sandiegosteve
Seaman Apprentice
- Joined
- Sep 6, 2007
- Messages
- 40
I've got a fairly new to me 1983 Mariner (made in Japan by Yamaha, I think) 40hp, 2-cylinder outboard. The motor runs very well.
I had the lower unit dropped to replace some seals, water pump etc.
While loosening the lower shift shaft, the mechanic had more trouble than normal getting it loose. There is a larger threaded connector with a smaller jam nut above it. On this one, the connector seems to be completely fused to the lower shaft rod. I would think it would free spin on both ends...
That said, it went back on and we adjusted it in neutral and verified it would go into forward and reverse.
Today I took it out for a test run. It shifted into reverse and backed off the trailer ok. It went into forward fine and I got to the dock. It then went into reverse fine while docking. I tied up, turned it off and parked the car.
When I got back to the boat, it started fine, but it was in reverse. My remote control wouldn't let me shift any more into reverse, but I could move it into forward. Either way it didn't matter, it stayed in reverse. I couldn't get it to shift out of reverse. Getting it back on the trailer was a whole nuther adventure.
Back at home, I disconnected the shift rod connector and tried to move it by hand. I could pull it up very easily (like pulling a stainless rod through a seal, but no other resistance). That didn't shift the lower unit though. When I shifted the control, the rod moved up and down like I would expect, so I know the cables aren't a major problem.
Does this sound like something completely broke? Or maybe did it just come undone? I'm pretty bummed right now, and I want to get an idea of the magnitude of what the problem might be.
Thanks,
Steve
I had the lower unit dropped to replace some seals, water pump etc.
While loosening the lower shift shaft, the mechanic had more trouble than normal getting it loose. There is a larger threaded connector with a smaller jam nut above it. On this one, the connector seems to be completely fused to the lower shaft rod. I would think it would free spin on both ends...
That said, it went back on and we adjusted it in neutral and verified it would go into forward and reverse.
Today I took it out for a test run. It shifted into reverse and backed off the trailer ok. It went into forward fine and I got to the dock. It then went into reverse fine while docking. I tied up, turned it off and parked the car.
When I got back to the boat, it started fine, but it was in reverse. My remote control wouldn't let me shift any more into reverse, but I could move it into forward. Either way it didn't matter, it stayed in reverse. I couldn't get it to shift out of reverse. Getting it back on the trailer was a whole nuther adventure.
Back at home, I disconnected the shift rod connector and tried to move it by hand. I could pull it up very easily (like pulling a stainless rod through a seal, but no other resistance). That didn't shift the lower unit though. When I shifted the control, the rod moved up and down like I would expect, so I know the cables aren't a major problem.
Does this sound like something completely broke? Or maybe did it just come undone? I'm pretty bummed right now, and I want to get an idea of the magnitude of what the problem might be.
Thanks,
Steve