Thanks and a 280 trim question

"I recently acquired a 1968 We

"I recently acquired a 1968 Wellcraft 19' cuddy with an AQ125a and 280 drive. By searching this forum I was able to track down a no start problem that the previous owner had given up on. Turns out it was mis-wiring at the helm and a bad start relay. So, thank you to all of the contributors here.

Now I'm trying to straighten out the trim (hydraulic trim, not tilt) system. First off, the drive responds the opposite of what you would expect. Up switch and drive goes down and vice-versa. I suppose that's just a wire swap at the helm or at the pump? The panel where the up/down switch is located has a push-buuton next to the switch where the manual normaly shows the indicator light. In looking at the wiring diagram I can see that there is a "By-Pass" switch in the circuit so I guess this is it. The digram also shows a "Limit Switch" that I can not seem to locate on the boat. Where should I be looking? If I try the the trim switch and it doesn't operate, then pressing the by-paas causes it to work. However, there doesn't seem to be any logic to what range the limit switch kicks in. It seems like sometimes the trim switch will work without the overide at a certain tilt position and sometimes not. At any rate it will always work when the bypass is pressed but I'd like to understand this better. BTW, the trim gage is not working. Is that tied in somehow?

I have the Seloc manual but it is very skimpy on content on the power trim.

Thanks in advance this time...

Steve P."

"The trim system will have a s

"The trim system will have a sender (Guage) and a switch (limit). The trim sender is what operates the Guage on the dash. Problems are (normally) caused bad wire deterioration. The trim limit switch lets you operate the trim while under way to trim the boat for the best speed, economy and a comfortable ride in changing seas. If the limit is adjusted correctly you should always begin planing at full down trim. When the boat comes on plane trim bow up to get the boat out of the water for economy and speed. The limit switch will allow for about 27 deg. of trim. (don't quote me on the # of deg). The bypass allows you to trim the drive all the way up for towing. NEVER run the engine with drive higher than the trim limit will allow with out the bypass. This can and normally will damage the u-joints."

"On my SP-A drive (essenti

"On my SP-A drive (essentially a 290 drive) I can trim from -7 degrees (towards the transom) to +8 degress (out). Past that, the by-pass needs to be pushed in order to tilt/lift the drive.

You can still run the drive when it is even more tilted (this is also by Volvo called "beach" position), but only at slow speed for crossing shallow waters. On the 290 drive (and liklely on the 280T drive), the total trim/tilt angle is 50 degrees.

Where the actual limit triggering the bypass is, depends on how the trim indicator was adjusted/installed since the actual "blocking" is inside the electronic trim indicator, and not on the drive."