Mouse chewed through power trim cable

F

flylikechris

Cadet
Joined
Apr 30, 2020
Messages
6
Hello all,
I have a 1999 Mercury 90HP 2-stroke 3cyl. outboard. A mouse has chewed through the electrical cable coming out of the top of the power trim motor housing. Unfortunately this model of power trim motor is not serviceable. Rather than replace the trim motor (~$400), I'm wondering if I can repair the cable by splicing it with appropriate marine wire, crimps, and heat shrink. Or.. is this generally considered bad practice? Wiring components this way within the boat is pretty normal, but how about outside the boat where the splice bobs around the waterline?

Any thoughts would be greatly appreciated.

All the best,
Chris
 
M

Mc Tool

Petty Officer 1st Class
Joined
Aug 7, 2024
Messages
312
Absolutely repairable , when you get some heat shrink see if you cant get some with hot melt sealant lining the inside of the heat shrink . We used to use it for underground repairs ( the ole spade thru the phone line trick )
As you heat it up the sealant melts and as the heat shrink shrinks it squeezes the sealant out the ends leaving no room for water to get in . Only down side is that it aint that flexible, like you can bend it to suit and then apply heat but once its cooled it dont like bending .
As an aside ..... there are many gruesome and amusing ways to dispatch a mouse :D
 
C

Chris1956

Supreme Mariner
Joined
Mar 25, 2004
Messages
28,073
ARCO and Sierra make replacement PTT motors, usually for about $200. If you cannot fix it, you might look around for an aftermarket PTT motor.
 
Scott Danforth

Scott Danforth

Grumpy Vintage Moderator still playing with boats
Staff member
Joined
Jul 23, 2011
Messages
50,224
if its just the insulation that is destroyed, and you are outside the chord grip a bit. you can simply use epoxy lined heat shrink tubing to cover the damaged area.

anything man-made can be repaired.
 
F

flylikechris

Cadet
Joined
Apr 30, 2020
Messages
6
Great! I really appreciate all of the comments. I'm relieved, I was worried this idea was a hack.

What is the engine serial number?
Click to expand...
Serial Number: 0G936139

I noticed there's two power trim units for this model. Unfortunately 0G3 and below seems to be the one that's intentionally repairable by Mercury.

when you get some heat shrink see if you cant get some with hot melt sealant lining the inside of the heat shrink .
Click to expand...
"solder" and heat shrink
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I will do that, thank you for the suggestions.

if its just the insulation that is destroyed, and you are outside the chord grip a bit. you can simply use epoxy lined heat shrink tubing to cover the damaged area.
Click to expand...
It's all the way down to the copper, I'll look into the epoxy lined heat shrink tubing. Thank you for the suggestion.

If you cannot fix it, you might look around for an aftermarket PTT motor.
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Noted, thank you.


I'll take some before and after pictures and post them here. Hopefully it helps someone else googling around with this problem.


As an aside ..... there are many gruesome and amusing ways to dispatch a mouse
Click to expand...
I've now got a permanent bucket/water trap setup in the garage.. it works..
 
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