys sold me, a new kit is on the way to my house right now

[rbradley]

good work Ben, ordered mine yesterday, one thing to note is pertronix customer service is great, I had a dual point mallory distributor so I was having trouble figuring out which one I needed, a quick call, left a message, and 20 minutes later a call back with all the info I asked for. I ended up with the ignitor II, I liked the idea of the adaptive dwell ability

also dropped the alternator off, now just trying to find the right set of plug wires, my cap is a non-hei (female connection) and I'm a little hesitant to buy one of the universal cut to length sets.

[rbradley]

had a little time off work today and swapped out the old points system for the pertronix, EXTREMELY easy, less than an hour and had to run a new power cable to the coil as the old one had a large resistor to lower the voltage. started right up, will know more in a month when I pull it out of shed and put the muffs on it.

also ended up getting a 110 amp alternator, should have plenty of power now.

getting the urge for spring and a coho run down to st. joe

[Priority1]

had a little time off work today and swapped out the old points system for the pertronix, EXTREMELY easy, less than an hour and had to run a new power cable to the coil as the old one had a large resistor to lower the voltage. started right up, will know more in a month when I pull it out of shed and put the muffs on it.

also ended up getting a 110 amp alternator, should have plenty of power now.

getting the urge for spring and a coho run down to st. joe

It's not a good practice to run a marine engine dry for even a second or two. The impeller is the weakest link. You can probably increase the spark plug gap about .005-.010 also.

[BenLubbs]

For anyone who may be considering this, I ordered the ignition that Don put the link to. However, my motor has a Mercruiser distributor, not a Prestolite, so the one I have won't work. I ordered a new one but have no use for the other so if anyone wants it, let me know.