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How is the combined sidelight lamp at the bow of a 2014 170 MONTAUK boat disassembled?

BACKSTORY: I need to get to the electric light bulb inside the combined sidelights lamp on a 2014 170 MONTAUK. Disassembly seems simple but everything is stuck. I do not want to break any part of the lamp. I've added some heat to the black plastic base but it is still tight. The top plastic and chrome piece which is loose but has a wire connecting to the bulb fixture; I am leaving this alone.

I cannot find an exploded-view diagram of the lamp.

My telephone inquiry to Boston Whaler has not been returned by technical people.

Tonight, May 25, 2022, I have a fishing trip planned.

[One day later]

After taking a closer look inside the opening between lens and top plastic piece, I could see that the electric lightbulb and its contact were clean and without corrosion.

The problem was with the top piece not being tight to the lens and the contacts not making a good connection which led to the intermittent illumination of the navigation lamp.

When I first took off the stainless cover a small piece of foam fell out. See Figure 2, below.



The foam was a shim to create some pressure on the top of the light and create an electrical contact with the lightbulb. That fix lasts about eight years, then the foam goes flat and pressure is released.

A temporary fix for me is that I added some silicone sealant to the crack area and added a thin piece of rubber to the top of the light. When the cover is attached it forces the top to make a good connection with the bulb.

The long term solution is that I have ordered a new LED bulb for the fixture. That part # is 2279815 and currently priced at $59.80.

I may have had a rare defect. I hoped that Boston Whaler would have had better quality control, especially on navigation lighting.

I recommend to check for this little piece of foam between the light and the cover.

That break in the lens should not have happened. It most likely compromised the connection.

Please reply and reveal what you received with the part you ordered.

Perhaps the navigation lamp was left illuminated for a long period of time. If the lightbulb was an incandescent lightbulb, there could have been significant heat generated. Perhaps the heat caused the plastic lens to fail.

It is an incandescent bulb and the excessive heat theory due to being left on is plausible, but I did not notice any indication of heat deterioration on the lens. The 8 year old Montauk only had 16 hours of use when I bought it and the lens looked new, except for the separation of lens and cover as shown in the photo. When a slight amount of pressure was exerted on the top of the lens cover which is made of chrome, the light would come on. The small piece of packing foam created that pressure when placed between the top of the lens and the stainless steel bow light cover. Now that I replaced the flattened foam with a piece of rubber, it works continuously. So the little piece of foam that fell out when I took the cover off is the smoking gun. Why else would there be this piece of foam in there?

As interesting as this lens story is, I'd appreciate help on my original question: how do you take the lens off? Is it caulked in place? Now that I have bought a LED replacement (see given part #) I'm not as concerned with breaking the old lens when I remove it.

As interesting as this lens story is, I'd appreciate help on my original question: how do you take the lens off? Is it caulked in place? Now that I have bought a LED replacement (see given part #) I'm not as concerned with breaking the old lens when I remove it

.

Your lens looks exactly like the one I have on my 2003 190 Nantucket. I take mine off by pressing down on the top of the lens and turning it counter clockwise.

Thanks. Is a threaded connection [used to retain the colored lens onto the lamp base]?

tomolalla wrote:Is a threaded connection [employed to retain the colored lens onto the lamp base?

No.

The colored lens has three prongs that fit into slots in the base, as seen below in Figure 1.

Perfect, thanks again, especially for the photo.

You can intuit that the colored lense cannot thread onto the lamp base because the orientation of the colored lens is critical so that the red light sector and the green light sector are properly oriented. If the lens were threaded the orientation would be depend on the threading alignment.