Re: manual tilt and trim
Ok, here's my suggestion. An OMC master tech told me to do this, and it worked great, and still does. What I used was a piece of round steel bar, probably like 1/2" diameter or so. You want it to fit in the holes for the pin but not too tight so you can't swing it. I will attempt some pics or maybe a short vid later for you if I can get my boat out of the garage to do it.
Take the round bar and bend one end into a 90 degree, leaving only about 1" or so on that end. You will need to stick that end in a pin hole on the bracket. Either have someone help you do this or guesstimate. I guesstimated and it was right on. Picture a height you think would be good for trailering or running in shallow water (I'm in FL, so shallow water is everywhere and something I have to contend with). Mark that on the rod with a sharpie. The next bend you will do is going to be in the same direction as the first one, and another 90 degrees. After that step is done, put it up to your bracket so you can mark the rod for the next bend. We need to make sure it's wide enough to go around the bracket. Once marked, bend it another 90 degrees (this is going to end up looking like a weird oval/rectangle, just missing a piece). Once you have that 3rd one done, the 4th is easy. Just make sure that side is as long as the other, and bend the final 90 degree bend. When it's done you should be able to slide one end into your motor bracket where the pin fits (if it's like mine you have 4-5 holes to choose from, so pick one hole higher than the pin). The other end you should be able to mark so you can cut it. You don't want it too short or it will fall out, too long and your motor will rest on it instead of the pin. You want to make sure you will have to stick one end in, then pull the "bracket" we just made slightly to get it to go around the motor bracket and pop into the corresponding hole on the other side. I know my description probably sucks, as well as my instructions, but I will try to take a pic of mine later and hopefully it will help out. I have a rope tied to mine, so from inside the boat I can pull the motor up with one hand, and with the other I can grab the rope, swing the "bracket" into place, then lower the motor down onto it. It will rest on the "tilt bracket" just like it does on the pin, and will allow use in shallow water, or when getting the boat out of the water.
If you are lost, just ask. Since it's just plain steel, it won't be pretty for long, but mine has been in use in saltwater for well over 2 years now, and although it's rusty, it still works just fine.
