Westerbeke 4.5 BCGB won't stay on

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Some might recall my bad governor post - it is fixed and installed, but now I can't run the generator. It starts fine using the Preheat (bypass) switch, but as soon as I release the switch it shuts down. Actually, it takes several seconds - it opens the choke all the way and then after 2-3 seconds the fuel cut solenoid is triggered. It was working normally before the governor broke, of course.

The oil is full and I have good water flow. I've tested all the sensors I could (water temp, both oil pressure, exhaust temp) and they register as normal (normally closed are closed, normally open are open). I've also tried each sensor both with the sensor disconnected and with the wires to the sensor jumpered to bypass it.

Initially the generator was running very fast, but I adjusted the speed to very close to normal (didn't dial it in perfectly yet), so I don't think it's an overspeed condition (which I think should only disconnect the DC circuit, anyway). I haven't located the overspeed control board yet, so I wasn't able to test it directly.

There are no error codes (it's a dumb control panel, no fault indicators), and I'm at a loss as
I have a call into my mechanic, but there's not guarantee he can get to it tomorrow, and we are (of course) planning a trip Friday. Any clues would be most welcome.

 

[Ididntdoit]

i bet its overspeed.....it will shut the motor down just like the other switches - is there a mag pickup on yours that reads the rpm? is it working? is it properly adjusted?

 

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It does rev up when the switch is released, before it shuts down (which is kind of odd to me). I'll have to see what I can trace regarding overspeed.

Come to think of it, I modified the run speed at the governor - I probably should have adjusted the throttle linkage bar first. Maybe that's forcing an overspeed.

 

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Well, the good news is that adjusting the throttle linkage fixed the problem. I thought it was odd that it would change since the same governor was going back on (just a new pulley and front seal), but after needing only two turns of the linkage end to make it work right I can see how even a tiny shift in how everything lines up can have a huge effect.

It's up and running, dialed in to 120 volts out (+7/-3 variance when loading changes - something is sticking a bit). The governor hasn't leaked a drop of oil. Very happy to be ready for the weekend.