SwervinMervin
Member
Hi. Over the winter I picked a used CMC Tilt/Trim assembly and installed it on my boat with a 73 Johnson 135hp. This unit works totally good and I'm very happy with it. But....
The tilt/trim unit creates a 5 or so inch engine setback when installed. This setback really screws with the geometry of the steering arm. It does work, but it's not good. I can turn left pretty good, but I'm definitely not able to turn right as sharp as I would like. The below pictures show the engine turned all the way to each extreme. I'm sure this is a very common issue with these aftermarket units.
The way I see it, there's a few ways to go:
1.) I wonder if Johnson ever made an extension for the 'steering bracket' where the boat steering rod connects to the motor.
1.) Install an offset onto the steering arm to correct the geometry. I wonder if such a thing exists?. I'm pretty sure I'm not qualified to be fabricating homemade steering parts.
2.) Relocate the 'steering bulkhead' (not sure if that's correct terminology, sorry) toward the back of the boat. I have to admit this solution does not excite me very much. I can think of a few things I could mess up attempting that. And really, it's just as bad as fabricating homemade steering parts.
I would appreciate any advice or shared experiences.
The tilt/trim unit creates a 5 or so inch engine setback when installed. This setback really screws with the geometry of the steering arm. It does work, but it's not good. I can turn left pretty good, but I'm definitely not able to turn right as sharp as I would like. The below pictures show the engine turned all the way to each extreme. I'm sure this is a very common issue with these aftermarket units.
The way I see it, there's a few ways to go:
1.) I wonder if Johnson ever made an extension for the 'steering bracket' where the boat steering rod connects to the motor.
1.) Install an offset onto the steering arm to correct the geometry. I wonder if such a thing exists?. I'm pretty sure I'm not qualified to be fabricating homemade steering parts.
2.) Relocate the 'steering bulkhead' (not sure if that's correct terminology, sorry) toward the back of the boat. I have to admit this solution does not excite me very much. I can think of a few things I could mess up attempting that. And really, it's just as bad as fabricating homemade steering parts.
I would appreciate any advice or shared experiences.
