Morgan 41 rewire

[Paul M]

I am doing an electronic refit on a Morgan OI 41 this weekend in SW Fla so I can get it moved to Ft Myers.
To save money, I can by 1000' of 12g multistrand in Nashville before I head down for $200.
Based on your experience, will this gauge wire work for all uses on this boat?
Also looking to replace the fuse panel with a breaker panel. Any suggestions on number of breakers for panel size?
Cheers

[Shrew]

Is that tinned or untinned wire? Wiring is not a one-size-fits-all. The wire gauge is typically dictated by a combination of amperage and distance.

5A @ 15ft = 16g
5A @ 90ft = 8g

Amps and Wire Gauge - 12V Circuit

12G is appropriate for

5A @ 30-40Ft
10A @ 15-20Ft

[Cheechako]

12Ga will work for most things. You may need heavier for a few things. Get a wire run gage sizing table on google for reference.
Buy tinned wire and buy a good crimper, not one of those cheap ones. Get some wiring numbering tags also.
I'm a pretty detailed person, but when younger I did some wiring with those cheap crimpers. Much to my dismay, I found afterwards that the wire would simply pull out of the fitting sometimes! Rewiring "this weekend" aint gonna happen though!
I'm on the fence of fuses vs breakers. I've had breakers go bad a few times, also they aren't available in smaller ratings like 1-2 amp (that I'm aware of). They are more expensive. Fit as many as you have room for.
Interestingly, when building a bunch of small military craft by contract, they only allowed fuses. KISS maybe.

[pcmm]

The answer is: it depends. it depends on your loads. if you have all led lighting then its way overkill! we've been rewiring our Morgan OI 41 and replaced all the lights with LED with no excpetions! we haven't needed anything heavier than 16awg for any lighting yet! the fridge uses 8awg, the windlass 1/0 and the VHF 12awg but evverything else has been 16awg!

[lifeofreilly57]

Also get good quality crimp connectors that are plated copper, not plated steel with shrink tubing insulators, it helps reduce corrosion in your connections. There is a big difference in quality between different crimp connectors. Try not to use butt connections if you can, home runs usually work out better in the long run. Fuses blow faster than breakers in some cases and are better able to protect delicate instruments if properly sized but breakers are fine for main circuits at the main panel. In the past I've used breakers in the main panel for main circuit runs, then used fuses locally on more delicate devices.

Sent from my SM-G900V using Cruisers Sailing Forum mobile app

[pcmm]

If you haven't already, join the "Morgan 41 OI Owners group" on facebook. there are lots of knowledgeable owners there willing to share lots of knowledge and experience with these old boats!

[Paul M]

Thanks for the help guys! I'll be in SW FL most of next week working on it. Starting in Hernando Beach and working towards Ft Myers by end of week. If you're close, I'm happy to buy you cold beer for the advice.