trailering with tilt lock lever

[Connie Fisher]

Take a look at

http://www.c-brats.com/modules.php?set_albumName=Lil-Sis&id=stick11&op=modload&name=gallery&file=index&include=view_photo.php

http://www.c-brats.com/modules.php?set_albumName=Lil-Sis&id=stick12&op=modload&name=gallery&file=index&include=view_photo.php

http://www.c-brats.com/modules.php?set_albumName=Lil-Sis&id=stick13&op=modload&name=gallery&file=index&include=view_photo.php

This solution came from the earlier discussion http://www.c-brats.com/viewtopic.php?t=17224

The motor is placed in the most up trim position, the wood is trimmed just enough to pass through and then down trim enough that the motor does not rock.

Regards,

Ron Fisher

[Sunbeam]

Well I'm a little less happy with the M-Y Wedge this morning. I'm not sure how or why it happened (as it did fine on a ~3,000-mile tow this summer), but when I checked the trailer at my stop last night, I noticed that the motor was sitting lower than usual (i.e. less tilted up). It seemed stable, so I left it alone (was parked) until I could investigate this morning in daylight. (By the way, the M-Y Wedge is sort of a tall, U-shaped piece of rubber that "clips" over the trim cylinder, after which you lower the motor down onto it and pinch it in place.)

Daylight revealed this:





Somewhat ironic given this discussion/thread yesterday.

As you can see, the Wedge somehow became not clipped onto the trim cylinder, and is (was) now wedged in between the cylinder and the transom. I don't know if it slipped off, and thus was not in column and then deformed, or if it deformed and thus slipped, or what (?). The engine was trimmed down onto it in the same way as it was for my earlier long tow (trimmed down until you feel it resisting and see it "stop").

With a bit of work, I was able to get it out (without putting my fingers in there!). It's permanently deformed now:



Luckily I don't see any damage to the transom, and the motor still tilts up and down as usual. I'll have my Yamaha mechanic check it over just to be sure (although when I called them this morning they said it was probably okay).

So, there I was (am), on the road and no more usable Wedge. I had originally cut a 1" dowel to fit in the two cast slots and lowered the engine down on that, but the shop said it wasn't a good idea and suggested a commercial product (not that they had one to sell me; I bought the M-Y Wedge on my own). Of course I was tripping over that piece of dowel ALL summer on the boat, but now I couldn't find it anywhere

I did have a ~1" x 2" plywood scrap that was just about 4" too long, so I cut it to the proper length to fit into those two cast slots with a hacksaw blade. Then I beveled the top edge to about 45º (plane and utility knife) so the motor would contact it on a larger surface area and not just the "sharp" edge. Once I was sure it fit well, I cut a couple of pieces of dense rubber from a piece I had onboard (slated to go under the fuel tanks), and taped them into position -- just to hold them there until the motor trapped them in place.

I lowered the motor onto the wood/rubber wedge and it seems happy and secure. It doesn't *seem* like it's going to crack the motor casting (I'll have to find out more about how/where they have cracked - maybe it was something that would be obviously "wrong" to do).

On the road again....

Sunbeam

PS: Because of this discussion I double-checked my Yamaha manual (last night, just before I discovered this issue, weirdly). All motors are probably not the same, but the manual for my F80 recommends trailering with the motor in the normal, down running position. It then says that if that is not possible due to ground clearance issues, then to support the motor in the up position with some (non-specified) aftermarket product (and not the tile support lever that the motor has, which is apparently just for when you are working on the engine or etc. and want to support it in the up position).

PPS to Thataway: I thought of something last night, which is that maybe the reason my Yamaha does not "want" to pivot from side-to-side is that I don't have hydraulic steering, but instead have cable steering. The cable is pretty stiff (when not boating), so maybe that holds it in position? Even with the Wedge failure, the motor stayed in the straight-ahead position.

[Sunbeam]

Update:
Seventy miles down the road, all looks well with "my" wedge, so that's good.

Also, in thinking about the problem with the M-Y Wedge, I developed a theory, which was that good-ol' "OE" (i.e. operator error) caused it

I couldn't remember the instructions from when I first got it (I mean, I did read them then, but after that it's just a piece of rubber so not very complicated), and so I started wondering if I had it on "backwards." That is, I was thinking that maybe the slit should have been toward the boat, and the solid side toward the motor. Then once it was "trapped" it could not have rotated, and (in my mind) the motor would be pressing it *onto* the trim cylinder vs. maybe pushing it off/out. This seemed to explain it all.

However, just before posting this, I went back to the M-Y Wedge site and read the instructions for my type of Wedge (Universal model), and it actually stresses to turn the Wedge so that the solid side is facing the boat (which would put the slit side aft, which is how I had it when it failed). This is from the instructions:

[Sunbeam]

I thought I had added a few photos of my homemade-on-the road wedge, but I guess I forgot to transfer them over from my album. This is what I came up with. The blue tape is just temporary to hold the rubber in place before the engine traps it. If this wedge turns into a more permanent feature I'll do something such as contact-cement it into place on the wood.







If anyone else who has a Yamaha F80 or F100 (or probably a 75 or 90) reads this and cares to share how they support the engine while trailering, I'm interested.

Sunbeam

[Captains Cat]

Sunbeam Said...

PS to Captain's Cat: I went and read your linked M-Y Wedge story and I was surprised that tilting down on the wedges ruined the tilt cylinders on (both) of your 115 hp Suzukis. I was careful to not "over trim" the motor down on the Wedge (although I then wondered if I had not "pressed it down" enough and that allowed it to slip out of place - although it was compressed), but still.... that was considerable damage to your engines. I would have thought the tilt motors would just have "whirred" or stopped. Maybe it's because the "tilt" part goes faster (thus maybe more powerful) than the "trim" part on some engines? (I know my Yamaha is like this; the Etec 90 on a boat I was on this summer just had the slower function for both trim and tilt.) At any rate, if you wouldn't mind shedding more light on how it happened, I'd be interested to hear.
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Ah, our learned Brat Friend, perhaps I can give back a little. Take a look at the stops on your engine in the down position. If they are like the Suzi, when you trim it all the way down, after the motor is done tilting and trimming, they have heavy stops on them. Then take a look at the top of the Trim/Tilt reservoir. Tap it.. It's made out of metal. If you hit it with a hammer (don't) it would dent easily. If you push it very hard with a very hard rubber M-Y wedge, it will crush it. Tilting it down to travel is simple. I did it several times. My trim/tilt runs at different speeds too, goes faster in the tilt position than trim position but I think when it reaches a certain position, it just shifts to the lower speed, probably with more pressure? Could be that the wedge is too long? It was just when I came back from an outer banks trip when I was up in the cockpit on the trailer with a flush bag ready to go on the ground under the engines that I didn't think to remove it from both engines from the traveling position and trimmed both engines down. The pressure, and it is considerable, from the hard M-Y wedge, crushed both of those metal reservoirs.

And that's what caused it. Until I get younger instead of older and more forgetful, I'll never use one again. It's not a bad product in the right hands.

Charlie

[Sunbeam]

Thanks for the detail. I now understand how it could happen. I'll have to look at my engine there just to see how it compares to what you're describing.

Just checked my homemade wedge again and all's still well. If it continues this solidly, I may end up sticking with "my" wedge.

Sunbeam

[thataway]

We do a "walk around" every two hours. This is along with out stretch the legs, walk the dog (if you have one), use the IR thermometer on the hubs, tires and disc brakes, thump the tires, and look at every piece of running gear, including the MY wedge. If the wedge deformed to this extent, it makes me think that there was excessive force on it. I have over 12,000 miles on the Wedge that Charlie gave me--I assume it was one of the two which ruined his trim system on the Suzuki, and it is still working well. I just bring the cyl down to contact, not to compression. The other issues why the cyl leaked to allow that much pressure on the MY wedge?

Yes, the "non feed back steering" will not allow turning of the outboard.

[Sunbeam]

[hardee]

From Ron Fisher's picture in his post above:


Ron, that is exactly like the wooden blocks I am using, only mine are a bit beefier. No extra padding there, just bare wood, held in place with the OB down pressure onto the sticks. Everything seems to stay in place. Maybe it is because my engines are smaller and lighter. (Hmmmmm, may be another advantage of twins)

Harvey
SleepyC

[Sunbeam]

Interesting to see how the wood fits on the various engines. On mine I have it "around the corner" on the vertical part, but that's because there are two indents there (on the boat-side of the motor casting) that nicely hold the wood.

I'll have to see how it continues to ride, but so far I'm liking my wider, wood-and-rubber wedge better than the central commercial one (of course I was also happy with the commercial wedge before it slipped out of place, and if it hadn't done that, I would still be trailering merrily along with it).

[Captains Cat]

[Connie Fisher]

Harvey,

The motor pictured is a Honda forty, four stroke.

This same stick started our beefier when it was used on the Honda ninety that we hauled from Lake Havasue back to Iowa, last January.

The motor was placed in the most “up” position and I started band saw whittling until the stick would pass through.

Added a little down to stop any rocking etc.

I really do not know the “scientifics” here, but this approach seems logical and worked for us.

Regards,

Ron Fisher
_________________
1983 22' Classic, (R-Dory) sold April 2011
1990 16' Angler, (Lil Sis) sold January 2012
2006 16' Angler, (Gra-C) sold November 2012
2004 19' Angler, (Game On) purchased January 2012

"We Have Met The Enemy and He Is Us"

[C-WEED]

Hi Sunbeam. I have the Yamaha F80/F100. One day I noticed my lift lock bent out to the point where it slipped off the face and bound on the corner of the bracket. I raised the motor full up and hammered it back straight. That metal is very soft. I have tried dowels, 2x4's, metal all-thread and such and they all fell out dangling on the lanyard in a short distance. In a rush to head to the lake one day I ran to the garage and grabbed what seemed to be made for just this task. I had been wanting to add it to the Best Ideas for under $20, but just never got around to it.

I just loaded a few pictures for you on page 3 of my album. I would post here but don't know how. It is known as a Stanley (brand) tool or Stanley pry-bar. Can be had at any hardware for under $20. Others brands available now. Fits right in perfect ahead of the lift cylinder so it is about impossible to fall out. Recommend lanyard anyway. The leaf spring shape allows the bar to cradle and has a dab of flex so all is well.

[Sunbeam]

[colbysmith]

Hm...all this talk about the wedge... I trailer my c-22 with the Merc 115 all the way down. I still have plenty of clearance. I do place it in gear to keep the prop from spinning in the wind. Is there any problems doing it this way? Colby