1976 Johnson Seahorse 115 tilt and trim issue.

Prasko

Cadet
Joined
May 31, 2016
Messages
6
Unwrapped the boat, got it all setup and realized the motor will not trim down. It will trim up, but not down.

I traced the wiring back and made sure all the connections were made, terminals clean, fuses not blown. Pulled out the volt meter and made sure the switch was working etc..

If I loosen the purge valve the motor will go down.

When pressing the switch up, the motor will raise, but when I press it down, the tilt motor will sound like it's going down, then it starts to sound like the battery is dying and just bogs down and does nothing.

Battery is fully charged.


Any help is fully appreciated.

Picture attached isn't my tilt and trim, but it's the same model.
 

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boobie

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Nov 5, 2009
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20,826
Raise it to the full tilt, top off the oil level and then try it. If it works cycle it up and down 5 times.
 

Prasko

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May 31, 2016
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6
Is there only one fill hole?

I found the one with the big flat head screw and filled it until it was pouring out.

If you look at the picture I attached, its on the right cylinder.
 

emdsapmgr

Supreme Mariner
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Dec 9, 2005
Messages
11,551
Something wrong here with the year. The pictured trim system first made it's debut in the OMC V4 lineup in the 1977 model year. The 76 trim systems were the early type with the trim pistons mounted to the lift bracket, outboard of the two transom brackets. So what year or model are you working on?
 

Prasko

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May 31, 2016
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6
I was told when I bought it that it was a 76. Its on a Viking tri hull. The picture I attached looks like the one on the boat. I'll update with a picture tomorrow.
 

emdsapmgr

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Dec 9, 2005
Messages
11,551
Your engine is probably newer than you think. That system you show in the pic was he first generation of the "newer" trim systems. Was a 3-wire system that required the use of a trim control box with one solenoid inside. That system was superceded by the more current 2-wire system that came out midyear in 1981. Maybe it's got an earlier cowling, but likely it is a newer engine. Either that's good, or worse-someone may have just been mixing parts to make a whole engine. On your trim system: when the "up" is pushed on the trim, the low current from the up switch actually drives a dedicated solenoid to make the trim motor go up. This is by design-the up movement takes much more current to drive the motor. The "down" movement takes little current. When you hit the down trim button, all the down voltage goes direct to the motor through the "down" side of the control box switch. No solenoid required. So, your electrical logic flow is different between the "up" and the "down". So check the wiring on the down. Make sure you don't have a wire that is partially broken inside the casing. Also, it's possible the down switch in the control box handle is defective and won't transfer enough current to make the motor activate.
 

Prasko

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Joined
May 31, 2016
Messages
6
There's a grey box that all the wiring comes to, that sits above the splash well. It did have two corroded terminals that I replaced and hooked back up. One was a fuse line, the other was the red wire that was screwed into the same place as the fuse line. Both were rough so I remedied that.
 

Prasko

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May 31, 2016
Messages
6
Drove it over to my local marine mechanic and the damned thing was working... Guy gave me the weirdest look ever.. I'm lost haha
 
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