Mercury 650 (1963) prop nut removal issue

[Vtstar]

Hello- have a 1963 Mercury 650. It starts right up and runs great but will not go into gear. Moving the lever just ups the throttle (revs) but no engagement. Looking at the prop area, i see a bit of a gap between the back of the prop an the rest of the lower unit. Thinking I may have some sort of prop issue, i trie to remove the prop tp see what is going on down there. The prop nut will not budge... bent up the tabs on the lock washer thing, turning in the right direction (counter clockwise, but tried the other way just in case), hit it with PB Blast but it will not move. Coming from the starcraft forum, i am posting pics as well. any ideas? Thanks in advance!

 

[GA_Boater]

"Coming from the starcraft forum, I am posting pic...." That's funny and I'm one of those guys. Good one!

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The first time I took my prop off, I had to use a cheater pipe it was so tight I thought the hub rubber would separate. Before suspecting the prop, look under the cowling where the shift cable attaches to the linkage and see if the linkage is moving. Also in forward to prop is locked in one direction and turns with a clicking in the other. Reverse is locked in both directions and neutral spins freely both ways. It's hard to tell in the pic how much gap is between the prop and housing.