Tiller Conversion

[Jon Sob]

I have this in my resto thread but thought it might be helpfull here so I am re-posting it. I searched the site for a thread that would show me how to connect the controls to the motor and was not able to find one so I went to a repair shop in Akron, Ohio ( 1hr drive ) and this fellow had all the parts I needed to connect the cables and the steering. I am going to try to detail the process here so if anyone else is trying to convert from a tiller to controls maybe this will help.

Ok, first here are my controls and motor:


First thing is to change the tilt tube for the rotary steering cable. You have to be careful not to over tighten the plastic nuts:




After that was installed then I removed the tiller handle. You have to loosen the nuts holding the cables in place and then remove the cables from the wheel attached to the throttle.

 

[Jon Sob]

Re: Tiller Conversion

Then remove the bolts on either side of the tiller handle to remove it but be careful 'cause these bolts go into an insert that will fall out easily:


Now that the tiller handle is off you will see a mounting hole on that wheel where the cable ends were attached. This is where the part (not sure of the correct part number) goes for attaching the cable to the wheel:


There is a barrel on the end of the control cable along with a plastic sleeve that attaches to the end of the cable. The barrel slides over the post on the part that is attached to the wheel and the end sleeve slides onto the pin and it is locked into place by the wire bracket.


And now your throttle is connected.

 

[Jon Sob]

Re: Tiller Conversion

Blank

 

[Jon Sob]

Re: Tiller Conversion

Now for the shifter. This is pretty simple. Inside the hood near the shifter you will find a mounting arm with a hole in it. This is where your cable will attach:


You need to remove the cable hold down bracket:


You need to install the plastic sleeve, which has the screw with a spring attached, onto the end of the cable:


You then run the cable thru the hole under the cable hold down bracket and attach the cable by inserting the screw into the mounting arm and turn it a 1/4 turn and replace the cable hold down bracket:


The barrel on the cable fits into a slot under the hold down bracket.


Sorry for not using the proper terminology but I don't know what these parts are called...... LOL

 

[Jon Sob]

Re: Tiller Conversion

You will need to attach the steering arm bracket to the bottom of where the tiller handle was:


Now the cable for the steering slides into the tilt tube and is attached by a large nut on the cable:


Now to attach the steering arm to the cable end and to the steering arm bracket. Check your clearence and range of motion and you are ready to go:

 

[Jon Sob]

Re: Tiller Conversion

I did leave out the obvious such as lubricating the cable end before installing into the tilt tube and stuff like that but I think you can figure that out on your own. I hope it helps anyone taking on this task and feel free to ask questions or to make corrections.

 

[Minimax9.8]

Re: Tiller Conversion

Been going through a hard time trying to get the part numbers for the parts, so figured Ill post some here for others converting to remote controls...

The remote control attaching kit shown above is "74355A4". It will fit all later models and models with electric start. It requires the more common MerControl box which draws the shifter cable end inward when shifting into forward gear.

The alternate attaching kit is "39466A2". This is intended for the earlier motors and will not fit an electric start model. From what I can tell this is intended for the other MerControl configuration, which extends the shift cable outwards when shifting into forward gear.

As far as the remote steering setup is concerned. The parts shown above come in kit "34749A6". This gives you the bracket to attach to the handle, the steering link and longer tilt tube and spacers. I found this kit hard to come by, and tried out kit "30773A2" (intended for older 6hp). It contains the same spacers, tilt tube and bracket but its link is straight. I found that bending the link made it work perfectly.

All of these parts are NLA, however some older dealers seem to still have stock. I have managed to find all I needed by watching eBay. The remote attaching kits can be faked with homemade parts as I had done for some years, but I felt it was time to look a bit more professional.

 

[Minimax9.8]

Re: Tiller Conversion

Forgot to mention,

This information applies to both the Mercury 7.5hp (75) and Mercury 9.8hp (110) models.

 

[Guest]

I know this is an old thread, but I wanted to say Thanks to Jon Sob and Minimax9.8. As well as give the thread a bump in case there are others out there looking to do this. I acquired a 1980(?) Merc 7.5(?) and was beating my head against the bulkhead trying to figure out how to add remote controls to my "new to me" kicker. Thanks to this thread I was able to get a kit from E-bay and got everything installed on my 89 Sea Ray 180.

 

[jbcurt00]

Posting to an inactive topic doesnt make it easier to find. Always available via the forum search feature.

You could start a new topic and add a link back to an inactive topic.

Closed

 

[GA_Boater]

Just wanted to add that Jon Sob and Minimax9.8 no longer visit the forums.