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An unreadable motor board
Herber sails and lives on his sailboat. It's a Beneteau First 41S5 purchased in 2017, equipped with a 50-horsepower Perkins Prima engine. She is 30 years old. Since its construction, it has been sailing under the Mediterranean sun. And today, after a transatlantic race and a year in Guadeloupe, the engine dashboard becomes unusable. Indeed, placed in the cockpit on the port side near the steering wheel, it remains exposed to the sun. The plexiglas covering the rev counter and the temperature gauge have become opaque. In addition, the indicator lights have some weaknesses.
Too expensive in the shops
Herber's first step was to look for replacement screens, but he can't find any spare parts. Neither the lights nor the switches are available. So he decided to go for a whole dashboard. But the price for this one quickly cools him down.
A purchase in pieces
So he started building a complete dashboard. To do so, he will find screens in online hardware stores: tachometer, oil gauge and fuel gauge. All these instruments are from the Italian brand Osculati, even if he would have preferred VDOs, which he believes are of better quality.
The tachometer is programmable according to the engine cycle, 2 or 4 stroke, and the number of cylinders. The simple programming is well explained in the manual delivered with the rev counter. For the fuel gauge, you have to buy a display with the same impedance as the transmitter in the tank. This impedance can be read on the transmitter or simply checked with an Ohmmètre. Be careful with the state of the tank, the measurement will be different if it is empty, full or half full¦
For the rest, Herber chose waterproof switches in front IP57, either push-button for the starter, the preheating or the stop, or ON/OFF for the starting. Note that this yachtsman prefers to remove the ignition key from the panel, a source of problems. To prevent theft, he prefers to cut the circuit breakers inside the cabin.
A painting in Alupanel
After a 1:1 drawing, Herber cut out a panel of Alupanel. This is an aluminum sandwich that is easily cut with a simple cutter. A hole saw is used for the round openings. The size of the panel is larger than the original one, thus masking the various holes made with the installed accessories.
Covering for the look
A carbon-like covering, a simple self-adhesive film, covers the surface. Stickers complete the various buttons to locate them and two coats of spray varnish protect the whole from the sun.
On the wiring side, Herber replaced some of the lugs, but connected the appliances as they were originally connected. He just replaced the main fuse installed behind the old panel with a resettable circuit breaker.
A very clean final result
In the end, with a little bit of resourcefulness, a finger of electrical knowledge and a lot of desire, Herber succeeded in replacing his engine panel for an expense of 290 euros. A set that looks good!
