Throttle Return Spring

[Chestah Cheetah]

Is a boat motor suppose to have a throttle return spring by the carb? It's a 455 olds with a 600 Holley. When you step on the pedal it sticks and doesn't come down. I took it out lask weekend and it worked fine until it was time to put it back on the trailer and it stuck a little. I Would check to see if the pedal had a spring but I'm at work and I need to find out now so I can get the parts if necessary. Thanks!

[Havasu Hangin']

I've got a couple springs on mine, but I don't have a foot throttle. In my opinion, this is an important equation:
stuck throttle + no brakes = bad weekend
Good luck!

[spectras only]

Cheeta, with a foot throttle,I would put a return spring.

[Chestah Cheetah]

Spectra, So I should have both right? One spring in the foot throttle and one off of the carb? I called a few shops today and EVERYBODY told me something different. Some say foot throttle spring is enough, some say you need both, soem never heard of one by the carb on a boat. I found one at the Speed
Shop that is universal for $20 for the whole kit. Pretty easy to install right. Are there any specific spacing or fit instructions? What about the length of the springs? Thanks!

[spectras only]

I would have a spring in the pedal,and at the carb as well.You don't need a heavy spring at the carb,the kit you 're talking about is fine.You should check to make sure you don't have an extreme sharp radius in the throttle cable placement.It could cause binding ,hence your stuck throttle.My friend's 19 Spectra has a spring at the carb and works fine.The hand throttles don't use return springs because it would require a very heavy spring at the carb to pull the lever back,thus resulting a premature throttle shaft bushing wear.Throttle pedals are more popular with 19 feet and under hotrods,the bigger boats do more cruising ,so hand throttles can be left at a desired position.

[Chestah Cheetah]

Thanks Spectras! We'll work on it tonight and I'll let you know how it worked tommorow.

[Chestah Cheetah]

Well I installed the throttle return spring, seems to work fine. Rewired the bilge pump, still gotta test that. We started up the motor and found another potential problem. When you rev it up, after the rev, you can hear a delayed reaction inside. Really hard to explain but it almost sounds like grinding metal. @#%$$%$%@##

[spectras only]

Cheetah, does it sound like a circular saw [metallic ping]? Your flexplate maybe warped slightly and touching somewhere

[ponponracing]

You should look inside the flywheel housing and see if the heads of the flexplate bolts are touching. Pay attention at if you used lock washers and maybe you should'nt have.
The carb. trottleplates should be able to return in place by themselves if no wire is connected to them. The gas pedal should also come back in place by itself with the help of a spring. If the trottleplates stick a little and you made those two verifications first, then suspect the trottle cable to be damaged (dirt inside, overheated, worn out).

[Chestah Cheetah]

It sounds almost EXACTLY like a circular saw, it happens after I rev it up, delayed reaction. I'll check out the flexplate tonight. I still need to replace the dipstick tube also, doesn't reach all the way down. I agree, Ponpon, that the throttle should not NEED help to get back into place. I'm pretty sure the cable is new, but it actually feels like too much friction at the pedal and the throttle plate. Is this as simple as that wondeful magical juice we call WD40? I'm gonna head out to Pyramid on Sunday for some test and tune and get this thing dialed in. Thanks fellas!

[Chestah Cheetah]

Well, the throttle return spring is installed and worked good. As far as the "circular saw" noise it was still there when we tok it out. It's going back to the mechanic on Thursday to go through it again. See "455 Trouble" topic for expanded problems. Thanks!

[froggystyle]

Again, Ponpon is right. Disconnect your cable, and work your carbs throttle arm. It should return itself. Then, do the pedal, it should return with authority. If it doesn't, the cable or the hinge is screwed. You can pull the cable out, hold it vertically, and put cable lube down the top until it comes out the bottom. The cable should move very freely without the pedal attached. This is not a place to skimp. If the cable is messed up, replace it. Also, with the cable out, check the action on the pedal itself. A lot of times, they are aluminum and wear themselves around the hinge. This is easily repaired with washers and a longer bolt on the hinge. Make sure it works without the cable on, make sure the cable works without the pedal or carb, make sure the carb works, and then the only variable is the angles the cable is subjected to on install.
Good luck.