Mark,
I am thinking about just running all but the starter off of the forward battery.  Since I have two batteries, it is a relatively easy fix.  It still bugs me, what has changed.
Steve

Mark Steitle wrote:

Steve,
 Early on with my project, I was beginning to start/run the engine.  I quickly discovered that sometimes it would start, and sometimes it wouldn't.  If the battery voltage dropped to some unknown voltage the engine would not start, even though it would continue to crank (although slower than normal).  I didn't have a working charging system at the time, so the battery would get weaker and weaker as I continued down this road.  At the time I was using a 12v Panasonic emergency backup supply battery.  It didn't have the CCA to do more than one or two cranks before the voltage dropped too low to possibly start the engine.  I must have damaged the battery in the process as a new battery solved the problem.  You stated that you installed a new battery, but you didn't state if you charged it up before trying to start your engine.  I suggest you 1) charge the new battery to 100%, 2) hook up the starter to a spare battery for cranking.  Personally, I think this makes a good case for going with a 24v system.  Mark S.
 

 On Sat, Nov 21, 2009 at 12:40 PM, Steven W. Boese <SBoese@uwyo.edu <mailto:SBoese@uwyo.edu>> wrote:

   Steve,

   I was able to produce symptoms similar to what you describe by
   inserting a 1.5 V flashlight battery into the CAS return wire such
   that the CAS end of the wire was 1.5 V more negative than the CAS
   return wire going to the EC2:
   CAS ----- battery ++++ EC2

   The opposite polarity didn't cause problems.  With the battery
   installed, there are one or two sparks when starting to turn the
   CAS and then no more sparks until the CAS sensor is turning
   significantly faster than would be the case when turning the
   engine with the starter.

   It seems that you may have the CAS return grounded in addition to
   the connection to the EC2.  If this is the case, then the voltage
   drop from the starter current may shift the CAS return voltage
   similar to what I did with the test setup.  If I disconnect the
   CAS from the EC2 at the EC2 connector, all the CAS wires show
   infinite resistance to ground.  It might be useful to see if your
   wiring is similar.

   Steve Boese



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