Trolling with old 2 stroke, throttle question

I recently got a 75 Johnson 9.9 2 stoke that I am going to use as a kicker. The motor runs like its brand new. Only issue I am having with it is that any time I give it a little twist on the throttle and let go and turns back to idle speed. I can only get the motor to push the boat around 1 mph and i was shooting for 1.5-1.8 mph and use my terrova to get the rest.

A few people have told me this is normal. If it is how do you use one of these motors as a kicker? I know they are not ideal but I imagine these are what people used in the 70s and 80s and there has to be a way to use them without having to keep a hand on the throttle.

there is a few ways this was done back then on those old motors.
one,in the throttle handle about midway if memory serves me there is a hole there,rotate the handle until you see a screw head,tighten that screw to set the tension as you want it.

the second way they did it was at the most outer part of the throttle handle there was a tension knob that you turned to set the throttle tension,it is kind of deceiving as it looks like its part of the handle,grasp the throttle,turn the knob clockwise to set the tension tighter.

some used a set screw under the hood on the linkage itself,it use to be located on the arc of the linkage,the screw was tightened against a slipper plate that set the tension.

Hows the prop on that thing? I have a 5hp kicker on my 18.5′ crestliner that will push it just under 5mph full throttle, to only get 1mph out of a 9.9 don’t seem right?

nhamm wrote:

Hows the prop on that thing? I have a 5hp kicker on my 18.5′ crestliner that will push it just under 5mph full throttle, to only get 1mph out of a 9.9 don’t seem right?

Wot I will get 6 mph. I mean the motor will only push me at 1 mph when I want to troll

Gotcha

You should be able to pull the hood off and see how that throttle recoil works. Pretty easy to cut or remove that spring mechanism . Keep in mind its part of the safety settings on the motor. The motor will not start or go into gear if the throttle is not turned all the way down. Also, there in case the operator falls out of the boat.

-J.

Jon Jordan wrote:

You should be able to pull the hood off and see how that throttle recoil works. Pretty easy to cut or remove that spring mechanism . Keep in mind its part of the safety settings on the motor. The motor will not start or go into gear if the throttle is not turned all the way down. Also, there in case the operator falls out of the boat.

-J.

My understanding is the throttle recoil is in the handle. I dunno I am going to have to look at it. Somebody on walleye central posted a exerpt from an article about the motor that shows you are just supposed to use the idle knob to set your trolling speed… Oh how far we have come lol

Jonesy,did you happen to look where I mentioned?? the places I mentioned are there specifically for setting the tension on the throttle handle for the purpose you seek.

Iowaboy1 wrote:

Jonesy,did you happen to look where I mentioned?? the places I mentioned are there specifically for setting the tension on the throttle handle for the purpose you seek.

I will take a peak tomorrow. Haven’t been able to do anything with it yet.

You cloud just turn the idle screw a little so your motor will idle a little higher? Just a thougt

Iowa boy there is no adjustment on the end of the handle. I did find the screw you mentioned but I wasn’t able to get out on the water today.

I took the handle apart and noticed that the spring from this diagram is missing perhaps that is part of the problem

Attachments:

1. 

   20180710_135614.jpg
   

that spring helps hold the throttle tension so yes you need it in place.
as you found out the screw holds the handle on but does not set the tension in the way I was describing.
some motors used a friction clamp that was accessible through a hole in the handle.

I cant tell by the picture but is the throttle control plate threaded in such a way that you can adjust the amount of pressure on that spring??
been a long time since I worked on one of that vintage and I swear there is a way to set the tension on it.

let me see if I can find one of my old manuals,will let you know.

sent you a PM

Here is an article somebody on walleye central shared with me. Figured it might help some people in the future.

The following is a quote from an article about Johnson 9.9 motors. In particular – note the 2nd paragraph:

“Controls : This series of motors have all the same basic controls. That is on the front panel, the choke
pull knob is on the left side looking back to the motor. To the immediate right is a large (approx 1″ dia)
knob that rotates, but will only go about 1 turn. This is the carburetor idle adjustment knob. In the center
is the manual starter pull handle. On the far right will be the kill button. If it is electric start, on the left
side, hidden in the mounting base is the start button.
On the right side again looking back, is another large black knob located immediately behind the fuel line
connector. It is the idle speed control screw. In effect this is basically for setting a trolling speed, where
you want to return to after making a run. In setting this one, you may have to adjust it & the carburetor
idle knob simultaneously to fine tune each.
On the left side again looking back is the shift lever. On the left side again just above the mounting brackets
is a lever that moves forward & back. It locks the motor down so that if you put it in reverse & try to
attain a high speed, that the lower unit will not jump up & out of the water. This lever, when moved
forward, allows you to raise the motor & lock it in the up/out of the water position. The upper cowling
lever is located at the rear & under the edge of the cowling, rotating it down allows you to remove the
upper cowling to access the engine compartment.”