What do I need to add power tilt/trim to my rig?

The motor is a 1995 50hp Yamaha jet drive. It's nice having the power tilt/trim like my buddies have in there boats and I would like to get it for my boat. Is there a yamaha kit that I can buy or would this be something I should just take to a dealer and have them install it? Anybody have an idea what it would cost for the kit or what it would run to have a dealer install a kit?

I'm not sure about factory Yamaha kits but CMC offers an aftermarket kit that I have seen nothing but good reviews on.

https://cook-mfg.net/cart/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=5

Now, I haven't ran a jet, but I always thought the angle of the foot was pretty specific. That being said, is there much to gain by having power trim with a jet drive?

sparkbr said:

Now, I haven't ran a jet, but I always thought the angle of the foot was pretty specific. That being said, is there much to gain by having power trim with a jet drive?

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Spark…

You do not have nearly as much leeway trimming a jet as you would a prop but it does have some benefit. When running…you can trim to a point where the drive shaft nears a perpendicular position…then is starts sucking air (cavitating). About 3-5 quick bumps on the trim button is all I get. It does lift the bow a bit and I pick maybe 1 mph. You have to be careful though…excessive trimming can result in cavitation burns on the impeller.

I’m not sure outfitting an existing motor with power trim for the performance aspect would be worth it as factory and after market trim packages tend to be expensive. If buying a new motor…no doubt…you want it. But keep in mind…having power trim has added benefits beyond use when running. I use my forward mount trim button a lot when fishing. It saves me from running to the back of the boat to lift my engine to keep from getting hung on a log or to prevent dragging when I’m floating through 4” of water.

you also forgot it is like a fire hose and you can soak down a friend quick. I haven't done it but it did happen to me once and the pay back will come.

willfishforfood said:

you also forgot it is like a fire hose and you can soak down a friend quick. I haven't done it but it did happen to me once and the pay back will come.

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I was on Clearwater (a local lake) one afternoon Crappie fishing...you couldn't help but notice two boats (ski boat & jet boat) loaded with young adults (kids) racing around with each other. Then one young lad steps up onto the bow of the ski boat. He starts yelling at the other boat and thumping his chest.

Can you figure out what happens next? The jet makes several failed attempts to connect with his jet stream...getting closer and closer with each try. On his last attempt he hit the kid in the chest from what couldn't have been more 40-50'. The kid went fly off the bow of the boat, landing at least 10-15' from the boat. It broke a bunch of ribs and he was immediately hauled off to the hospital. Lucky it din't kill him.

That's why people out there should not mess with JET boaters. [-X

I was thinking of getting it not for performance, but just being able to raise and lower the motor without having to man handle is manually. The soaking people thing might come in handy once in a while too. :lol:

cmc is nice but $500 thats more than you pay for the motor sometimes

ebay has some trim and tilt units, most are going to cost 300-500 $$. I would use a factory trim system. They just bolt on to the inside of your motors mounting bracket. Most of the work is going to be electrical. Hooking up a switch and trim relays. Im not trying to knock those cmc units, but i tried using a setback on a jet unit and it hurt my performance. I would try to keep my shoe of my jet unit as close to the boat as possible. The further you get the shoe from the boat lets water inside the pump casing it to cavitate. therefore getting a factory trim and tilt would not set your motor back like a cmc would.

Having drove and fished in a boat with and without trim and tilt. I would recomend getting it. it makes things so much easier for fishing, trolling in shallow places, planing off, top end performance.

just my $0.02

a friend upgraded his 80 Merc jet to power trim when he found a blown motor on Cragslist for $200 for the whole thing

Actually I am surprised that Place Diverter doesn't make a diverter for the outboard jets. (Maybe it's not enough demand)?? Trimming a outboard jet using the stock outboard trim is going to be basicly worthless. You need to trim the nozzle like on a real jet boat not the power head. On a jetboat just picking the nozzle up a few degrees will lift the bow. Pictured below is a Place Diverter with hydraulic action. I would never run a quirt boat with out one. They make that much of a difference, you can feel the hull rise from the drivers seat. And we all know what less wetted surface means!!!!!