1977 85HP Mercury won't turn off

[chris]

After return from mechanics shop, my boat will not shut off now. It runs poorly when the key is off but does not shut down. Any ideas as a return back to the mechanic seams a bad idea?

[Capt.Insane-o]

Bunk! Those motors work by grounding the ignition circut to shut the motor off. He probably did'nt tighten the wire, black orange or black yellow down or it has started to dry rot and decay. Wirimg is pretty simple on those, look in a shop manual for the wiring diagrams. It could also be your key switch too.

[chris]

Thanks....I've found a couple of suspect wires to replace so I'll try that.