Plugs for wiring trolling motors

[Dignity]

I dont know if they are the same as the MK plugs maybe Greg can tell us...

Sam where do you put the dielectric grease..?on the male and female parts of the plugs or where the wires poke in to be screwed up...?

they are not well sealed where the wires go in so moisture can certainly get in..it may well have helped cause the issues..

Scott I just pop the pins out and check them, easy to do, poke them in some dielectric grease so there's a covering and pop them back in. All fittings get the treatment once a year. Salt water air has a very detrimental effect on everything. I have to wash my security screens every 3 months with a wash n wax treatment otherwise the 309 SS will corrode.

[Fed]

Do you mean you have just single unbroken lengths of cable from inside the motor housing through to the circuit breaker..?

Yes, and if they're too short then solder & heatshrink. (No "Solder Vs Crimp" discussions please guys)

[NAGG]

Those 3 pin MK plugs do fail -

Hey .... question can you buy 50-100 amp tinned wire ? (sorry I don't know the gauge)

When I look at my issues over the past 15 years of leccy ownership & even battery wire failures most of the time it is associated with the copper wire as much as the plug (MK or Andersson plug)

Chris

[Greg P]

Below is the plug kit contents. Various adaptors to suit whatever AWG you are running. Sleeve adaptors go onto wire ends and then placed in sleeve with allen key grub screw securing wires. All connections wrapped in water proof tape and filled with electrical contact grease then sealed with high quality heat shrink. The female end is quite long so you need to make sure where you drill the hole has space to house the plug length and wires. Really clean installation so time will tell. I replaced the original Marinco Plug that was severely corroded at the connection.

https://minnkotamotors.johnsonoutdoo...eptacle-mkr-26



1107951_alt02.jpg

[disorderly]

Scott I just pop the pins out and check them, easy to do, poke them in some dielectric grease so there's a covering and pop them back in. All fittings get the treatment once a year. Salt water air has a very detrimental effect on everything. I have to wash my security screens every 3 months with a wash n wax treatment otherwise the 309 SS will corrode.

I'll start using the grease on my connections, mate ..should have been doing it already..

Yes, and if they're too short then solder & heatshrink. (No "Solder Vs Crimp" discussions please guys)

As it seems the plugs are a major source of concern a single run of cable would certainly minimize those issues...

Easier for some then others depending on how the setup is wired and how often the motor needs to be removed...

Those 3 pin MK plugs do fail -

Hey .... question can you buy 50-100 amp tinned wire ? (sorry I don't know the gauge)

When I look at my issues over the past 15 years of leccy ownership & even battery wire failures most of the time it is associated with the copper wire as much as the plug (MK or Andersson plug)

Chris

With the wire have all your problems been at the ends or just due to being too small a gauge to carry the load..?

Below is the plug kit contents. Various adaptors to suit whatever AWG you are running. Sleeve adaptors go onto wire ends and then placed in sleeve with allen key grub screw securing wires. All connections wrapped in water proof tape and filled with electrical contact grease then sealed with high quality heat shrink. The female end is quite long so you need to make sure where you drill the hole has space to house the plug length and wires. Really clean installation so time will tell. I replaced the original Marinco Plug that was severely corroded at the connection.

https://minnkotamotors.johnsonoutdoo...eptacle-mkr-26



1107951_alt02.jpg

You didnt bother tinning the ends of the wire then..?

[Greg P]

I'll start using the grease on my connections, mate ..should have been doing it already..



As it seems the plugs are a major source of concern a single run of cable would certainly minimize those issues...

Easier for some then others depending on how the setup is wired and how often the motor needs to be removed...



With the wire have all your problems been at the ends or just due to being too small a gauge to carry the load..?



You didnt bother tinning the ends of the wire then..?

Yes, sorry I did tin the wires on both ends (trolling motor and battery cables) after shortening them up a fair bit to get fresh connections. Pretty confident with al the treatment and sealing that corrosion wont be an issue with this plug. When the motor is off the female plug had a great seal which I believe was probably the problem with the Marinco plug as well. There is another plug out of the US I think called the "Battery Tender plug" that seems to get a good wrap but was difficult to order here and wasnt much cheaper than the Minn Kota plug which seems to be better quality anyway.

[disorderly]

No worries ..I will tin them as well...

I just had a bit of a closer look at the burnt out plug and where the unsoldered wires went into one end of plug I can see that there is quite a lot of that greeny blue stuff on the wires and lugs..

So it doesnt seem to be the actual plugs fault but just because its not actually waterproof and salt water and air can get in there...

Hopefully on the new one the grease may slow this process down..

I might have to think about rerouting the cable and repositioning the plug so its not quite as exposed in the anchor well ..