tilt & trim maintenance on my 115hp 73 Johnson

[teslaman]

I have not performed any maintenance on my tilt & trim since I purchased the boat last summer.

Everything seems to work well, but is there any maintenance that I should do? Maybe lubrication?

 

[ezeke]

Re: tilt & trim maintenance on my 115hp 73 Johnson

Grease to all of the grease fittings. You can get Triple Guard grease from your dealer in a 14 oz tube for your grease gun. Part number 0775776.

Extend the rams, clean them and grease with Triple Guard or similar marine grease.

Check all wiring for condition and position; clean and cover connections with liquid tape. The wiring for the gauge sometimes gets caught in the bracket and can break.

Top up the fluid.

 

[teslaman]

Re: tilt & trim maintenance on my 115hp 73 Johnson

How about the steering?

 

[ezeke]

Re: tilt & trim maintenance on my 115hp 73 Johnson

Do you have the steering rod going through the tilt tube?

If you do, extend the rod as far as possible and clean. Then grease with Triple Guard Grease and cycle back and forth several times. Then repeat the process several times.

I do this a lot. Once you have the tube rust up and lock the steering you won’t let it happen again. That is a major PITA.

Depending on the steering type, you may have a plastic tube over the steering cable at the console end. You can inspect and lubricate the cable there. Email Teleflex for the proper lubricant – I don’t remember what they told me.

http://www.teleflexmarine.com/steering-us/

 

[teslaman]

Re: tilt & trim maintenance on my 115hp 73 Johnson

Thanks ezeke! I'm not sur what the tilt tube is, but my steering does have the rod that pushes out of a cylinder. Do I simply use a rag for cleaning, or should I use water or special cleaner?

 

[ezeke]

Re: tilt & trim maintenance on my 115hp 73 Johnson

Clean it with a light lubricant like WD40.

The tubes are mounted in several ways, but OMC accomodated using the inside of the tilt hinge mechanism to hold the rod at the engine, which is a strong and stable method. The other two most common methods were splashwell mount and transom mount.

See:

http://www.teleflexmarine.com/library/instructionmanuals/IS-7405.PDF

http://www.teleflexmarine.com/library/instructionmanuals/IS-7402.PDF


BTW, iboats is a major retailer for these systems.

 

[teslaman]

Re: tilt & trim maintenance on my 115hp 73 Johnson

Here is what teleflex told me to do:

Remove the link arm and undo the nut on the cable at the support tube. Corrosion and build up of dirt and/or salt deposits at the end of the cable to the engine will lead to stiff operation and possible complete seizure. It is necessary to completely remove the cable from the engine, clean both cable output end and tilt tube thoroughly, lubricate with WATERPROOF MARINE LITHIUM GREASE, and reassemble Note- That if you force the cable with the helm you can damage the cable and the helm.

 

[ezeke]

Re: tilt & trim maintenance on my 115hp 73 Johnson

Great, thanks for sharing that information.

In the case of the tilt-tube installation, here is what OMC service manuals said:

"The installer was instructed to grease the steering cable ram during installation. Once the engine is put into use, periodic cleaning and regreasing with OMC Triple- Guard grease is required. In fresh water usage, lubricate every 60 days; in salt water usage, lubricate every 30 days."

Remember that OMC was discussing the ram, not the cable and that the tilt tubes were of hardened steel and subject to rust.

Here's the bottom line: my boats are 1976 and 1983 and both are running on the original teleflex steering cables. I used the grease that Teleflex recommended on the cables. I followed the OMC directions on the rams in my tilt tubes.

I don't think that you should have a bad experience if you keep looking for information and equipment from Teleflex. I recommend that you clean and grease the rams frequently.