Panther 55 trim and tilt?

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Skipjack

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Anyone have one of these? I have a 40hp Johnson that i'd like to get T&T for and it seems like a good option rather than trying to get a used OEM donor unit retro fitted.
 
Looking to get one possibly. Hard to find reviews of them. My one concern is on my boat would raise engine up the way bracket looks.
 
Skipjack said:
Anyone have one of these?

DMTJLR said:
Hard to find reviews of them.
Look in this post (link below) for some great feedback by TurboTodd who has put on CMC and Panther units. You might want to reach out to him for a follow-up on the Panther units. FWIW I had the PT-130 unit from CMC and it was flawless (only had a 90hp on it) but it sounds like they really cheapened out on the realys of the smaller power trim/tilt units, plus there's a concern about the aluminum bracket piece (see more to follow).

https://forum.tinboats.net/viewtopic.php?f=4&t=40877&hilit=cmc+panther

Attached are some photos of where the smaller CMC PT-35 unit breaks. Allegedly some say they've contacted the company and that's designed to break if it hits something while running ... but looking at that ... and I dunnoh. Replacement pieces are or were $12 at the time these pictures were taken.
 

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I have only done a couple Panther 55's and they seem to be working good. You have to be mindful of the breather hose on the Panthers, it needs to be dry. I run them up inside the motor cowling. The Panther doesn't use a hydraulic actuator, it's electric, and that's what the breather hose does, is allow air to enter/exit when the actuator is going up/down. Water entry will cause the mechanical parts to seize/rust/corrode. The other thing about the Panther unit is that it gives you 7" of setback. 7" is considerable if you have a motor that has a short tiller handle, like a lot of Suzuki's do, and a few Yamaha's as well. The CMC's are all 5 1/2", IIRC.

The CMC relays that are supplied with CMC PT35 and PT130, are absolute garbage for a marine application. I use one of them on my tractor and the other on my lawn mower both as starter relays. They seem to be working well for those, but they don't see any moisture to speak of. On the CMC's, replace the relays with a winch contactor-solves that problem once and for all, and greatly simplifies the wiring. The contactor is the "relay" that comes with the atv winches. There's 4 posts and 2 small wires. Costs about $40. As a side benefit, the CMC hydraulic actuator works a little faster with the contactor than it does with the factory installed relays.
 
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