2002 Honda 9.9 Throttle Friction Plate Rattle

I have a 2002 kicker that runs very well albeit a little cold blooded until it warms up. Once I quit using ethanol fuel I no longer had carb plugging problmes. The only complaint I have had with this motor is an annoying rattle from the throttle handle while I'm trolling at low speeds. I've tried all sorts of measures but nothing really has worked to stop it other than holding your hand tight around the throttle grip. I found somewhere that this might have been a TSB or replacement issue but I never found the published bulletin to verify and I didn't acquire this motor until it was 8 years old. I don't use the throttle handle much as I have a pro-trollmaster that connects directly to the throttle at the carb. The friction knob doesn't tighten very tight before it will click and then loosen up before tightening again but not completely tight. I went online this week and found that the original throttle knob and friction plate have been updated with new part numbers. I had them shipped and installed it last night. The friction knob seems to be able to tighten down much tighter than the original unit. I'm hoping this may have solved the rattle problem. I'm posting to see if others have had this problem and if it solved my problem I wanted to let others know what I may have found.

Yes there was a Service Bulletin back in 2002 that addressed the friction issue. Of course, the motor is well out of warranty at this point. I have noticed rattles in the handle of the 8's and 9.9's while testing. Normally, tightening the friction grip takes care of it.

Mike

There's no chance it is running on just one cylinder is there? These engines DO start AND run rather well on one cylinder and, of course, that would cause it to have a heavier than normal vibration. I thought I would mention it since you seem to only use it for trolling and I've seen more than one person overlook a dead miss on Honda twins.

It happens!

Just sayin'

P.S. If you ONLY use it to troll, take a few minutes to open it up and work it good on each outing to keep it from loading up and fouling the cylinders with carbon.