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Swapping out tilt and trim 85hp

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wjcap4

Contributing Member
Ok,my old 1975 85hp merc died. I'm looking to take the tilt and trim cylinders ( 4 hose type ) off and put them on a 1974 85hp merc. I heard I can leave the mount on the boat with the hydraulic cylinders, and swap it out that way. Is this correct?
 
fastjeff said:
Yeah, but I believe the power head has to come off.

Jeff
Click to expand...
Can you explain that more. I haven't got them side by side yet to see what I'm up against. Is this a fairly easy fix or am I into a big deal. I thought I'd be taking maybe 4 bolts apart. Are you saying it would be easier with everything off the boat?
 
What Jeff is saying is to change the complete saddle,the powerhead has to come off to access the top two mounting bolts.
I have done this on a'69Merc800 ,retaining the existing brackets,attaching the two ram brackets,bolting to the shock absorber mounts and the ram brackets bolted to the transom.I eventually changed the saddle to the '79 115 that the tilt rams belonged to.
Just make sure that the rams are parallel,use spacers if necessary.
Pic 1 is using the '69 saddle and before I painted her up,transferred her back onto the '79 115 saddle and on to my project restoration,pic 2 is her tarted up:D
 

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fastjeff said:
Translation: It's a BIG job!

Jeff
Click to expand...
It is,if he swaps the saddle,skinned knuckles,swear box full to the gills,wrung bolts,new exhaust gaskets,threat of divorce, long day.......s.:DBut if he bolts the ram brackets on to the top shock absorber extrusion and the ram on the bottom on the saddle,not forgetting to bolt the brackets to the transom,it will work.
I ran it this way on "NO-KIT",top pic,for a year until I got "Murphys' Law",bottom pic,up and running and only changed the saddle when I was stripping the auld Merc for painting.
 
So after reading Haventaclue's last post, I set out to attempt the switch. I removed the old motor completely off the boat. I unbolted the hydraulic cylinders from the cylinder brackets. Now I had to get the cylinder brackets off the motor mounting bracket. With some heat, the top main bolts came apart. The lower 5/16" aluminum nuts came off easy, but the threaded rod would not come out of the sleeve between the 2 sides. I eventually had to saw between the cylinder brackets and the motor mounting bracket to get them off. Once on the ground, I heated the 5/16" rods and used a punch to force them out of the cylinder brackets. The new motor came apart relatively easy. I put the cylinder mounts on, and installed a stainless 5/16" rod in place of the old aluminum one. I couldn't use the new motors rod because of the different lengths between them. I knew this when I cut the old one. I mounted all to the boat. I hooked up the hydraulic hoses, wires to power the pump, and tested. All worked as it should. I have since topped off the pump fluid, hooked up the motor to my old control, put the motor in a tank, primed the gas, and it started right up and purred! Tomorrow is the test on the water. Thank you all for the help, especially Haventaclue!
 
Good job.Patience is a virtue.Pity I don't have any :D
I had to use the saw on the same rod.Unfortunately I didn't have a Home Depot or Sears to hand and local metal suppliers don't keep a very varied stock
 
Got the rod in an Ace Hardware Store in Saugerties, NY. (the next town over). They have a great supply of everything. Took the boat out yesterday, and all worked great! Got the new motor for $450, and it started right up, every time. I even gained a mile per hour, compared to my old one. THE OLD Basstracker lives again! You guys are great! This site is great! Stay well.
 
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