2004 Merc 250 Saltwater throttle movement difficulty

[Riverat 67]

I recently purchased a 2004 Donzi 23 ZF with a 2004 Merc.250, 650 hours. The motor runs fine but the throttle control is very hard to move. How do I loosen this thing up before I sprain my wrist? The throttle/shift lever moves so hard, it makes slow speed maneuvering and docking very difficult.

 

[Scott Danforth]

Disconnect the cable and see if its the control, cable, or motor