morse control neutral button sticking

smeaks

smeaks

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The neautral button on the ceter of my morse type control dpresses and stays in when the nutral position is reached the button no longer pops out. I find that tapping it and moving the lever helped but it is getting worse. I removed the handle and worked the button having sprayed it wioth release agent and applied a dry film lubricant spray. I suspect that a spring is no longer providing sufficient force or a burr is preventing it disengainig. Are these easy to open up? is there an exploded view? can I replace it with a new one using the old cables. At the moment I am starting by putting the engine in gear however this can not be good for the starter motor long term.

thanks for any advice.
 
I have this problem on my morse control as well;I've been told that I can get the button as a spare but cannot remember where I bought the control,somewhere on the Hamble Industrial Estate. I'm going on the boat tomorrow and will check the original paperwork for it that will give the maker and possibly the agent's name too.
My engine starts up ok with the lever in the neutral position whether the button is in or out,neeeding no advance of the throttle and turning the key to glowplug for 5-10 seconds, but I have to pull the button out with a small pair of pliers to engage at the neutral position.
Time I got it sorted too!

ianat182
 
Pop the red 'button' off and I bet it works ok! it's just a cover for the actual button and tends to stick and cause this problem.
 
I had the same problem. I removed the red plastic cap, gave the inside works a good spray with WD40, then carefully rubbed down some roughness on the outside of the red cap and refitted it. It has worked perfectly since then, 2 seasons.
 
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If it is a Volvo red button, they do swell and stick eventually, and they are replaceable. Strip down the control and give it plenty of lubrication.
 
had this problem with an older version of the Morse single lever earlier this year. The chrome had corroded internally and little grains of salt had jammed it. A bit of hot water, followed by Duck Oil / WD40 gave a little movement which gradually eased it to full working order. It does need to be taken to pieces and polished clear of the corrosion though.
 
Me too! Every now and then I soak it in WD40 and it works better for a while, but that isn't really an appropriate lubricant. I had a look on the Teleflex morse website and you can download manuals for their single lever controls. They all appear to be similar in design, even if outwardly different. I'm going to try removing the assembly and getting some 3 in 1 or maybe some grease into it - but getting the lever off the pedestal looks like being the tricky bit in my case!

Rob.
 
rhumlady said:
Pop the red 'button' off and I bet it works ok! it's just a cover for the actual button and tends to stick and cause this problem.
Click to expand...

Same problem as others.How does the red button come off? Do you just pull it off with pliers or what?
 
Happened to me a while back - couldn't get back to neutral. Took it apart (easy) and found it was full of dried grease and salt. Cleaned it up, put it back together and it didn't work any better so I bought a new one. Not expensive compared to charging into the pontoon coz I couldn't take the boat out of gear. Still have a box of new bits from around the back which I didn't bother to swap out.

Got mine from Norris of Isleworth. They still do them.
 
Mine was sticking and I tried all the spraying oil type solutions(the plastic cover to the red button was already off) but to no avail.I bit the bullet and had a new complete lever fitted.Glad I did because the old one was really rusty inside and about to fall apart.It was the original fitting from1984.
 
peteK said:
Same problem as others.How does the red button come off? Do you just pull it off with pliers or what?
Click to expand...

Just use a tiny screwdriver to lever it out. The lever on mine - Volvo I think - is held on with a small allen screw underneath, it is then easy to pull off. This allows access to the works to spray your chosen lubricant around.
 
Previously I have: 1) removed the plastic cover off the button (first thoughts this was jamming up) 2) cleaned all out from outside 3) squirted light oil into the gubbins. I find that the button goes in but then when passing through neutral does not pop back out. I keep a folding knife in the cockpit anyway but its greatest use of late has been persuading this bugger to come back out. Even then it relies on alot of "light" tapping and banging on the lever (cant be good) till it pops out. I suspect there must be a slot and key that the spring pushes the button and attached shaft back out into as it aligns. Either the spring is tired or the running sufaces are binding. How does it come apart? I presume the plate with the flat head screw on the back reveals all.
 
Mine has an allen key grub srew on the boss at the base of the lever (opposite side from the lever arm). Take this out and then pull the lever off the splined shaft. When I got the boat getting the lever off the first time was a struggle but tapping with two small hammers both sides of the boss at the same time released it. Once the lever is off the plastic cover can be prised off with a screwdriver. Under the plastic cover there is a small hole blocked with another grub screw and marked "oil". Take out the grub screw and dribble some oil into the hole then work the button in and out until it moves easily. Don't forget some grease on the splines before putting the lever back on. I threw away the red cover on the button 11 years ago and i've oiled it as described above once a year since then with no further problems.
 
DJE said:
Mine has an allen key grub srew on the boss at the base of the lever (opposite side from the lever arm). Take this out and then pull the lever off the splined shaft. When I got the boat getting the lever off the first time was a struggle but tapping with two small hammers both sides of the boss at the same time released it. Once the lever is off the plastic cover can be prised off with a screwdriver. Under the plastic cover there is a small hole blocked with another grub screw and marked "oil". Take out the grub screw and dribble some oil into the hole then work the button in and out until it moves easily. Don't forget some grease on the splines before putting the lever back on. I threw away the red cover on the button 11 years ago and i've oiled it as described above once a year since then with no further problems.
Click to expand...

Just got back from the boat did just this applied 3 in 1 spray then regular light lube... worked the button and now perfect!! I love this forum thanks for the great advice.
 
Late getting back to this thread, but checked the paperwork for my throttle lever and it is a TX brand unit, Type B300, however it gives no instructions on disassembling the "neutral positioning button" or indeed any part numbers for the parts; it is a German unit so half German and English instructions on the leaflets.

ianat182
 
Another late reply - but if you have the Teleflex Morse single lever control like the one at this URL... then the red button just pulls off. I seem to remember that it is made of a plastic that expands with age, sun and sea water. Once the plastic has expanded and cracked a little, it fills the hole and the sprung button underneath is not powerful enough to push the red button back out again.

http://www.go2marine.com/product.do?no=86333F

You should be able to buy them from a chandlery as a single part... Any chandlery should be able to get them for you but they can only get them in packs of ten!

They will possibly order a pack of ten and then charge you (if you're lucky) less than a pound for a single button.
 
BTW - Littlehampton Chandlery ordered a pack of ten red buttons (at my request) a couple of years ago. They sold two to me so the rest are probably still sitting on their shelf.
 
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