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BF50A tilt trouble

M

massk

New member
Hi,

Got an BF50A -03, couple of days ago I was planning to go boating, I was about to lower the engine into the water but noticed that it was struggling to go down, very slow. Got it down a bit and it was like it wasnt getting enough power. Inital taught was that perhaps the battery was low on power. Got the motor started, no problem there but the tilt was not working. Measured the battery and it was low on charge so I had it on charging overnight, thinking that wierd that if the battery is low, how could the engine start. Battery charged but still the same problem. You can hear the clicking sound when trying to lower/raise it but nothing happens.

Any ideas? Is the tilt motor broken?
 
Hi,
If you're on a trailer It's pretty easy to test the tilt motor by simply unplugging the pigtail from the harness and use jumper wires to apply power and ground directly to the unit motor.

You just put the 12volt "hot" wire to one side of the plug and touch the negative "ground" wire to the other wire and see what it does.

Then, simply reverse the connections to power the motor in the opposite direction. You can't mess it up unless you put a finger or limb in a pinch point.

If the trim doesn't work normally doing this then you've isolated the problem to the trim unit. It's probably either a motor that needs new brushes or you could have a hydraulic issue. Hopefully it's the motor. They are relatively easy to fix if dry inside.

But, if the trim functions normally doing this test the problem is going to be with the wiring harness, wire connections, trim switch or the tilt relay up top.

The hardest part is taking the battery out of the boat or your car to put next the outboard or fabricating jumper wires with alligator clips long enough to reach. Paper clips make good "probe" tools for connecting to the plug connector.

I go with the long wires and alligator clips.

Also my method isn't the only way but, like Mr. Sinatra, it's....
....cue the music....
....~ "My Way"~
;>)

Good luck.
 
Hi, me again....

I probably should have told you to check the fuse straight off. While it IS providing SOME voltage, there's always the chance that there's a bit of corrosion causing resistance.
Don't just look at it, take it out and clean the tips before putting it back in the holder.

Corrosion on an outboard this old is very common and those tilt relays do fail.

Good luck.
 
jgmo said:
Hi,
If you're on a trailer It's pretty easy to test the tilt motor by simply unplugging the pigtail from the harness and use jumper wires to apply power and ground directly to the unit motor.

You just put the 12volt "hot" wire to one side of the plug and touch the negative "ground" wire to the other wire and see what it does.

Then, simply reverse the connections to power the motor in the opposite direction. You can't mess it up unless you put a finger or limb in a pinch point.

If the trim doesn't work normally doing this then you've isolated the problem to the trim unit. It's probably either a motor that needs new brushes or you could have a hydraulic issue. Hopefully it's the motor. They are relatively easy to fix if dry inside.

But, if the trim functions normally doing this test the problem is going to be with the wiring harness, wire connections, trim switch or the tilt relay up top.

The hardest part is taking the battery out of the boat or your car to put next the outboard or fabricating jumper wires with alligator clips long enough to reach. Paper clips make good "probe" tools for connecting to the plug connector.

I go with the long wires and alligator clips.

Also my method isn't the only way but, like Mr. Sinatra, it's....
....cue the music....
....~ "My Way"~
;>)

Good luck.
Click to expand...
Thanks for the answer!

Yeah it would be easier if I had the boat on a trailer, its in the water now and I'll have to figure out how to get it onto the trailer, without damaging any other parts..

Just as an clarification, "They are relatively easy to fix if dry inside", do you mean replacement or is it possible to fix the motor itself?

Also, writing this I noticed your other message, thanks for that. Could you point me in the direction where the fuse is at? Couldnt find it any manuals etc that I at least have.

Thanks
 
Well, hopefully you can just release the manual valve to tilt it back up to trailer it. Have you ever used the manual valve?

I haven't worked on this outboard so I can't give detailed directions as to where to find the fuses. In the link below see items 42.

Honda Outboard 50HP OEM Parts Diagram for Regulator + Remote Control Cable | Boats.net

Buy OEM Parts for Honda Outboard 50HP Regulator + Remote Control Cable Diagram
www.boats.net www.boats.net

It appears that, since they are both at the terminus of the starter cable assembly (item 7), then they should be near the starter and starter magnetic solenoid.

But, it would appear that I misspoke about the trim motor.

Looks like the brushes aren't available anymore nor is the motor assembly either.

The same goes for the relay assembly. Sheesh!

But there are work arounds for pretty much everything including finding what you need on ebay.

There is a guy here, chawk_man that does know a good place to buy aftermarket tilt motors so maybe he can help you with that. He is very helpful and friendly.

I'm lucky that I live close to an old fashioned hardware store that stocks drawers full of small motor brushes. If I need some I just go there and find whatever is configured close and then do a little cutting/filing to make them fit.
And, I would just build a new relay assembly if I had to.
That's not easy for everyone though.

So if you can find an aftermarket replacement that might be best if your motor is shot.

Motor part number is (or was)

36120-ZV5-822

No matter what you find, don't get discouraged. That outboard is well worth the effort. I will try and help you if at all possible and there are folks here that have a wealth of knowledge and want to help.
 
I wouldn't be too concerned about the motor internals before confirming that the motor has solid power going to it. More likely it has a bad connection or ground...

The fuse is up near the starter...
 
Thanks for the replys, really much appriciated!

The 15A fuse seems to be be okay, cleaned it aswell. Sometimes when I press the tilt up or down it makes a sound that sounds like the motor is trying to do something, but I cannot hear it all the time. A bit windy today so the waves are blocking abit of the sound. Does the engine have one ground or is it split into multiple? Any ideas where it would usally be? I'm more mechanical that electrical so not my strong suite so to say.

The manual screw for the tilt is just below the waterlevel so a bit tricky to reach (and see)
 
I wonder if you might lash a couple of wood blocks to the rear of the trailer bunks and back into the water a little deeper than usual.

Float her on to the trailer, winch her forward into the V block and slowly pull forward making sure the stern is held high enough so the gearcase clears the road?

You could then pull up enough to release the manual valve, tilt up and lock the outboard, then re-float to remove the blocks.

Having someone you trust to drive or keep watch would ease the worry.
 
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