downrigger voltage

[fieromx3]

i have made a seperate post months ago but didnt quite get the information i had hoped for. i been researching again and just not sure what to do?

 

i was out yesterday for the first time of this year using downriggers for my first time ever to. while trolling i was curious and connected my voltmeter pos. cable to the rigger wire and neg. to the engine ground and measured -.05 volts. from what i see thats a bad thing as ideally a POSITIVE charge of .5-.6 volts is wanted. does anyone have tips to get a positive charge on my rigger wire???

 

i dont have a 'bonding' wire attached to the outside metal parts (drain plug, transom tie down eyelets etc.) the anodes are in pretty rough shape.  my hull is fiberglass and the downrigger is mounted to it with no insulator. the whole entire rigger is aluminum and steel no plastic at all.

 

 

[BALLS DEEP]

curious about this myself

[Don Supon]

A "black box" performs this function. Cannon riggers have PIC (positive ion control). Newer models have this programmed into the circuit board and it is a set voltage,  while other models (Mag 20) have an adjustment knob to change the voltage. 

 

I have the Mag 20 and prefer 7.0-7.5 for salmon. It worked for me. But when my board malfunctioned and had to be replaced, cost was $350. So it got replaced with a Mag 10 board for $75. However, now I am stuck with the factory setting for PIC- with no adjustments. The adjustment knob is still part of the rigger, but does nothing. Everything has a cost!

[Richard]

If your anodes are in tough shape as you describe then you obviously have a current issue. You do not mention the engine (o/b or  i/o etc.) being grounded in your list of components. I would make sure it is connected. It is also more than likely time to change you anodes.

 

Keep in mind that this current could be coming from any shore power, if your boat is kept in the water at a marina that has boats plugged in to power while in the water.

 

Good luck and tight lines

[fieromx3]

boat is a sterndrive i/o. it is also trailered not kept at a marina. i will ground the outdrive and replace anodes and see how it is. there cheap enough anyway

[Frogger]

FieroMX3 Are the downriggers electric or manual?  Do you have a plastic snap between the ball and the cable?  Do you get the same reading with touching the neg (black) to the neg side of the battery and the red (pos) to the cable?  Are all the electronics / power / motor off when your doing it?  You may want to try these things as they could cause electrical leakage.  I had electric Mags go on me and boy did I learn a lesson.

[fieromx3]

it is an eakins manual rigger. it looks like crap but extremely stout lol. i have tru-trac klincher to attach the ball so the ball is insulated from the cable.

 

i havent tried touching directly at the battery yet to the cable, just the engine i have.

 

the electronics were on which is only the fishfinder and 1 gauge and the engine was running i was in gear trolling when i decided to test it.

 

i will test all of that stuff out again the next time i go out. thanks for the tips everyone!

[fieromx3]

i have another downrigger with the base made of heavy duty plastic to insualate from the hull and the cable spool along with the pulley is made of plastic. i will try it out next time to see if that makes a difference?

[Frogger]

I'm surprised your seeing a neg volt with manuals. One thing you can test is touching the neg to your neg side of the battery with a volt tester and dipping your positive lead into the water. You should see a neutral voltage of .6 to .7 volts. Then touch the cable with the pos lead and see if it changes. If both are negative readings of that -.05 as you were seeing something is out of wack.