Eagles International Forum

Hello forum.

Newbie here but love this forum. I've had my '75 Silver Eagle for about a year now. I believe it's a model 05?? I don't think the model 10 was introduced until 1980? I purchased it from a musician in Nashville in December of 2016. He purchased it from a Church Gospel group in North Carolina. It's my understanding the bus was converted to a 6 bunk Entertainer in 1993. I had some issues getting it home to Indianapolis (alternator belts broke and left me stranded in Louisville for the night) but I got it home safely. Over the last year I've put on new tires (drive, tag & steer), replaced the Pitman Arm (I had about 1/2 a turn of play in the steering wheel at highway speeds), replaced the starter and batteries (Napa 8D x 2) and various other small projects. I've made several fairly short (less than 1000 miles round trip) road trips with no issues. The power plant is a DD 8V71N with a 4 speed Spicer transmission. I've put a new dash in, but the original odometer reads 267,581 miles. Mechanically things appear to be sound. I plan on overhauling the interior and electrical system starting this year.

The issue I'm having is electrical. Apparently the plug was bad on the 50 AMP shore power cable. I had a power surge when i started a quartz heater and the whole bus went dark. I replaced the plug and have power back to the bus, however, when I try and start the bus it just clicks at the front electrical panel. I have a turn-key ignition (Master Switch if I'm not mistaken) with a push button start. When I turn the key, I have full power to headlights, marker and clearance lights but when I push the start button all the lights go out and I get the clicking sound from the electrical panel inside the bus where the light switches and key are. I am able to restore everything back to normal if I pull the cables from the battery terminals and reconnect them. The starter is less than a year old, The batteries are roughly a year old and were working fine until the incident with the quartz heater. I do have a trickle charger running to the starter batteries and they are charged showing 12.6 V with a multimeter.

Any help would be much appreciated! I've attached pics of the bus.

Thanks,

Greg

Very nice looking Eagle!

I would check all grounds to the batts and starter first, make sure they are clean and tight. I doubt that the heater problem is the culprit as it should be on it's own circuit not connected to your 12 volt system. You could also have a dead short someplace.

Check the voltage at the starting battery when trying to start. Sounds like they may need a charge, or could have a bad cell.
Jack

Dreamscape wrote:Very nice looking Eagle!

I would check all grounds to the batts and starter first, make sure they are clean and tight. I doubt that the heater problem is the culprit as it should be on it's own circuit not connected to your 12 volt system. You could also have a dead short someplace.

Thank you, Paul...or Becky.

I checked the grounds to the battery and the starter; they are clean and tight. As you stated, the heater was plugged into the 120V AC system and the bus went completely dark (interior lights that were on). No breakers were tripped on the 120V AC system. I replaced the 50 AMP plug on the shore power cable and that restored power to the system. However, after the heater tripped the bus wouldn't start and I got the clicking sound on the panel behind the light switches. I had driven the bus 15 minutes prior to the heater incident so the batteries were charged and the bus started right up as it normally does. I guess I don't know how/why the 12 volt system was affected when it's a separate circuit?

I'll grab a short circuit detector and start looking.

Thanks again!

Greg

blue_goose wrote:Check the voltage at the starting battery when trying to start. Sounds like they may need a charge, or could have a bad cell.
Jack

Thank you, Jack.

I'll try and do that tonight. I have a trickle charger connected to the start batteries that always keeps them charged, but I will check the water level. The batteries are 2 Napa 8D's wired in parallel.

If you have the wrong kind of charger on your battery they can burn the battery up. Unless the charger is designed to stay hooked up to the battery it will keep raising the voltage to the point that it kills the battery.
Jack

blue_goose wrote:If you have the wrong kind of charger on your battery they can burn the battery up. Unless the charger is designed to stay hooked up to the battery it will keep raising the voltage to the point that it kills the battery.
Jack

I should have clarified. I have a 2.5 AMPbattery maintainer on the battery.

I'm thinking it's the relay in the electrical panel under the drivers window. Does anyone have info on the relay? Where I can purchase, type etc?

Thanks!

Greg

I would open the electrical door I think it takes a 3/8 Allen wrench find the selonid clicking jump it and if it starts there is your problem if not locate the selonid in the rear elect panel and do the same thing if that don't work check voltage at starter selonid good luck Bob

Bob Gilbert wrote:I would open the electrical door I think it takes a 3/8 Allen wrench find the selonid clicking jump it and if it starts there is your problem if not locate the selonid in the rear elect panel and do the same thing if that don't work check voltage at starter selonid good luck Bob

Thank you, Bob.

It's been a while since I could get back to the bus. I checked a couple of things today.

The battery voltage is 13.27V and 13.28 respectively at each Napa 8D battery. I have two starter batteries. I had someone listen back at the starter when I tried to turn it over and it clicks 2-3 times at the starter and then I lose all power until I wiggle the connections on the battery terminals and then I have power again. When I say I lose all power, I mean i lose the headlights and the low air buzzer. After I disconnect and reconnect the battery cables, then I have power again to the headlights and the low air buzzer. I have to have a short somewhere if I'm correct? After trying to start the bus and it doesn't crank, I then rechecked the batteries and they read 12.88V and 12.89V respectively. Is this from a short or the voltage drop was a result of being under load when I try to start it?

I opened the electrical panel below the drivers side window and I have no idea which switch/relay or solenoid is for the starter. I don't have the wiring schematics for the model 05. Does anyone have those or can you clue me in on which relay etc. it is? I have a multimeter, but to be honest I don't know how to check the voltage coming from the switch to the starter...other than checking the voltage at the starter with the key turned on. And, would a bad relay actually cause the headlights to go out?

Any help/advice is greatly appreciated!

Thanks,

Greg

You should not be able to wiggle the connection at the battery! You have a bad cable or your connection at the battery is bad. When you try to start the coach the starter is drawing lots of amps. If any connection is bad it will open circuit, when you wiggle the cable it makes again. But not enough to run the starter.
Jack