Hydraulics stuck, propeller wont move

[jjuriga]

I have a 1987 v20 with a 305 inboard. My hydraulics are stuck, and will not move the propeller up so I can travel with it. Any ideas on how to manually do it - or at least point me in the right direction?

Thanks in advance!!

[scook]

Unbolt the rams, rig a 4x4 from whatever you can tie it down to (on my cuddy it would probably be the seats or the cabin) in front, cantilever it over the stearn (tie it laterally to the side cleats so it stays in the middle) and tie the outdrive up to it. Use good rope and if you're not good with knots, get help from someone who is.

That's what I would do - might give you other ideas. Good luck.

[jjuriga]

thanks a lot for your reply man!! I've attached a photo of my propeller to this post. i also circled what I think youre talking about... am I correct?

[cfelton]

Will the trim pump run? Mine was stuck, tapped it really lightly and it started up. Took the motor apart and cleaned the brushes and holders and now it runs fine.

[scook]

A technical point - the propeller is the shiny thing with the blades at the bottom. The whole unit that you want to raise up is called the out-drive.

Yes - you have the ram circled. On my boat, after I got it (not running) and did a bunch of engine work and replaced all of the rubber, the out-drive wouldn't go down and I had to get the rams rebuilt (something I didn't feel compentent to do). Cfelton has a good suggestion - your rams may be fine and the hydraulic pump just isn't working. You should hear an electric motor whining when you work the control to raise or lower the out-drive. If you don't hear it, you could have a loose connection, a bad fuse or what cfelton had and need to work over the pump motor, or there could be a problem with the pump. I had a loose connection in the fuse holder once and got lucky - I found it and didn't have to give up that day on the water.

If you decide to just tie the thing up to get it home, you should be able to only unbolt the back end of the rams and tie them up out of the way with some heavy twine.

Something about this site - we all have some knowledge and no one here will knowingly give you bad advice. There are two guys you need to listen go if they give you a response: Spareparts and Ferminator - they are pros and really know what they are takling about. If one of them ever disagrees with anythjng I say, forget what I said.
Let us know how it goes.

[jjuriga]

Yea, I'm a newbie with the boat. In fact, I got it in the spring and got busy with work... go figure. I'm towing it from upstate NY down to Ft Lauderdale in a couple weeks... I figured there was a name other than propeller!! I appreciate anyone who takes the time to talk to me and explain things... means a lot.

Anyways, the boat is not actually running at this time. Got the boat off my fiancee's grandfather, and he was helping me earlier this year with it - going over the little issues it used to have. One of them was the hydraulics... said you had to tinker with it a bit to get it to work. Now its cold as hell up here and I figure I'd get it home and work on it there.

[bradford]

Could be low on trim fluid as well.

Lots of people to offer free real world advice here, and I agree with Scook, listen to Spare and Ferm. They will save you hundreds if not thousands not to mention your boat sitting at a repair shop for weeks on end to fix a small problem.

[Destroyer]

Sometimes I just cannot figure out this website. I swear to God, I made a long, detailed post right after Scooks first post, explaining what to look for and how to fix it. Yet when I look for that post it's not here. This is not the first time this has happened either... there are at least 4 other posts that have disappeared the same way.... <sigh>

Ok, end of rant.

Most of what I said has since been said by other people, so I'll just skim over it. First, check that the trim motor runs when you turn the switch or push the button to make it work. If it doesn't run, check for corroded connections, or a blown fuse. Make sure you have electricity to the unit. Next, if you have power but it still doesn't work check the motor itself. Like Cfelton said, it might be the brushes or the motor might be bound up from just sitting. Make sure it turns freely.
If the motor runs, make sure you have enough fluid in the reservoir. Lack of fluid will cause air to enter the lines and stop the rams from working. Add fluid as necessary.
If you have fluid, check for leaks in your hoses.
If there are no leaks check the rams themselves to make sure nothing is binding them. When they are unbolted, you should be able to pull each piston rod out and push it back in manually. If they move freely then check that your outdrive is not stuck. You should be able to lift it manually when the rams are unbolted from it.

Good luck with your project. As has been echoed by others, pay attention to anything that Spareparts or Thefermanator might tell you. They do this stuff for a living and have a wealth of knowledge that they share freely.