Info!!!

[jorn]

Hey guys,

Got a question for all the experience Boaties here.

I finally found the boat i wanted, its a 475 center console. I was going to hand the guy a deposit today, but did the final checks, eg compression and stuff. But before i got to do the compression i went to check the throttle/gear thing.

I required two hands to move it forward, and could barely move it to reverse.

What could be the cause of this?
At the time i was thinking it was just the control box or the two cables to the engine...which could be replaced?

then driving away, i was thinking it could be the gearbox? since it was hard to move forward and backwards?

I asked the owner, and he said he always had trouble moving it...

i was thinking in the vent i needed to do a controled stop it be friggen hard.

Before you all go, get someone to check it out for you, i've been googling for someone that does boat inspections and have not been able to find sumone.


Im in perth so if you can let me know of who i would appreciate it.

But before i get somoene to look at it, given the situation do you think its worthwhile?

[Tony Ireland]

Subject to how good the price is the first thing I would do is get him the meet you at the river for a wet run.
Without knowing any details on the boat, motor or controls it is hard to give advise but I would disconnect the controller, cables & motor to see which of the three is tight or jammed and progress from there.
Get prices on the new parts before you negotiate the final price.

[jorn]

Tony,

Thanks for your reply, do you think the problem lies with the control box and/or cables,

not so much the engine??

The engine started first go from a cold start, however never tested whether in forward or reverse gear.

[Tony Ireland]

My first stab in the dark would be the cables followed by the control box and the motor last.

[Dave W]

Be careful - it could be a heap of different things but I'd lean towards a gearbox/gear selector issue.

What motor is it? A legit seller shouldn't have a problem getting it to a mech to check out, at your expense.

If you don't want to go that road, or it's a really good buy weigh up the cost of a gearbox rebuild (worse case) or cable replacement (bit better)......... and see if you can talk the seller down a bit. If they don't want a mechanic to look at it walk away fast

[jorn]

the seller i believe is a bm member.. there is a BM sticker on his boat haha.

I dont think the seller is dodge at all, and has looked after the boat very well..the best boat ive seen in the price range...

the engine is a mercury 50Hp 1996 fuel injected...350 hours.

i was going to do a compression test on it and check the oil but never got passed controls.

[Dave W]

Cool

If it was me I'd pull the cowling, remove the gear selector cable where it connects to the motor, then change gears.

If it's easy, then it's a gearbox issue. If it's hard then it's a cable/selector problem.

Replacing the cables is fairly straightforward and not too expensive.

[John Osborne]

Jorn,on the front edge of the control box there will be either a knob or a hole with a screw in it, if its a hole put a 6mm screw driver and undo the screw a bit, and then check the stiffness of the lever. What this screw does is places a rubber block against the workings of the lever to make it tighter to turn. I believe you said it was a centre console, if that is the case you may find that the original owner (?), tightened it up to stop people walking past and nocking it onto full throttle. Not saying this is what the problem is but certainly worth a look, hope this helps.

[Danmaso]

Very Smart Thinking John And/or Shayne...