Offshore controls

[phebus]

What is the advantage of Offshore controls (throttle/shifter) in a river/lake boat, besides the cool factor?

[LHC Kirby]

Well, you can move two handles instead of one. :D

[rivercrazy]

Much more precise shifting and throttle settings. And when you shift into gear your not apt to give the boat too much throttle. The offshore set up feels tight and precise. The merc shifter feels loose, clunky, and poorly made.
The disadvantage to the offshore controls is its possible to shift into gear with the throttle below idle. Anything above about 1K rpm and you risk O/D damage. The higher the rpm's the greater the risk of damage...

[Outnumbered]

I was having chronic shift problems with my old OMC controls. Over-throwing the neutral to in-gear or grinding into gear from trying to avoid over-throwing :mad:. I looked at all the aftermarket stuff available and most of it was junk. For about $200-300 more I got a nice Gaffrig two-handle and some new cables--problems solved. Very positive feel and more travel in the throttle lever for more precise speed control. Comes in handy while skiing/boarding. The hardest thing to get used to is docking. But once you do it a few times its all good.
OL

[DeltaSigBoater]

Originally posted by rivercrazy
The disadvantage to the offshore controls is its possible to shift into gear with the throttle below idle. Anything above about 1K rpm and you risk O/D damage. The higher the rpm's the greater the risk of damage...
Not to mention one can accidentally shift with the engine out of gear.
Edit: Not to mention one can accidentally shift the engine out of gear.

[Outnumbered]

Originally posted by DeltaSigBoater
Not to mention one can accidentally shift with the engine out of gear.
What do you mean?

[DeltaSigBoater]

Originally posted by Old Lavey
What do you mean?
Say you're going along about 3kRPMs, you goto slow down & instead of pulling back on the throttle, you pull back on the shifter.

[Outnumbered]

Originally posted by DeltaSigBoater
Say you're going along about 3kRPMs, you goto slow down & instead of pulling back on the throttle, you pull back on the shifter.
In that case it would already be in gear. But I can tell you that you would have to be pretty lame to do that because the handles are not the same size or in the same position.
OL

[DeltaSigBoater]

Originally posted by Old Lavey
In that case it would already be in gear. But I can tell you that you would have to be pretty lame to do that because the handles are not the same size or in the same position.
OL
True, but I've heard rumors of it happening.
On my boston whaler i have seperate throttle & shift controls. I have never done it, but i was teaching a 'former' friend of mine to dock. I showed him, told him, and even docked 3x, and it was in one ear and out the other, because he shifted from F to R at about 5mph...:mad:

[Mandelon]

Once you learn to use it, which takes about a minute and a half...you should find it is much more positive and sturdy feeling.
The cool factor is definitely there. Its lilke moving from a play shifter to a professional grade piece of equipment. The action is smooth and sturdy.

[TrojanDan]

Originally posted by Old Lavey
In that case it would already be in gear. But I can tell you that you would have to be pretty lame to do that because the handles are not the same size or in the same position.
OL
Wait till you have a PWC make a quick turn in front of you while traveling at 50mph and see which lever you instinctly grab first (probably the one closest to you). :eek:

[rivercrazy]

The thing I hate about the Merc/Quicksilver shifter is the imprecision of them. When you shift the offshore shifter into gear there is none of the grinding goin on! And you never have to worry about the switch in the Merc/Quicksilver shifter leaving your stranded cause the engine won't start

[Havasu Cig]

Here is a Pic of the throttle and shifters in our boat. As you can see they are on opposite sides. When running the boat I steer with my left hand and throttle with the right. My hands are always on the throttle so it woould be pretty hard to grab the shifters by mistake.
I have had some fishing boats in the past with the single lever setup, and I really don't like it. Much more control with the seperate levers, especially around the docks. With twins you can use the shifters to dock without much steering input, and on our last boat with the blower surge it was much easier to time your shifts in and out of gear without worrying about adding throttle input by accident.
http://www.***boat.com/image_center/showphoto.php?photo=3642&size=big&password=&sort=7&thecat=998

[Havasu Cig]

Can't get the pic to work:confused:

[Essex502]

Originally posted by Havasu Cig
Can't get the pic to work:confused:
Looks to be the wrong format... .php?

[Havasu Cig]

I don't know, I tryed to copy it from the image center.:confused:

[cigarette1]

Originally posted by DeltaSigBoater
Say you're going along about 3kRPMs, you goto slow down & instead of pulling back on the throttle, you pull back on the shifter.
Do you normally run at 3000 r's without a hand on the throttle?

[Outnumbered]

Originally posted by cigarette1
Do you normally run at 3000 r's without a hand on the throttle?
I'm with ya on that one Cig1. The way mine is set-up. I always cruise with my arm resting on the rail and my hand on the throttle. Its just right for that position.
Its actually a little awkward (sp) to grab the shifter from that position. I have had many a dumb-ass pull 180's in front of me as well as hats and other shit flying out of the boat. Not once have I even come close to grabbing the shifter. I say that is not an issue to really worry about. I'd say you are more likely to over-throw the pull-back and grab a little reverse on the single handle set-up in a panic situation.
OL

[DeltaSigBoater]

Originally posted by Old Lavey
I'm with ya on that one Cig1. The way mine is set-up. I always cruise with my arm resting on the rail and my hand on the throttle. Its just right for that position.
That’s what I do too, even though my boat still has the original '83 mercruiser single lever side-mount control. Unless I'm hauling ass or towing a skier i cruise with my left elbow resting on the rail and my above the throttle. Its feels natural that way, like im driving in the car w/ the windows down.