Control Problem 87' Force 85

Greywolf58

Cadet
Joined
Oct 27, 2006
Messages
28
Last weekend my control lever stopped moving all the way forward. When I push forward to go into gear all is well, after it's in gear it stops moving and all I can do is troll along. I've disconected the control cables to check for any binding within the control lever housing. The lever move in all directions without any problem. Next I checked the cables themselves. Both cables moved freely inside the cable housing. I then checked the Tower shaft and found that I could not rotate it by hand but a few cm. Should I be able to rotate the tower shaft any? If so what could be stopping it from moving? I beleive this is where my problem is, but can't seem to go any further in determining what's wrong.

Any help is greatly appreciated.
 

Frank Acampora

Supreme Mariner
Joined
Jan 19, 2007
Messages
12,004
Re: Control Problem 87' Force 85

That usually happens on older Chrysler engines when the distributor drive belt is too tight. Puts so much load on the linkage that the control box gets very hard to move after it is in gear. And then, sometimes it will hang up coming out of gear.
Your engine does not have a distributor so I would check that the nylon washers holding the throttle cam at its pivot have not swelled up and tightened the cam. I would also check that the trigger assembly is moving freely. It rides in a 4 pronged holder just under the alternator and if it has gotten gunked up and does not move freely, then, there could be another cause of the binding.
Now, also remember that the linkage is set so that the throttle can not open (more than a few degrees) until the engine is in gear. If your cables or terminals have worn or if the linkage has shifted and is no longer properly synchronized, this could also be the problem. Check to see that the neutral interlocks at the bottom of the tower and shift pivot are moving, allowing the throttle to advance. In neutral, the two plates almost touch each other. Shift pivot stop moves down in forward and up in reverse, allowing the tower stop to ride past it.
 

Greywolf58

Cadet
Joined
Oct 27, 2006
Messages
28
Re: Control Problem 87' Force 85

Frank,
Thanks for your help. Looks like the tower shaft is binding under the fly wheel. This has become a little beyond my mechanical abilities. I'll have to call my mechanic next week to have him look at it.
 
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