Locked Tilt and Trim

[baileyrd]

Hey guys,

I am trying to figure out an issue with my tilt and trim. I ordered and went through the Seloc book for my motor and still can't get it to work. About a week ago I was putting the boat in and remembered the owner I bought it from telling me he had to drain the fluid out to manually move the motor. I went through it and there was a short in the wiring causing it to not work right. So I fixed that and was getting ready to take it out. I raised it all the way up and started filling it with fluid. When I got done I tried to trim it down and nothing. I sounds like it's trying to but it just doesn't go down. I tried using the manual release but nothing happening there either. Finally the switch just stopped working. So I brought it home and ordered the book. Now comes this weekend and I start working on it, the switch started working again on it's own but the motor still wouldn't go up or down. I tried for about 10 minutes to get it to go up and down using the manual release to let out some air pressure, and then the switch just stopped working again. I'm lost and not sure where to go from here, hoping for some help. My trim is the Prestolite system with an Arco replacement on it.

 

[guy74]

Re: Locked Tilt and Trim

Was the motor all the way up when it locked up? I had my 60hp johnson lock all the way up once. I had raised it all the way up tight in the morning when it was cool, later when it was hotter out I tried to lower it but it wouldn't go down. Used the manual release to get it down, would go up with power but not down. I finally took a guess that it was because of the temperature difference, the fluid expanded, so I took the garden hose and sprayed the t&t unit down with water to cool it, only took a couple minutes til it worked again. Might be what you have going on.

 

[baileyrd]

Re: Locked Tilt and Trim

Afraid not! I tried that also tried using the tnt at different times of the day but to no avail. Any other advice?

 

[guy74]

Re: Locked Tilt and Trim

I work with hydraulic systems all the time in my job as a heavy equipment mechanic. I would guess that it has a poppetvalve in the system to keep the t&t from bleeding off and moving when it's not supposed to. On my 60hp when it jammed I couldn't get it to move until I sprayed it down with the garden hose( 45 degree water). Even though you might not think it will work it wouldn't cost much to try, maybe even pack ice around it. I have run into poppet and check valve on dozers and scapers that locked up when they were operated for just a little bit in the morning( like started and move a few feet then shutdown to get out of the way) then the double checkvalves would lock up when the oil warmed up. They won't release untill you loosen a hose and releave the pressure, somtimes the oil builds up so much pressure and jams them so tight that you have to bang on the checkvalve housings with a hammer to get them loose. If your t&t jammed when you had it all the way up, tight against the top, I would suspect a jammed checkvalve, I know that the t&t unit has them in it. The cooling it down has a good chance a freeing the valve, I don't think you want to try the 4lb hammer massage that I use on the big valves I work with. I hope you get it fixed, when mine locked up like that I didn't have any idea what to do, but thought about it for a while then decided theat the fact that it was over 100 degrees outside at the time that the heat might have been the cause. Didn't know cooling it down would work til I tried it.

 

[baileyrd]

Re: Locked Tilt and Trim

Well let me show how much of a newb I am. So as I was filling a bag of ice to try what guy74 was explaining, when I looked at a latch that was connected to a plate that had the track for hydraulics to move up and down and noticed that there was a notch where the motor apparently locks up. Once I noticed it I used the manual release and let it go and then I lifted the motor and the handle and was able to lower the motor. Thanks for the advice guy74.

 

[guy74]

Re: Locked Tilt and Trim

I'm glad you got it moving. However I don't think I helped you much. What size and year motor are you working on? That would help for any future questions you have.