Neutral safety switch

[kokajohn]

I have a "73" Johnson outboard and I would like to know if it is practical to by-pass the neutral safety switch? The engine won't start, I have had the shop replace the key switch, starter, coils, plugs and silanoid. When I turn the key over there is nothing. Any help or advice would be appreciated, also this is my fist post since joining a whole week ago. Very interesting info from what I have seen so far. thanks

 

[F_R]

A few orderly voltage tests would have saved you some money on un-needed parts. But to answer your question, you could bypass the switch as a test to see if it is bad or not, but don't think I'm going to tell you to do without it. It is a SAFETY switch. You may not kill yourself, but you may kill somebody nearby---like me.

 

[kokajohn]

so I am not talking about by-passing the switch completely, I just would like to know how to by-pass so I can eliminate it as one problem. Sorry if it sounded like I was making it a permanent change.

 

[hardwater fisherman]

The way i tested my safety switch was by taking the wire running from the solenoid to the switch and grounding it.

 

[racerone]

The 73 models may not have a " nuetral safety switch "----I recall / see they have a switch that prevents cranking when too much throttle is applied.----Find the switch on the side of the block .---Remove the white wire and touch it to the block.-Then have an assistant see if it will crank over each time you try it as a test.

 

[Tim Frank]

Do you mean that it won't start or that it won't turn over?

Either way, if your shop was just swaping parts to see if they could get lucky instead of doing proper troubleshooting, I'd go back and ask for your old parts back....or ask them to actually fix the problem.

 

[F_R]

What size motor are we talking about here? The 1973 Single Lever control DOES have a neutral start safety switch inside the control. Best way to test it is do voltage tests at the solenoid on the motor. If your mechanic doesn't know how to do that, he isn't much of a mechanic. If it doesn't have the proper voltages, THEN it is time to open the control and check the switch.

 

[racerone]

The V-4 motors also show a safety switch on the side of the block in the parts book.

 

[F_R]

The V-4 motors also show a safety switch on the side of the block in the parts book.

That's true, they do have one there in addition to the one in the control.