Tilt/trim help please!!!!

[couchise]

1987 85 hp the trim works fine when leaving it up out of water, once i give it gas and start going forward it doesn't wanna go up, also If i put it up when idleing and start to move forward it will go all the way down. Please help with this. I can have it up on dry land and it won't move at all even over night.

 

[RRitt]

Re: Tilt/trim help please!!!!

you probably have a tilt system but not a trim system.

Tilt lifts the engine so that you can get on/off trailer. If you hit a pothole tilt can release allowing your prop to plow a furrow in the road. If you hit a big enough pothole you can even blow out seals and ruin both the skeg and the tilt system.

Trim adjusts the angle of a running engine. If you have trim then you will see three hydraulic pistons underneath your engine - tilt, trim, and shock.

 

[couchise]

Re: Tilt/trim help please!!!!

Hey Rrit, i have both...i find when i am in gear it lift up as if it doesn't have enough juice...but if just sitting in idle it will go out no problem and then i will engage and the pressure from the water will make it go down again.

 

[RRitt]

Re: Tilt/trim help please!!!!

not enough juice is either an old motor expressing its desire to die or a motor that is not getting enough voltage. The 3w motors are hyper-sensitive about voltage and corroded connections. You could have either 3w or 2w with a 1987. Probably 3w.

The going down in gear with a good trim ram is usually a valve body thing. It could be a weak spring on a bypass valve in the tilt piston but that would be unusual. They usually snap instead of just getting weak. I would have to see pump to say what pressure is perfect, but if you set it to 1500psi then it should work without blowing itself up from the inside. If you dial it to 1500psi and the problem persists then you probably have to dig into the tilt ram.

 

[couchise]

Re: Tilt/trim help please!!!!

how does one go about and do a PSI test for these. when it is in the water and running it seems like it is not getting power to move up but if i slow down it will go up sometimes, if in neutral it goes up for sure. i notice that the bolt that runs through the two arms, the bolt has backed off and the washer was damaged. how do i change the boot/seal on that. i know i have to take off the arm but could this be the problem?????
Thanks for helping me

 

[RRitt]

Re: Tilt/trim help please!!!!

how does one go about and do a PSI test for these. when it is in the water and running it seems like it is not getting power to move up but if i slow down it will go up sometimes, if in neutral it goes up for sure. i notice that the bolt that runs through the two arms, the bolt has backed off and the washer was damaged. how do i change the boot/seal on that. i know i have to take off the arm but could this be the problem?????
Thanks for helping me

go to harbor freight and buy one of their 5000psi gauges. hook up a handful of brass from NAPA. run it on the trailer and see exactly what pressures are being put out. It does not make much difference if the mounting shafts float. It could easily be argued that a floating mounting shaft would have been a better design. Systems with floating shafts don't get a buildup of galvanic corrosion. As long as it does not strike the transom clamp you are fine.

 

[couchise]

Re: Tilt/trim help please!!!!

what is that tester called? what should the psi be at? and how do you use it?

 

[RRitt]

Re: Tilt/trim help please!!!!

what is that tester called? what should the psi be at? and how do you use it?

It is a pressure gauge. Because your tilt ram is still connected the pressure will vary with angle - you will be looking for sudden drops or inconsistencies. You hook it up and read the dial.

All things considered maybe you should save the money you would spend on hoses, fittings, and a gauge and just send your pump off for rebuilding when the season ends. I am thinking that if you are really unfamiliar with hydraulics then the readings might be meaningless anyways.

 

[couchise]

Re: Tilt/trim help please!!!!

I am mechanically inclined and was thinking about doing it my self...I was going to buy a seal kit off of ebay.