REVERSE is a little rough and no thrust

[steelhead2000]

I took my 18 footer seaswirl with a DT140 suzuki out yesterday and the reverse made a grinding noise, forward worked fine. What i've found after going on here is you're suppose to just pop it into gear without easing it into gear. So that could be why i heard the grind. However today I changed the lower unit oil and a couple of things the oil that came out was a milky color as you can see. Also while waiting for it to drain I found that I could get it to drain quicker by rotating the prop. What i found was when i rotate it fwd or clockwise the prop spins without any noise, when I spun it in reverse it made a clicking noise. I went to the control box and shifted from neutrao into reverse and back into neutral and then went back and spun the prop. It spun freely in both directions fwd and backwards smoothly. What adjustments should I make? It appears after I shifted into reverse and back to neutral it freed something that was catching.

Also with the milky oil can I use it temporarily and change oil more frequently? I did not find any shavings in the oil or two plugs and it was watered down oil but it was definitely white.

Lastly if you look at the outboard just above the prop there is a plate with two holes on each side. It looks like there used to be a prop guard or shield on the top and now has been removed. Is that critical to have or can i do without it? If yes I can fabricate some from home depot.

Thanks

 

[99yam40]

Re: REVERSE is a little rough and no thrust

Pull the prop and check for fishing line around the prop shaft causing shaft seal to leak. Water getting into gear case is not good for it. It is best to repair/ reseal, but you can keep changing the oil and hopefully this is not salt water getting to the bearing.
Pressure check the lower unit to find what is leaking and repair.
The holes you are talking about are not visible on the picture,so my guess is they are from someone mounting a hydrofoil and then taking it back off. They help get on plane and stay on plane at slower speed.

 

[robert graham]

Re: REVERSE is a little rough and no thrust

Maybe check your drain/refill plug washers/seals to be sure they're not cracked or warn out. That would be an easy fix, otherwise you really need to replace the prop shaft seal, drive shaft seal or the shift shaft seal(maybe good to replace them all at the same time),to avoid water damage to lower end gears and bearings. Changing the oil every time you use the motor can get to be a chore pretty quick and it's not fixing the problem anyway, especially if it's salt water! Good Luck!

 

[JUSTINTIME]

Re: REVERSE is a little rough and no thrust

a pressure/vacuum check will tell you everything

 

[steelhead2000]

Re: REVERSE is a little rough and no thrust

Also I notice when the outboard is hooked up to a muff the tell tale indicator is NOT strong, the pee stream coming out of the back is okay. When in the water and running it is squirting out water in the back port where the exhaust comes out fine. Should I be concerned that the tell tale is not coming out strong? Mine is a trickle and doesn't shoot out but hits the cowling and runs towards the front of the outboard.

 

[99yam40]

Re: REVERSE is a little rough and no thrust

When was the last time you changed to water pump?
They should be changed every couple on years as they wear and get stiff and do not pump as well as they need to.
The stream should be a strong one, so you have a problem with the pump or a partial blockage.