# Tiller extension Good or Bad?



## paint it black

I have ran tiller extensions on two of my outboards in the past and never had any issues. I was running Strongarm Products tiller extensions on a 30 Tohatsu/Nissan and on a 2009 2 stroke yamaha 25hp. I love them both. I will be adding one to my 30 ETEC I am running on my skiff these days.


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## devrep

Is Bob still in business?


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## CurtisWright

Depends on how big. I have a helms mate on my solo skiff and it's long, cumbersome and not that great. I have an 18" carbon marine on my tohatsu 40 though and it is amazing.


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## sjrobin

Tiller extensions by Carbon Marine are the best, light and strong. Look at my videos on the regional forums. I have had two CM extensions on the strong and award winning Yamaha tiller arm.(two stroke 70 and F60) I had an aluminum extension on a new 25 Hp Two Stroke Mercury and the Mercury handle failed right behind the extension. I replaced the Mercury tiller handle, sold the engine, bought a two stroke Tohat 30, put the aluminum extension on it and used it for twelve years no problem. The two stroke Merc was built like a toy compared to the Tohat. I don't know anything about the design of the other manufacturers tiller arm but Carbon Marine does.


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## CPurvis

Thanks for all the input. I have looked at the CM extensions and they look really good but they are alot more expensive and for a 15hp I don't think spending that kind of money is necessary. Now if I were running a 40 or 50hp might be a little different story. I also like the kill buttons linkage on the tufftiller.


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## CPurvis

sjrobin said:


> Tiller extensions by Carbon Marine are the best, light and strong. Look at my videos on the regional forums. I have had two CM extensions on the strong and award winning Yamaha tiller arm.(two stroke 70 and F60) I had an aluminum extension on a new 25 Hp Two Stroke Mercury and the Mercury handle failed right behind the extension. I replaced the Mercury tiller handle, sold the engine, bought a two stroke Tohat 30, put the aluminum extension on it and used it for twelve years no problem. The two stroke Merc was built like a toy compared to the Tohat. I don't know anything about the design of the other manufacturers tiller arm but Carbon Marine does.


What caused the handle to fail?


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## Action Johnson

im running a Carbon Marine extension and love it!


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## paint it black

devrep said:


> Is Bob still in business?


Honestly, I have no idea. I haven't spoken to him in years. I was a big fan of his tiller extension, some of his actions were questionable, but his tiller extension was by far the best on the market. If it's no longer on the market, then the Carbon Marine one is a no brainer. Thankfully I have a strongarm tiller extension for my ETEC that I have yet to install. It doesn't quite fit just right, so I might end up going to the CM one anyway, but I was a big fan of bob's for comfort and durability. I logged a LOT of hours on those things.


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## noeettica

Pat's TuffTiller is pretty good


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## sjrobin

CPurvis said:


> What caused the handle to fail?


One hundred ninety five pounds leaning on it in a turn. To be clear the new at the time 2003 Mercury tiller handle was not strong and could have been damaged at other another time. That was a few years ago. The point is the 2004 Tohatsu was treated the same way and is still going strong.


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## CPurvis

sjrobin said:


> One hundred ninety five pounds leaning on it in a turn. To be clear the new at the time 2003 Mercury tiller handle was not strong and could have been damaged at other another time. That was a few years ago. The point is the 2004 Tohatsu was treated the same way and is still going strong.


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## CPurvis

Ok makes sense. Thanks


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## Sublime

Keep an eye out here. I found a used CM extension with toggle switch for my jack plate in the classifieds. I have it on my 30 e-tec.

My motor is brand new and it already has a little bit of slop in the handle. I'll just have to see if it gets any worse and address it later if needed. Not having an extension is not an option for me.

Ps - if you aren't aware, Carbon Marine extensions of pretty motor specific as to what they will fit.


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## PG350

I have the tuff tiller from Anytide and love it. I have a 25 hp Merc Tiller. No problems here. I cannot see the reasoning for spending the money on the Carbon Marine unless you have money to blow.


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## erikb85

I had a 40 or so inch homemade fiberglass extension on a 15 Johnson. To me it was too long and always in my way when not running. Turning lock to lock sucked butts and after trying to trailer the boat on a falling tide in a channel with stiff winds and having to run back to shift into reverse I decided I needed to look at another option. I was solo and eventually had to just run aground and walk the boat on the trailer. I'm gonna do a grab bar and stand on my rear platform, which would reduce my extension length to about 24" give or take.


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## JappyFish

This one is only like $25 and I found it on Amazon. IT could be worth a shot. Originally when I found it, it showed $116, but when I clicked on the options it shows $25. Just a thought.

HelmsMate TE Extendable 18" - 24"


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## southboundchicken

My opinion on the helmsmate extensions are that I wouldn't use one on anything bigger than a trolling motor or maybe a really small outboard of 5 hp or less and if you put one on anything much larger than a 10 hp motor your asking for problems. I've never tried one of "anytides" extensions but the strong arm extensions are solid and durable but require a more permanent install as opposed to carbon marine where as his can be slipped off easy enough for storage....


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## No Bait / Lures Only

sjrobin said:


> One hundred ninety five pounds leaning on it in a turn. To be clear the new at the time 2003 Mercury tiller handle was not strong and could have been damaged at other another time. That was a few years ago. The point is the 2004 Tohatsu was treated the same way and is still going strong.


My Spear Glade X with a 25 Yamaha modded 2 stroke with the CM tiller extension required my mechanic to replace the components in the tiller handle, was sloppy until repaired. The 2 stroke 25 yamaha tiller was sloppy and was rebuilt twice in 4 years, toy tiller....another supplier of carbon tiller was jred....


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## devrep

any extension is going to magnify any slop that is in the stock tiller. also if you have a lot of steering torque the added leverage could make it worse.


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## Useta' Could

CPurvis said:


> I was wanting to go with a tufftiller tiller extension for my 2006 15 HP Mercury 4stroke. I'm currently using a helmsmate extension to try and figure the perfect length before I drop the bigger cash. I was wondering if the extensions have any negative impact on the actual tiller. The tiller I have already has some play in it. Any advice would be helpful
> 
> Thanks


I bought Helmsmate extensions finding that they would fail after a year of service. (I run my Polar Kraft year round unless iced in). Six years ago, I bought an extension from Tuff Tiller. This tiller requires that you take three measurements of the handle on your outboard's tiller arm. (Taking the measurements is very easy. A monkey could do it). Tuff Tiller will mold your extension to custom fit your handle. My Tuff Tiller is currently in it's sixth year of service. I reckon I'll NEVER need to replace it. The Tuff Tiller is all of that and a bag of potato chips ! Honest !!! Invest in a Tuff Tiller and you'll never buy another.


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## Battfisher

I made tiller extensions for my first 8hp outboard on a Gheenoe and my 25hp Etec on a 14.5' skiff, both out of PVC. You slit a piece of 1 1/2" schedule 40 longitudinally in 3 places, stopping the slits just before the end of the throttle handle, drill a 1/4" hole at the end of each slit to prevent further splitting, cut off the 1 1/2" about an inch or so further past the throttle, glue in a 1 1/2" to 1" reducer, then use 1" out to whatever length you need. I'd say the 8hp was probably 24" length and the 25hp was around 32". I heated up the 3 "legs" made by the slits with a heat gun until pliable, push it over the grip until it completely covered it, then squeezed the legs to form them over the grip and wiped with a wet washcloth until the PVC cooled and solidified. I then used 2 stainless pipe clamps to hold them onto the grip. I also used a tennis racket grip on the end of the 1". Never had any issues with either one, but you do have to check the pipe clamps to make sure they don't get loose.

I work around commercial construction projects for a living, so most of this stuff I can get out of jobsite dumpsters. But for what Anytide charges, I'll be buying one of his Tuff Tillers for my 9.9hp on the Gheenoe I'm modifying.


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