Grinding when shifting into forward... Reverse is fine

[hayward6]

I have a 1987 OMC Cobra attached to a 4.3l V6. I took her out this morning and noticed that its becoming harder to get it into forward. Iv'e only owned it for a few months and have done a ton of work to both the engine and deck, but the transmission is sort of new to me on this boat. I have changed all the greese and even did the impeller a couple weeks ago... everything looked good.

Ok here's what it's doing... When in neutral going to forward it doesn't seem to shift into gear good and your actually giving it throttle before its sucked into gear. Reverse its as smooth as butter. I started just leaving it in forward and starting it like that to avoid any wear and tear on the gears. It's tough running no wake when you have to pop it in gear at half throttle...

I thought it might just need adjusting, but when I pulled the hatch to look at it the shift lever on the engine seems to be going all the way before the throttle is even engaged, so is it possible that the adjustment is off at the drive? Or is it more likely that my forward gear is toast? Once it's finally in gear it runs great, no slipping at all. I have the Seloc manual and will be going through that, but figured I would ask. I only have a couple good weeks of season left before I pull the outdrive for the winter anyways, so I'm hoping it may be something I can adjust and get some more fishing done.

Thank you,

 

[hayward6]

Re: Grinding when shifting into forward... Reverse is fine

And for the record, I don't like this single lever shift/throttle one bit!

 

[Reinell-BRXL-191]

Re: Grinding when shifting into forward... Reverse is fine

Sounds like the bellcrank is not centered anymore, and it moving more in reverse than forward. Normally by the time the shifting gets to the point of yours, the shift cable needs to be replaced - this requires the removal of the drive, a new cable and some adjustment tools... There are other causes, like a sticky shift lever etc, so if the cable is newer, you can look at the other parts of the system as well. Here are the instructions for adjusting the cable properly.. Don't run it any more until you get it figured out, it will eat up those gears in a heart beat,,

http://midnight-wolf.com/OMC_Install_Instructions.html

 

[hayward6]

Re: Grinding when shifting into forward... Reverse is fine

Thanks, any chance it's already too late? And I don't know if I'll do this work myself... I get kind of nervous when the sterndrive comes into play... I had a heck of a time re-installing it when I removed it last time. I even bought extra gaskets for next time, but not looking forward to it.

 

[hayward6]

Re: Grinding when shifting into forward... Reverse is fine

I think the cable is relatively new, and it does shift real easy. I think if the remote handle moved any easier I would run the risk of it moving on it's own... I'm going to see if I can work through those instructions you linked, but wow they are long and detailed

 

[Reinell-BRXL-191]

Re: Grinding when shifting into forward... Reverse is fine

They are actually very simple... print them out, read them a few times.. and you will see the adjustments only take a few minutes.. the hardest part is removing the drive... did you adjust the cable when you had the drive off? The adjustment is noted as being critical by OMC - and any deviation from the measurements can cause the problem you are experiencing.. the bellcrank has to be at 90 degrees and the cable length needs to be at 7-9/16th

I myself, have removed the cable from my drive about a dozen times over the last 6 months.. and have gotten the drive removal, cable replacement, cable adjustment, and drive installation down to under 30 minutes... I actually think I could do it blind folded.. very easy.. don't be afraid of it..

 

[hayward6]

Re: Grinding when shifting into forward... Reverse is fine

They are actually very simple... print them out, read them a few times.. and you will see the adjustments only take a few minutes.. the hardest part is removing the drive... did you adjust the cable when you had the drive off? The adjustment is noted as being critical by OMC - and any deviation from the measurements can cause the problem you are experiencing.. the bellcrank has to be at 90 degrees and the cable length needs to be at 7-9/16th

I myself, have removed the cable from my drive about a dozen times over the last 6 months.. and have gotten the drive removal, cable replacement, cable adjustment, and drive installation down to under 30 minutes... I actually think I could do it blind folded.. very easy.. don't be afraid of it..

Really? It took me forever to get the drive to go back on. It was binding up when the u-joint knuckle was hitting on the bellows. I ended up pulling it on with a ratchet strap. It went smooth, just I could tell the bellows were catching and I was afraid I would tear them. I already have the gasket set, so if all I need to do is pull the drive and check those adjustments... maybe I'll look at it one night this week.

Thank you,

 

[Reinell-BRXL-191]

Re: Grinding when shifting into forward... Reverse is fine

Just make sure you have the right tools and everything is adjusted properly.. the one thing that makes the drive hard to put back on is the engine not being aligned with the gimble bearing.. so, get that tool, and the cable adjustment tools.. and it is really easy.. Of course, having a set of extra hands to help hold the drive as the drive shaft is inserted makes all the difference

 

[boaterinsd]

Re: Grinding when shifting into forward... Reverse is fine

what part of the country are you in? I have had mine apart and had it adjusted since also.

 

[boaterinsd]

Re: Grinding when shifting into forward... Reverse is fine

Just make sure you have the right tools and everything is adjusted properly.. the one thing that makes the drive hard to put back on is the engine not being aligned with the gimble bearing.. so, get that tool, and the cable adjustment tools.. and it is really easy.. Of course, having a set of extra hands to help hold the drive as the drive shaft is inserted makes all the difference

I completely agree as mine was goving me grief, and i looked into the alignment and found it be off a bit, once in alignment it was a breeze to go together. NOTE: the rubber engine mounts are rubber and will over time cause an out of alignment problem.

 

[Boats-A-lots]

Re: Grinding when shifting into forward... Reverse is fine

There is a trick to putting the outdrive back on, and you can do it in one shot. Balance it on the skeg, and slide the shaft in until it stops. Take a screwdriver and put it into the ujoints and turn it while pushing on the drive.. bingo.. it falls right in. (note.. plush lightly because when it goes in.. it goes fast. If your pushing hard you can ouch a finger or hand really fast)

Are you saying there isn't any adjustment left on the cable on the motor side? With the engine off, and in returnee can you spin the prop, and is there any noise?

 

[hayward6]

Re: Grinding when shifting into forward... Reverse is fine

There is a trick to putting the outdrive back on, and you can do it in one shot. Balance it on the skeg, and slide the shaft in until it stops. Take a screwdriver and put it into the ujoints and turn it while pushing on the drive.. bingo.. it falls right in. (note.. plush lightly because when it goes in.. it goes fast. If your pushing hard you can ouch a finger or hand really fast)

Are you saying there isn't any adjustment left on the cable on the motor side? With the engine off, and in returnee can you spin the prop, and is there any noise?

It's funny you should say that about the screwdriver. I actually figured out that trick on my own and it worked great just took me an hour to figure it out... I don't know about adjustment left... I don't know where to adjust it yet. On the second thing I don't know what your asking... The prop spins freely in neutral with no slop... I don't know what returnee is. Sorry.

 

[Boats-A-lots]

Re: Grinding when shifting into forward... Reverse is fine

It's funny you should say that about the screwdriver. I actually figured out that trick on my own and it worked great just took me an hour to figure it out... I don't know about adjustment left... I don't know where to adjust it yet. On the second thing I don't know what your asking... The prop spins freely in neutral with no slop... I don't know what returnee is. Sorry.

I don't know what returnee is either.. haha. Not sure what I was typing there. What I meant was while spinning the prop, can you hear a clicking noise? I just had to do major work on my outdrive. My shifter rod was gummed up and sticking bad. So much it broke my new cable. Before I took it all a part, when I spun the prop, I could hear clicking. (like it was slightly in gear).

Before I took the drive off (it really isn't that bad) I would try adjusting the brass barrel on the upper side of the cable. Give it a spin or two in one direction, try it, repeat and if it's getting worse, go the other way. I will look up the thread and past it here. A few of use just did all this about a month ago.

 

[Boats-A-lots]

Re: Grinding when shifting into forward... Reverse is fine

I think this should be a sticky. This is one of the best threads (with great pics) on the lower cable. The large brass barrel looking thing on the back of the lower cable on the engine, is where you adjust it. You have to pull the pin out, then slide the barrel out of the holder, spin it and then replace and try it. Very easy to do. It only takes a spin or two to make a read difference.

http://forums.iboats.com/showthread.php?t=549436

 

[hayward6]

Re: Grinding when shifting into forward... Reverse is fine

I don't know what returnee is either.. haha. Not sure what I was typing there. What I meant was while spinning the prop, can you hear a clicking noise? I just had to do major work on my outdrive. My shifter rod was gummed up and sticking bad. So much it broke my new cable. Before I took it all a part, when I spun the prop, I could hear clicking. (like it was slightly in gear).

Before I took the drive off (it really isn't that bad) I would try adjusting the brass barrel on the upper side of the cable. Give it a spin or two in one direction, try it, repeat and if it's getting worse, go the other way. I will look up the thread and past it here. A few of use just did all this about a month ago.

Ok, now I get it No it actually spins smooth as silk in neutral with no noise at all. And the cable movement seems to be good. While I was in the outdrive a couple weeks back I also removed a bunch of gumming around the shift rod. It looked as if someone spread some kind of peanut butter all over it. Before I remove anything I'll see about making the adjustment you mentioned, and I'm also onto another theory... It never did this when the engine was running like garbage, after I replaced the heads and got everything running great its happening, and I read about the idle being to high might cause this. I do have the idle a little high just to ensure it doesn't stall when warming up. Just a thought. I also have an old pertronix ignition conversion kit, and I saw that those require some kind of wiring addition with some parts from radio shack... I'll start with the idle and engine side adjustments tonight and see what happens. I have never shifted this into gear while not running, or while not in the water... isn't that bad?

I know the outdrive will be coming off this winter anyways because I want to store it indoors (Live in Boston) and I have a somewhat substantial leak coming from somewhere on the transom. The transom is rock solid though, I have inspected every square inch and there is no rot anywhere. Lucky since I had to replace all the stringers and deck this year. This boat has taught me so much, and it's been a lot of work but just one trip out has made it all worth it! Love being on the water!!

 

[hayward6]

Re: Grinding when shifting into forward... Reverse is fine

Ok I looked over it today and made some discoveries as well as adjustments. The cable adjustment at the engine was right in the middle. I adjusted it a little and got bot forward and reverse displaying similar characteristics... You were right about a small change making a big difference! I then switched my focus to the throttle cable. It was easy to notice that when the gears were grinding while shifting the boat was already starting to throttle up, I figured this was wrong. I was able to turn the throttle back so that its in gear well before the throttle starts coming up and that made things a lot better. Now there's is a very light and swift grind as you go into both forward and reverse... maybe it's the nature of the drive to make a little grinding noise?

 

[Reinell-BRXL-191]

Re: Grinding when shifting into forward... Reverse is fine

Not as much of a grinding noise, but it should make a clickity noise - almost like a card in a bicycle wheel.. when shifting from neutral to reverse or forward, it should be done quickly and with authority... you don't want to make the shift slow, it gives it to much time to grind..

 

[Boats-A-lots]

Re: Grinding when shifting into forward... Reverse is fine

Yep, Grinding isn't good unless you work in a meat market and making hamburger.. Swiftly into gear as Reinell puts it. That grinding noise you hear are the very expensive to replace forward and reverse teeth. Your throttle should be set so it doesn't start to give it gas until you are fully in gear.

 

[hayward6]

Re: Grinding when shifting into forward... Reverse is fine

Ok, now more than ever I think I may be ok. It does sound like cards in spokes... And you're right I need to be a little more commanding. I think I've been nervous and easing it into gear. I'm going to take it out one more time and see how it goes with this new knowledge and the throttle backed off. Thank you very much!

 

[Boats-A-lots]

Re: Grinding when shifting into forward... Reverse is fine

No worries, I just went through this plus and found awesome help on here.. just paying it forward. I Hope it works well and happy boating. I wont get mine wet til the 6th, going crabbing!!! YEAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH HAWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW!!!