Is it possible to retrofit a kill cord?

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Deleted User YDKXO

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3 yrs ago, I bought a new 3.2m Arimar tender with a 15hp Mercury o/b from a dealer in N Italy. It was all a bit of rush to get the thing delivered and fitted for our summer hols and it was not until we used it for the first time that I noticed there was no kill cord fitted. I hold my hands up and admit that I should have done something about this before now. Anyone know how I can fit a kill cord? There seems to be no obvious way of doing it as there doesn't seem to be any kind of kill cord mechanism on the engine itself. There is a toggle switch under the throttle controller which has to be switched on for the engine to fire. Could I use that in some way?
 
Deleted User said:
There is a toggle switch under the throttle controller which has to be switched on for the engine to fire. Could I use that in some way?
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On my Bayliner, the kill cord fits onto / slides over the toggle switch so that it deactivates the toggle switch when pulled. If you just look at the swich, one might not realise it. Do you have a picture of your switch perhaps? Hopefully a standard cord would fit onto it, saving you from having to fit another.

If not, you first need to establish whether the switch will kill the engine as expected. If so, it might be a simple matter of connecting an off the shelf kill switch with cord in series with it (assuming it works when connected, otherwise in parallel). If it does not kill it instantly, check the engine manual for how / where to wire in the kill function - almost certain that it has this function, I would imagine.
 
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EugeneR said:
On my Bayliner, the kill cord fits onto / slides over the toggle switch so that it deactivates the toggle switch when pulled. If you just look at the swich, one might not realise it.
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Exactly.
In most Merc o/b installations I've seen, the switch was as shown in the page below (actually taken from a Merc manual).
M, if the switch you mention is similar to this one, all you need is the cord.

StopSwitch_zps9e842369.jpg~original
 
MapisM said:
Exactly.
In most Merc o/b installations I've seen, the switch was as shown in the page below (actually taken from a Merc manual).
M, if the switch you mention is similar to this one, all you need is the cord.
Click to expand...
Yup from memory the switch looks like that but I'm wondering how that lanyard fitting works. On my boat, when you flick the switch to Run, it stays in position. How does attaching a lanyard fitting to it flick it to Off in the event that the lanyard is pulled?

Thanks for all replies btw
 
The hoop on one end of the lanyard is held in place when the switch is in the run position. If you pull it off the switch, it clicks the switch down into the off position killing the engine. Simples!
 
Deleted User said:
How does attaching a lanyard fitting to it flick it to Off in the event that the lanyard is pulled?
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Simple, if you look carefully at the drawing (or at your rib, obviously), you'll notice that when the switch is on, it gets enclosed (sort of) in the upper part of the plastic frame. This means that the plastic triangle at one end of the lanyard cord is "trapped", if you see what I mean.
When pulled, the cord can only come out of its "trap" by pulling the switch down. And obviously it does, 'cause the switch doesn't make much resistance.
It's really MUCH easier to understand the next time you'll have the opportunity to see the real thing, than by explaining it in written... :)

PS: ops, beaten to that. And probably with a simpler but more effective explanation... :o
 
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rhino_mac said:
The hoop on one end of the lanyard is held in place when the switch is in the run position. If you pull it off the switch, it clicks the switch down into the off position killing the engine. Simples!
Click to expand...

Ok thanks. Still not entirely convinced about the actual switch I have but I have bought the lanyard and I will try it. Many thanks for all replies
 
Deleted User said:
Ok thanks. Still not entirely convinced about the actual switch I have but I have bought the lanyard and I will try it. Many thanks for all replies
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As I feared that lanyard doesn't fit at all. This is a photo of the Run/Off switch. Anyone know how I can fit a kill cord to it?

P8021190.jpg
 
Deleted User said:
As I feared that lanyard doesn't fit at all. This is a photo of the Run/Off switch. Anyone know how I can fit a kill cord to it?
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I don't think you'll find a cord capable to cut the engine with that setup as it is.
In fact, the switch (or at least the round thing surrounding it) looks a bit dodgy.
Are you sure that it wasn't changed previously, possibly with some wrong parts?
 
That's been messed with-the switch is now where the ignition key would have been. The hood that says run on it used to have a switch in it.

Ideally you need a kill switch for a Commander 2000 control (thats what you've got I think) and a killcord. It'd prob be worth fitting the correct ignition as well if you're worried about someone possibly nicking it.
 
MapisM said:
Are you sure that it wasn't changed previously, possibly with some wrong parts?
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I bought the dinghy and engine new in 2010 so if the parts are wrong, it's the fault of the dodgy Italian dealer who sold it to me;)
 
that control unit looks exactly the same as mine - its a mariner/mercury throttle/gear control. it already has a kill cord device built in but it is not obvious. if you feel/look underneath the sticking out bit just below the on/off switch that says "run" (I think) there is a little lever. pull it down and it will snap open. put just the plastic wire loop only off any kill cord (ignore the black plastic bit of plastic) into the gap and push it back up. this snap action lever holds the kill cord in place. get the engine running as per normal and then pull the kill cord out and it should/will stop.
 
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Deleted User said:
I bought the dinghy and engine new in 2010 so if the parts are wrong, it's the fault of the dodgy Italian dealer who sold it to me;)
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Well, in your boots I would do the same thing you surely woul do with a dodgy British dealer: complain and ask to put it right! :)
I think Nos4r2 is spot on, btw.
 
kashurst said:
that control unit looks exactly the same as mine - its a mariner/mercury throttle/gear control. it already has a kill cord device built in but it is not obvious. if you feel/look underneath the sticking out bit just below the on/off switch that says "run" (I think) there is a little lever. pull it down and it will snap open. put just the plastic wire loop only off any kill cord (ignore the black plastic bit of plastic) into the gap and push it back up. this snap action lever holds the kill cord in place. get the engine running as per normal and then pull the kill cord out and it should/will stop.
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Brilliant kashurst, that's it! There's another little toggle switch behind that black sticky out bit that's so well hidden you can't even see it but I managed to prise it out with a screw driver and that seems to be the toggle for the kill cord. Many thanks to you and everybody else who responded. The forum works again:)
 
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