H240 motor mount

[jblersch]

I finally took the plunge and replaced my old outboard on my 2001 240 with a new Mercury 8 4-stroke with electric start. Installed it today and love the way it runs and maneuvers the boat.

One problem, though... (Isn't that always the case?)... the tiller handle on the motor is much longer than on my old motor. This is great for ease of operation in the cockpit. But, tilting the motor up so the shaft is out of the water is very tricky as the motor's tiller handle rams into the boat. Even more awkward is that to release the locking mechanism, I must pull he motor all the way up, which means I have to swing the motor all the way to one side in order to provide enough room for the handle. It works - sort of - it's just very awkward and uncomfortable.

I'm wondering if any others have had a similar problem and have ideas? Can I get something like a Garelick stationary mount and attach it to my current mount? This would give me the needed clearance, but would push the motor even further away from the cockpit, which is already a bit of a stretch in the 240. Or, would a lifting mount be better?

Any ideas would be appreciated! Thanks,
Jeff

 

[isaksp00]

My H23 came with a lifting mount, and I pull it up before I tilt the motor - with my Honda 8HP, that is enough to clear the tiller. Of course, I don't know how my tiller length compares to yours.
Peter

 

[caverun]

If it is only a matter of a few inches, I would consider enlarging the opening in the fuel locker so the handle can clear. The handle on my Honda 8hp also hits the hull when tilting, but it is close enough to fit by turning the motor.
Adding another mount to the exisiting mount might cause problems by increasing the leverage the motor exerts on the mounting bolts in the hull.

 

[jblersch]

Caverun,
That might work pretty well. I think increasing the height of that opening by a couple of inches would do it. Thanks for the idea. Any ideas what you might use to make the opening larger? I'm not an extremely handy guy and am always a little hesitant because I'm afraid I'll cause more problems!

 

[caverun]

I'm no expert, but the fiberglass there is pretty thin, so a reciprocating saw with a fine-tooth blade would probably work well. Chipping of the gel coat edges might be a problem- someone may have tips for preventing that. You will need to decide if you will enlarge it all the way across, or just add a notch for the tiller. All the way across might look cleaner and more "factory". Either way, I would drill holes at the corners of the new opening so you have nice rounded corners, and don't have to try that with the saw.
I'm sure others with have additional advice-

 

[isaksp00]

You may want to try a cutting bit in a rotary tool like a Dremel, which may cut more cleanly than a jigsaw blade. Not knowing your boat, I assume you will also want to finish off the cut edge somehow, presumably similarly to what is already there.

 

[Crazy Dave Condon]

Before you do anything, suggest that you take a photo and post so we can see it more clearly and advise on alternative possibilities

 

[jblersch]

Thanks guys - I'll snap a photo next time I'm at the lake and post. This would definitely be an off-season project!

 

[cephius (Dave)]

Most outboard tillers can rotate straight up, 90 degrees from the normal operating position. I take it there is some restriction that prevents you from pushing it up out of the way before tilting the motor?

Usually on the H240 and H260 the outboard is installed with the tiller removed and a remote throttle is added. The motor is then linked to the rudder.

 

[Crazy Dave Condon]

As a dealer, I never advocated taking the tiller handle off the motor in the event the tiller to motor connector should break particularly coming into the slip and sometimes the tiller with that motor to rudder connection is removed making it easier to steer into a sharp turn slip.

It has been some time but before we go to much further, there should be a photo posted of the specific motor and tiller so we can best advise better on solutions to the problem unless someone has that specific motor and tiller. I do not advise removing fiberglass at this time until a photo is posted.