Mercruiser lever won't stay in place - Throttle

[Andy J]

It's me again... Boat Newbie with many questions so I appreciate everyone's help and patience.

My control lever will not stay in position and engine goes back to idle unless help in place . I have dug around for a couple weeks and tried everything I have read but no change (tightening set screw under handle). There is a large return spring on the carb, not sure if this is causing the problem.

Merc MC-1 serial # 3418026

This is the controls but I don't see any numbers to identify the unit. I have identified the sterndrive and details, can't find any details about the control unit shown.

Is there a way to adjust this? Appreciate the help with all my problems!

 

[alldodge]

There is a large return spring on the carb, not sure if this is causing the problem.

That is the issue, return springs not used on boats. Could be someone added it instead of adjusting the cable correctly.

Remove the spring and start the motor. If it idles faster, adjust the barrel nut so that it pushes the throttle closed by one turn of the nut

 

[Andy J]

AD..... Thanks, I learned 2 new things today I couldn't figure out in 3 weeks searching the internet. Awesome forum!

 

[Andy J]

That is the issue, return springs not used on boats. Could be someone added it instead of adjusting the cable correctly.

Remove the spring and start the motor. If it idles faster, adjust the barrel nut so that it pushes the throttle closed by one turn of the nut

AllDodge....

Just wanted to let you know you were spot on, removed the spring and took the boat out this week and worked perfect. Nice to not have to hold the throttle for 2 hours!

So.... where's the fail safe with this setup? What happens if throttle cable breaks? Never seen a engine without some type of backup to pull the throttle back to idle if cable breaks. Boats are strange LOL

 

[alldodge]

Never heard a cable break, they get hard to move from corrosion or kink, and can get real sloppy from wear. Not saying it cannot happen, but there should be some real signs of issues going on for some time before this would happen. The end might slip off if a cotter pin or C clip comes off, but most carbs have a small spring mounted on the throttle plate.

You should be able to remove the cable from the carb and the throttle plate should close on its own close to regular idle. If it doesn't, it could use some cleaning of see what's binding or broke

The big issue for safety is the kill switch. In a boat the lanyard should be attached to the driver