old mercontrol throttle/shifter box and cables

i have a 78 starcraft and the shifter gear inside the box broke i bought a new one but i cant seem to get the box togeather right and theres a little pin that i have no idea where it goes in the box and it shifted hard was that cuz it was hooked to the hose and not in the water? new to the boating need help

Re: old mercontrol throttle/shifter box and cables

That little pin is the neutral detent stop pin. Look carefully around the perimeter of the "shifter gear". You will see a small detent in one location, that is neutral position. Attached to the housing next to the "shifter gear" you should find a flat tension spring with a small hook formed in one end. The pin you mentioned installs between the tension spring hook and the shifter gear. When the shift gear lines up with the neutral detent pin, the unit is in neutral.

Hope this is clear enough.

As for the hard shifting, it could be the control box, cables or the linkages on the motor. Method of elimination is the only way to determine the culprit. Disconnect the cables from the motor and try. If better, then the motor linkages need lube. If still hard to shift, then disconnect cables from inside shifter and try again. If better, then the cables are shot and need replacing. If still hard to shift then the control box is the culprit.

Re: old mercontrol throttle/shifter box and cables

When you say it shifted hard when hooked to the hose, were you running the motor? Alot of problems can happen when you run a motor with no load. I'm not entirely sure as to what happens, just know it shouldn't ever be done, i'm sure someone else can explain it in better detail.

Re: old mercontrol throttle/shifter box and cables

Topol_86 said:

When you say it shifted hard when hooked to the hose, were you running the motor? Alot of problems can happen when you run a motor with no load. I'm not entirely sure as to what happens, just know it shouldn't ever be done, i'm sure someone else can explain it in better detail.

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yea the motor has a hose hook up to run water to the motor i ran it to check everything after i bought it then the shift gear boke

Re: old mercontrol throttle/shifter box and cables

there wasnt a spring in there? i know the key switch was messed up its outside the box now been rewired new box is high dollar lol ill see if i can get a pic of it and post it on here

Re: old mercontrol throttle/shifter box and cables

Here is a photo of my spare unit. Ignore the wiring, thats why its only a spare

On the overall picture, notice the flat spring and round dowel in the top right corner. More detail (blurry) in the second picture.

THese control units are listed all the time on ebay. Keep an eye peeled for a good deal.

Re: old mercontrol throttle/shifter box and cables

that helps alot thanks

Re: old mercontrol throttle/shifter box and cables

how is that gear under that positioned in that pic you sent me im havin trouble with it poppin back together

Re: old mercontrol throttle/shifter box and cables

does anyone know where i can get this part

Re: old mercontrol throttle/shifter box and cables

EMTP said:

does anyone know where i can get this part

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Hello out there! I'm looking for a Mercontrol shifter for my 16 footer.It has the throttle lever and the shift lever.Please give me a tex. back or e-mail.813-438-0822..

Re: old mercontrol throttle/shifter box and cables

you may go to a mercury quick silver manual to find the part number