No reverse after impella replacement (Alpha)

[mitchd123]

Boat hasn't been out in the water in a 3 years. When I parked it, it was working perfectly. I decided to replaced the impeller before taking it back out. The reverse cutout was acting up, but I figured I'd get the impeller done first.

Now I have taken the outdrive off apart four times, and I just can't seem to figure out what's going on. Hope someone here can help. I've reviewed the other posts in the forum. With the outdrive off, turning the shift boot to 10pm puts it into reverse and turning the prop shaft clockwise. Moving the shifter to 12 puts it into forward, and the prop shaft holds counterclockwise.

When I get it all put together on the boat it almost engages reverse, but not quite. It stops near 11pm. I've removed the shift cable and pulling it out does not engage reverse. When the outdrive is removed the shifter cable moves freely, and goes through a full range of movement.

I've locked the prop shaft in forward, shifter forward, etc.

Here are some quick pictures.

Shift washer installed...hopefully where it belongs?



Reverse locks perfectly on the stand:



Forward locks perfectly, prop turned counterclockwise to lock it fully in before assembly



Shift cable engage, hopefully correctly:


Fully assembled, but it will not lock in reverse. I can barely feel a little clicking when turning the prop, but it won't lock. I've tried running it. With the shift cable disconnected, pulling the cable out. I even tried adjusting the shift cable outer jacket...the barrel is pinned.




This is driving me crazy....what am I missing?

 

[Don S]

Re: No reverse after impella replacement (Alpha)

You either need to adjust or replace the shift cable. If the lower cable gets worn out inside, they don't move the drive shift mechanism far enough to get both gears.

You also need a new ujoint bellows, gimbal bearing, ujoints, and input shaft seal in the drive. if your cable is as old as the bellows, replace it too. Then you can get things working right.

 

[NHGuy]

Re: No reverse after impella replacement (Alpha)

Don knows of what he speaks.
I can tell you though that to get reverse the lower cable pulls forward to it's stop. If you are convinced that your cable slides correctly go through the lower shift cable adjustment carefully and completely.
While the cable is off the shift plate inside the boat pull the end forward to it's stop and then check for whether reverse is engaged. If it's not there's something restricting it's movement and you are back to replacing it as Don said.

BTW in your 5th picture I can see the shift foot which goes down into the drive and I can see the shift coupler shoe which links upward to the cable end, but I don't see the pivot shaft above the coupler (shoe). Am I missing something? Or is the shift shaft broken off?

 

[Bt Doctur]

Re: No reverse after impella replacement (Alpha)

something is preventing full travel in the cable or drive.most likely cause is a bad shift cable per Don s.
other causes : mud or debris behind the shift slide stopping the slide short of full reverse.
arm with the wheel is very loose in the shift slide
shift spool in lower unit worn beyond service limit.

 

[stonyloam]

Re: No reverse after impella replacement (Alpha)

BTW in your 5th picture I can see the shift foot which goes down into the drive and I can see the shift coupler shoe which links upward to the cable end, but I don't see the pivot shaft above the coupler (shoe). Am I missing something? Or is the shift shaft broken off?

Good eyes, sure looks like the bottom is broken off of the upper shift shaft doesn't it? How about a photo of the underside of the bellhousing?

 

[ktbarrentine]

Re: No reverse after impella replacement (Alpha)

Good eyes, sure looks like the bottom is broken off of the upper shift shaft doesn't it? How about a photo of the underside of the bellhousing?

It looks to be just a matter of camera angle. Everything looks lined up just right and all parts there. Here's mine (in neutral):

 

[stonyloam]

Re: No reverse after impella replacement (Alpha)

Yeah, looks can be deceiving.:redface:

 

[mitchd123]

Re: No reverse after impella replacement (Alpha)

Thanks guys, VERY good feedback from all! I appreciate all the ideas because I was out of ideas and getting depressed.

1) Shift cable, I will not rule out this possibility. I have the cable disconnected inside the boat, and I've unscrewed the outer jacket and pulled the cable itself. In theory this should rule out any adjustment issue to at least get it in reverse. Still no luck. When the outdrive is off the cable seems to move freely and completely. I will investigate this further, and not rule out a bad cable.

2) Shift foot, great eye to notice this, but a lousy picture. The bolt in front is actually making it look broken but it is not. I was thinking about taking the lower unit off and re-assembling it with the shift foot one more notch counterclockwise, (turned closer to 11:00 rather than 12:00) to see if that makes a difference. Probably just a waste of time because I won't get forward gear if I do that. KT, thanks for the photo! Here's a different angle with mine in forward gear...slightly past 12:00 when fully engaged.


3) Debris, this is a GREAT idea. The area looked clean, but there might be something lodged in the shift cable compartment of the outdrive. I will pull it again and inspect it well.

Thanks again everyone. While this boat is older 1987, there are less than 250hrs on it. I bought it off a dentist who was always too busy to use it, so it sat in his yard on the trailer. I've used it a few times about three years ago....but I'd like to get it operating correctly to take my seven year old out on the bay. We're running out of season, but I'll spend the time to get it right.

 

[stonyloam]

Re: No reverse after impella replacement (Alpha)

2) Shift foot, I was thinking about taking the lower unit off and re-assembling it with the shift foot one more notch counterclockwise, (turned closer to 11:00 rather than 12:00) to see if that makes a difference. Probably just a waste of time because I won't get forward gear if I do that. KT, thanks for the photo! Here's a different angle with mine in forward gear...slightly past 12:00 when fully engaged.

Yes it is. That will just jam stuff up when you try to shift. You must turn the lower shift shaft all the way clockwise, then lock it in place with a bungee keeping CCW pressure on the prop. Install the intermediate shift shaft over the lower ss so that it points straight ahead. Anything other than that WILL NOT WORK.