can i start my 76 mercury 115hp off the boat without the controls?

[jldsomething]

i picked up a 76 mercury 115hp for dirt cheap awhile back guy was going through a divorce so i lucked out i have my boat with a 65 hp mercury on it right now and i want a faster engine so iv been tinkering on this 115hp compression tested good i manually shifted it and prop spun good and they way it was supposed or not supposed to and i just wondered if i can hot wire it to start it or at least test to see if it has spark i just jumped the started after grounding the engine to test compression but i would like to know if the ignition system is in good working order to. so if anyone has a diagram or knows how to start it without the controls off the boat would be very help full thanks. also does anyone know where to find a reasonable priced after market tilt system for it this one doesnt have one and i know im not going to be wanting to lift this monster when i go out boating i seen the one cmc system for 600 i think is that about as cheap as they get for a good system? thanks guys.

 

[sschefer]

Re: can i start my 76 mercury 115hp off the boat without the controls?

I'm assuming you have it on a sturdy stand. Yes, you can start it, just don't ground the ignition, hook up a fuel tank, manually control the throttle linkage and jump the starter with a inexpensive remote starter switch from your local autoparts store. You're going to want some way to ground the ignition or you won't be able to stop it. A simple toggle switch works fine for that.

Regarding the tilt/trim. CMC makes a tilt/trim bracket but I can't remember off hand how large of a motor it will handle. I think it's designed for trolling motors so it may not work for you. If there was a factory tilt/trim, try eBay or the various marine salvage yards around the country. There are litterally hundreds and those and they can often turn up the buried treasure your looking for.

 

[Chris1956]

Re: can i start my 76 mercury 115hp off the boat without the controls?

Steve, That motor has the battery cables as part of the boat harness. Unless he has that harness, he cannot crank or start the motor without some sort of jumper cables and jumper wires for the ignition.

 

[jldsomething]

Re: can i start my 76 mercury 115hp off the boat without the controls?

i can jump the starter and i tired jumping two terminals on the switchbox that were supposed to be hot for it to fire and no spark that way i dont have controls for it i have a set on my boat that is for this engine but i dont have any not on the boat. and the controls for the engine on my boat are hard wired in no plug in like my 115 has them wires at the plug in are all shot anyways. i was just trying to figure out how to do this in my garage just to crank it and get it to spark so i know if its worth doing some work to it compression is good but if ignition system is not then im going to spend big bucks trying to fix it and then id rather just part the engine out. if i dont figure anything out one day ill drag that big thing out by boat and trying to unwire my engine on the boat now and wire it to this see if it will work that i dont intend to start it i just want to see if it sparks.

 

[aussieflash]

Re: can i start my 76 mercury 115hp off the boat without the controls?

I have a spare TT unit with transom bracket but im guessing your not near Sydney,Australia.You should put your town in profile,maybe someone near might have one.