Do I need a new wiring harness for my CMC tilt/trim?

[BonairII]

The relays on my wiring harness are just a tad loose in the pigtail....and ocasionally losing electrical connection(have to wiggle relay to make contact again). Can I use dielectric grease(or whatever) to make better electrical connection within the pigtail?

Can I splice in a new pigtail(assuming they can be purchased separately)?

A new harness is $120 bucks and I'd rather not go that route if possible
CMC Jack Plate and Tilt Trim Wiring Harness 7014F-7123-7124-ProBoatParts.com

 

[Silvertip]

Re: Do I need a new wiring harness for my CMC tilt/trim?

Using a pencil type soldering iron and rosin core solder, "tin" the terminals on the relays. This applies a thin layer of solder to the terminals and will tighten them up in the sockets. Work quickly so heat is not transferred in to the relay and loosen connections. No globs of solder here! Just tin the terminals. If you are not sure of your soldering skills then skip this step and try to tighten up the female connections with a small needle nose plier or screwdriver. If these connectors are Molex type, you can remove the pin from the socket and tighten it up and push it back in . There is a small tab on each terminal that must be pushed down to allow terminal extraction.

 

[BonairII]

Re: Do I need a new wiring harness for my CMC tilt/trim?

I take a closer look at the connectors. It would be great if I can simply tighten up the female ends and solve the issue.

 

[Capt Ken]

Re: Do I need a new wiring harness for my CMC tilt/trim?

Its going to be hard to tighten up the female spade terminals inside the plug. I have in the past, cut the wires and put new spade terminals on the ends of the wires and just threw the socket away. Just gotta make sure you plug the wires in correctly.

 

[BonairII]

Re: Do I need a new wiring harness for my CMC tilt/trim?

Once I get home tonight...I'm going to pop the relays and see what it looks like in there(female sockets).

 

[glenn property of pam]

Re: Do I need a new wiring harness for my CMC tilt/trim?

normally you can tighten the base clips up a little with a micro screw driver. i like silvertips idea of adding solder as well. As for $120 you can buy a replacement pre-wired 12v 40 amp 5 pin dual relay base for under $10 so you can replace it if its realy corroded

 

[BonairII]

Re: Do I need a new wiring harness for my CMC tilt/trim?

It's not corroded...the relay is just loose in the base.

 

[glenn property of pam]

Re: Do I need a new wiring harness for my CMC tilt/trim?

unhook battery and with a flat micro screw driver tweak the tabs in the block so they are alittle tighter then once the relay is back in put a tie wrap around the relay/base or vibration will loosen it up again. dielectric grease wont help a poor connection but it will stop a good connection from corroding, its a good idea to use it.

 

[RRitt]

Re: Do I need a new wiring harness for my CMC tilt/trim?

the female bayonet connectors are held into the relay socket by a small flap of metal on the flat side. When inserted, the flap snaps into a plastic recess and holds the connector in place. If you look at front of relay socket, the is room to insert a very long thin blade and depress the retaining clip. the wire pulls out backside easily and without damage.

get some solder flux. use the solder flux and soldering iron to clean the terminal. apply small dab of delicate electronics solder to the crimp connection. test the terminal fit onto relay bayonet before putting back into socket. adjust as necessary with needle nose pliers. brand new wiring harness with fuse protection and new relays are about $30 on ebay. However, a used mercury harness is better quality than a cheap new chinese. the cheap new chinese just put a pair of crimp connectors directly onto ATC fuse without a fuse holder and they use much less durable and non-water-resistant relays. Good and water resistant relays are only $3-$4ea retail so it kind of makes you wonder if they compromise that then what else? if the harness has an actual fuse holder then it will be more durable. If it has a circuit breaker instead of ATC blade then it has been built with attention to detail.

 

[BonairII]

Re: Do I need a new wiring harness for my CMC tilt/trim?

the female bayonet connectors are held into the relay socket by a small flap of metal on the flat side. When inserted, the flap snaps into a plastic recess and holds the connector in place. If you look at front of relay socket, the is room to insert a very long thin blade and depress the retaining clip. the wire pulls out backside easily and without damage.

get some solder flux. use the solder flux and soldering iron to clean the terminal. apply small dab of delicate electronics solder to the crimp connection. test the terminal fit onto relay bayonet before putting back into socket. adjust as necessary with needle nose pliers. brand new wiring harness with fuse protection and new relays are about $30 on ebay. However, a used mercury harness is better quality than a cheap new chinese. the cheap new chinese just put a pair of crimp connectors directly onto ATC fuse without a fuse holder and they use much less durable and non-water-resistant relays. Good and water resistant relays are only $3-$4ea retail so it kind of makes you wonder if they compromise that then what else? if the harness has an actual fuse holder then it will be more durable. If it has a circuit breaker instead of ATC blade then it has been built with attention to detail.

The relays were replaced last year(according to PO). I checked eBay and didn't find the wire harness you were referring to. Could you post a link? (I don't know exactly what I'm looking for).

My harness is in rough shape(PO has spliced some connections), so finding an inexpensive way to replace the whole shebang would be great.

 

[RRitt]

Re: Do I need a new wiring harness for my CMC tilt/trim?

2004 Mercury Yamaha 60 HP 4 Four Stroke Trim Harness 826802T16 | eBay
and
Mercury Trim Wire Harness Assembly 84 826802A 6 Marine Boat | eBay
or similar. slim pickings today. there are usually 5-10 GC used ones listed around $30 including relays and fuses.

 

[BonairII]

Re: Do I need a new wiring harness for my CMC tilt/trim?

Are the harnesses in your link somewhat "plug-n-play"....or am I going to have to do a bunch of cutting/splicing?

 

[RRitt]

Re: Do I need a new wiring harness for my CMC tilt/trim?

your outboard should be electric start with grounded engine block. if that then they are extremely simple to wire.

 

[bluegrassboy84]

Most of the mercury harnesses are 30 amp relays. Does that matter or should they be 40 amp to work on a cmc tilt?

 

[jbcurt00]

Bluegrass, this topic has been inactive for over 2yrs, please follow the forum guidelines and refrain from posting in inactive topics.

12. Please do not post to threads that have been inactive for more than 3 months UN-LESS you are the original poster. We have very active forums and any thread that remains inactive for that long should be considered "dead". It is especially confusing when there is an entirely new question posted to an old thread. This is considered a hijack. Please start a new thread of your own.

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If you have questions about your CMC, it's setup or wiring, please start a topic about your concerns/problems.

Thanks,
John