I have a 29 Amberjack. The small...

[gsshelley]

I have a 29 Amberjack. The small power vent window has 2, 12 volt wires that that come up through a small hole and hook up to the motor that operates the window. When I was redoing the two connections, one of the wires fell back through the small hole. I can not see or reach it because the hole is too small. How do I retrieve the wire? I could try a snake with the other existing wire through but if the wire is bundled and not loose, the snake will get hung up. I'm wondering if there is an access plate inside the cabin covered by the ceiling uphulstory which I believe can be removed section by section. Hate to start pulling the ceiling down if no access is possible. Any help or suggestions would be greatly appreciated:)

[wingless]

Welcome to the forum.

What I find to be helpful in those situations is to have an index card handy with the standard and the extended profanity words transcribed, so that I remain fully articulate when verbalizing my frustration.

My guess is that removal of the interior ceiling panel is likely going to be part of the repair.

The salon ceiling panel in my 2000 380DA already has several openings, for interior lighting, audio speakers and wiper motor access.

A good first step would be removing those existing parts to determine if it is possible to attain sufficient access.

If not, the ceiling panel may be removed for complete access. My panels are retained by hidden perimeter screws. Those may be discovered by feel, then carefully peeling back the padded fabric from the edge to expose the screw head.

[gsshelley]

Great! will give it a go.

[Drago]

I have the 29AJ. If you have enough slack in the other wire, I would try to pull the other to the hole first. Take off the covers first though. I also have several different size "claw" grabbers/hooks on hand just for things like this. You can normally find them at Harbor freight or other tool places. My go to if there's a big enough opening is a Depstech endoscope. https://www.depstech.com/. Good luck.

[gsshelley]

Thanks for commenting, but I didn't really understand what you meant. The hole is very small, the size of a nickel coin. Are you suggesting that I take the one wire I have left (the other is inside the hole) and tie a snake to it with 2 new wires and pull them back to the toggle switch? I think that I neglected to mention the one that fell through is short as I had to trim it to find good new wire to add a tail to extend its length.I was trying to do that when it slipped through my fingers and down the hole. It may be too short to be usable even if I were able to retrieve it. Do you know if there is an access hole under the cabin headliners? Sorry for the long reply but I couldn't explain it any other way

[wingless]

Why not provide an image showing the cabin interior ceiling?

Lay on the floor, looking up to capture a wide image of the ceiling.

Annotate the image with a circle showing the approximate location of the hole (from above) where the wire fell into the cavity.

[Drago]

gsshelley, if possible yes. I have an assortment of hooked probing tools(do you have a dentist friend?) that I can dig around with, to grab the missing wire and pull it through, while using tension on the other wire to keep it near the opening. The Deptech is an Endoscope system that has attachments, one being a hook that would allow you to see the wire through the scope, then hook it, and retrieve it. It would fit in through the nickle size hole. The cheapest way is the probing tools. The picture I attached is from Harbor Freight and they cost less then $5. Good luck