# Merc 9.9 Pro-Kicker Trolling Setup



## Meerkat (Aug 10, 2008)

Well I finally got my Merc Pro-Kicker set up so for excellent slow speed throttle control (1.0 to 2.5 mph). I know from the research I have done that I was not the only one with this problem so I am going to describe the problem & then what I did to fix it.

*My Setup:*
I have a new Merc 9.9 Pro-Kicker (tiller) with a ControlKing throttle controller pushing a Starcraft Fishmaster 196. I have a 112 lb Terrova up front with a rudder installed. I use the kicker to push and the Terrova to steer so that I can set the Terrova at about 2 ½ and troll all day.

*The Problem:*
As originally set up on my boat, achieving any trolling speed between 1.0 mph & 2.0 mph was virtually impossible. At idle on the kicker and 2 ½ on the Terrova on a flat lake I would get about 1.0 mph. Touch the dial on the Controlking & I was doing 2.0 mph. Touch it again & I was doing 1.0 mph again. Same thing if I tried to adjust speed with the tiller handle control. Low speed throttle control was virtually impossible.

*Solution:*

Set the idle mixture:
So first thing I did was to set the idle mixture. These motors come with a brass plug covering the idle speed screw & you have to drill that out first. Here is a YouTube video on how to drill out the plug.





To set the idle mixture, set your kicker in a garbage can of water so the cavitation plate is under water. Start it and let it warm up. Then slowly back out the idle mixture screw about a 1/8 turn at a time, waiting about 10 secs between turns to let the motor smooth out. Keep doing this till the motor just starts to run rough (or slow down). Then screw the mixture screw back in 1/8 of a turn at a time until the motor just starts to run rough (or slow down). Then back off the screw about ¼ turn. This is the optimum setting for idle mixture.
When I started my idle screw was all the way in – tight! When I was done my optimum position was about 1 ½ turns out – yours will be similar but each motor is a little different.

As you adjust the mixture you may need to adjust the idle speed. I did not. (Idle speed screw is just above the middle of the purple arrow in picture below.)

This helped a lot but I still did not have the resolution I needed. It was way too sensitive. I would get my speed set at say 2.0 mph but then 10 minutes later might notice that I was at 1.8 mph so I would try to increase the speed a little on the Controller dial but next thing I would be doing 2.5 mph. Touch it again & I was doing 1.5 mph.​So here is what else I did (thanks to Joel at iTroll on this & to Josh – Brahmabull on OGF for pointing me in this direction).

I set the servo for greatest resolution:
I checked that the blue arm on the servo is in the zero position by switching on the controller & setting the dial to zero. Then in order to get the greatest resolution (least movement of throttle for maximum movement of controller dial) I unscrewed the black screw holding the blue arm to the servo & set the blue arm on the servo so that the blue arm, the cable to the throttle and the connection to the throttle shaft are in a straight line (purple arrow in the picture below but note that this picture is before I lined everything up.)








Then I took the slack out of the connection from servo to the throttle shaft:
With the motor warmed up and running in that garbage can, I loosened the bolt shown by the yellow arrow in the picture below & rotated the servo back & forth to find the point at which the throttle just starts to open (RPM’s pick up). Then I backed the servo off ever so slightly so the cable is not holding the throttle open & locked the servo in this position.







With this setup, as soon as you start to turn the dial on the controller, the throttle will start to open and this will be the setup where the most amount of movement on the controller dial gives the least amount of movement at the throttle. This maximizes the controller resolution for low end speed control.​
Lastly I upgraded to an iTroll:
The iTroll controller has a digital readout that reads in tenths of a percent from 0% to 100%. I still have to turn the knob on the dial to set my speed but as I do that I can see on the digital readout exactly what my throttle position is to 1/10th of a percent & if I move off that setting I can dial it right back in to 1/10th of a percent.







The iTroll replaced the ControlKing I originally installed. The ControlKing does not have the digital readout, it just has the manual dial that reads from 1 to 10. So if I need a setting around 2 ½ to get to my target trolling speed, I am guessing as to whether I am 2 ¼, 2 ½ or 2 ¾ and the physical distance between each of those 3 settings is only about 1/16 of an inch on the dial which makes is very difficult to hit the sweet spot. On the iTroll however I can dial in the exact setting I want (say 25%) on the digital readout to within 1/10th of a percent.







To be fair, I had a ControlKing on the kicker on my old boat for 4 years and worked just fine but on my new kicker I was just not able to get the resolution (speed control) I wanted.​
And in the interests of full disclosure:

I have no financial interest in or incentive from iTroll.
And I know nothing about Trollmaster.
Hope this helps somebody…


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## Buckeye Ron (Feb 3, 2005)

Excellent reading Joe, they ought to hire you to teach certified mechanics on how to do this.


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## ohiojmj (Apr 16, 2004)

Thanks for taking the time to provide detailed instructions on how to fix to the frustrating Merc 9.9 kickers. I plan to adjust the idle mixture next spring to get a smoother operation at slow trolling speeds.


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## cumminsmoke (Aug 13, 2013)

Itroll is hands down the best one out there, very easy setup and user friendly. Congrats joe, I'd be lost without mine. Best money I spent in the boat


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## chaddy721 (Mar 31, 2013)

Glad you got it figured out. nice read and info. which rudder did u get for your terrova, I'm on the fence between getting the control king or the garmin throttle control for my new tr1


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## Meerkat (Aug 10, 2008)

chaddy721 said:


> Glad you got it figured out. nice read and info. which rudder did u get for your terrova, I'm on the fence between getting the control king or the garmin throttle control for my new tr1


Made the rudder. As far as I know there are none available to buy. I can post a picture if you are interested but do a search on here there are a number of threads on rudders.


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## tomb (Oct 9, 2004)

Glad to hear you finally fixed this. Great post to help others too.


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## Seaturd (Apr 14, 2004)

Excellent post Joe. I went from a Trollmaster to Itroll also. Trollmaster was good - itroll is great. I will check into dialing my Merc's carb a little better now.


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## SPLMAX SAM (Jul 10, 2010)

Good read


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## Brahmabull71 (Jul 30, 2014)

Great post Joe! I'm really glad it worked out for you. Next can you write a post on the damn "Hunt Mode." I swear every time I use mine I have to look at the confusing direction card Joel sends with the iTroll. Hunt mode is awesome when I can get it dialed in!


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## Meerkat (Aug 10, 2008)

Brahmabull71 said:


> Great post Joe! I'm really glad it worked out for you. Next can you write a post on the damn "Hunt Mode." I swear every time I use mine I have to look at the confusing direction card Joel sends with the iTroll. Hunt mode is awesome when I can get it dialed in!


Yeah that card is really confusing. I have some thoughts on what to do with hunt mode. Still working on it. Bump & cut is cool but need to be able to do it from different base settings. As in if you are trolling with or into waves.


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## Brahmabull71 (Jul 30, 2014)

Meerkat said:


> Yeah that card is really confusing. I have some thoughts on what to do with hunt mode. Still working on it. Bump & cut is cool but need to be able to do it from different base settings. As in if you are trolling with or into waves.


Agree. I think you can save 8 different "Hunt modes" so you can do one with waves and one against. I need to play with it more. May try Saturday!


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