35 johnson outboard jumps in & out of gear

[pabloescobedo96]

Hello, I have a 1979 35 Johnson outboard model# 35EL79A Serial# E5083405
I have a problem where my motor feels as if its popping out and back in gear. Just cruising it is fine. This happens only under load though in forward gear. I feel the boat jerk pretty hard about once every few seconds. It has gotten worse over a short period of time. It is not misfiring or anything like that. Just curious if anyone has had a similar problem, or any ideas on what the issue may be???

 

[tashasdaddy]

Re: 35 johnson outboard jumps in & out of gear

you have the clutch dog, and forward gear, going out in the lower unit. time to rebuild with new clutch dog and forward gear. do it yourself for about $300-350. shop add $80-100 hour labor. part and diagram here: http://shop2.evinrude.com/ext/index.aspx?s1=bf6ad09c53cead335fcfd8a6471c0f7f

 

[HybridMX6]

Re: 35 johnson outboard jumps in & out of gear

Just another thought, but it could be a slipping prop hub.

 

[tashasdaddy]

Re: 35 johnson outboard jumps in & out of gear

possible, but motor ususally revs, not jerk. test for prop

take a permanent marker, remove the prop, draw a straight line, like the picture. take the boat for a spin, make it do what it is doing. come home remove the prop, if the lines are still line up, it is not the prop, if misaligned, the hub in the prop has slipped, and need to have a new hub installed by a prop shop, or a new prop.

 

[5150abf]

Re: 35 johnson outboard jumps in & out of gear

Get on Ebay and start looking for a new lower unit, as TD said either the clutchdog or forward gear is bad.

I have seen lowers on Ebay for way less than it would cost to have yours rebuilt.

The clutchdog has 2-3 "ears" on it, as you shift from neutral/forward/reverse the clutch dog slides back and forth engaging the gears, which are always turning if the motor is running, and makes the prop turn, over time the edges get rounded and the force of driving the boat makes it slip to the next slot in the gear, that is why it only happens at higher throttle.

And no there is no other fix for it, you need a new gear set(BIG $$) or a different lower, I have gotten 2 lowers off Ebay for my 50, one was @ $250 and the other was $150.

Rebuilding it yourself is possible but not advised, tried it and they never lasted very long, the tolerances are so close if you are off by even a little either way it will break again.

 

[pabloescobedo96]

Re: 35 johnson outboard jumps in & out of gear

Wow, thanks for the great answers guys. It amazes me that parts are that expensive. Looks like im going on an ebay hunt for a lower unit. Am I looking for a new or used one or rebuilt? Any other place to search for a lower unit.
I am guessing there are no cheap fixes!

 

[pabloescobedo96]

Re: 35 johnson outboard jumps in & out of gear

well after searching ebay im guessing im looking for a used one possibly off a bad motor or something. No luck yet. I dont know if a part # for the lower unit might help me search. Also im not sure how to tell if long or short shaft and if that makes a difference.

 

[tashasdaddy]

Re: 35 johnson outboard jumps in & out of gear

also try tcoutboard.com, call them.

 

[jwilkey84]

Re: 35 johnson outboard jumps in & out of gear

there may be one cheap fix. I know a lot of guys will laugh at this, but it does work, for how long depends on how good of a job you do and how often you use your motor and how firmly you shift it into gear. it could be your clutch dog. There is two sides to the clutch dog, one end to engage forward gear, and one end to engage reverse gear. Take your lower unit apart and look at the clutch dog, if I am right the reverse side should look fine, but the forward side will have some rounded corners on it which is causing it to jump out of gear. take a good look at the reverse side and compare it to the forward side, then take a dremel tool and square up the corners of the front side so it looks like the reverse side. Or if you can just find a replacement clutch dog that will work too. I am not a mechanic, but I have done this and it does work, assuming that the clutch dog is the problem. Of course, if your gears are bad, then fixing the clutch dog wont help.

 

[jasper60103]

Re: 35 johnson outboard jumps in & out of gear

Also im not sure how to tell if long or short shaft and if that makes a difference.

Long is what you want, but short is OK since you already have a long driveshaft and shifter rod connector. Just make sure it's a complete and working lower unit with a shift rod and driveshaft. Then it should bolt right up. Of course, the working part is the real gamble.

 

[pabloescobedo96]

Re: 35 johnson outboard jumps in & out of gear

there may be one cheap fix. I know a lot of guys will laugh at this, but it does work, for how long depends on how good of a job you do and how often you use your motor and how firmly you shift it into gear. it could be your clutch dog. There is two sides to the clutch dog, one end to engage forward gear, and one end to engage reverse gear. Take your lower unit apart and look at the clutch dog, if I am right the reverse side should look fine, but the forward side will have some rounded corners on it which is causing it to jump out of gear. take a good look at the reverse side and compare it to the forward side, then take a dremel tool and square up the corners of the front side so it looks like the reverse side. Or if you can just find a replacement clutch dog that will work too. I am not a mechanic, but I have done this and it does work, assuming that the clutch dog is the problem. Of course, if your gears are bad, then fixing the clutch dog wont help.

I'm not laughing. $300- $500 for repair is no laughing matter. I believe I may take a shot at this. Like you said if I find gears are messed up or a bunch of other problems then I wont bother. I am pretty good with a dremel. I am an auto mechanic but really don't have a whole lot of boat knowledge. I have a manual coming in the mail and will wait for it to arrive before I try to tackle this. Can clutch dogs just be turned around then? Can I buy just the clutch dog without the expensive gears or am i confused.

 

[tashasdaddy]

Re: 35 johnson outboard jumps in & out of gear

the clutch dog has two very square edgedteeth, the clutch dog side of the gear, and two very square edge slots, when the edges wear, they will not stay mated, thus jumping out of gear. there are very small tollerances. some machinist have built up old clutch dogs, and the gear. so have had decent luck, others not so good.

the turning the dog around will work for a short time, then you will be replacing the dog, forward and reverse gears. the reason, the gear is going to wear the good side of the dog, the dog is going to wear the good side of the reverse gear.

 

[pabloescobedo96]

Re: 35 johnson outboard jumps in & out of gear

the clutch dog has two very square edgedteeth, the clutch dog side of the gear, and two very square edge slots, when the edges wear, they will not stay mated, thus jumping out of gear. there are very small tollerances. some machinist have built up old clutch dogs, and the gear. so have had decent luck, others not so good.

the turning the dog around will work for a short time, then you will be replacing the dog, forward and reverse gears. the reason, the gear is going to wear the good side of the dog, the dog is going to wear the good side of the reverse gear.

Ok so a dremel prolly wouldnt do the trick then unless i was really good at welding material on and then machining it perfectly back into shape. It sounds highly unlikely I would be succesfull with just a dremel.

Well im now thinking about trying to just reverse the dog. So if the gear looks ok then this may be a decent option since i rarly ever use reverse and only use the boat 5- 10 times a year.

 

[pabloescobedo96]

Re: 35 johnson outboard jumps in & out of gear

well just to be sure i drained the fluid and....wow pretty little metal flakes suspended beatifully in the gear oil. to my surprise there is no milkyness indicating water intrusion.

 

[pabloescobedo96]

Re: 35 johnson outboard jumps in & out of gear

well im impatiant so without a manual and a lack of knowlege I am trying to remove the lower unit for inspection here is a pic of hte motor

I removed 4 bolts here

and a little pin here

Do i need to undo the two bolts in here holding linkages

P.S. Im sure its not this easy but enlighten me

 

[pabloescobedo96]

Re: 35 johnson outboard jumps in & out of gear

removed the linkage bolt and it came off easy. disregard

 

[tashasdaddy]

Re: 35 johnson outboard jumps in & out of gear

there are notches in the shift rods, the have to go back in place, the bolt goes thur them.

 

[pabloescobedo96]

Re: 35 johnson outboard jumps in & out of gear

done! now heres what im up against. cant get the gears out because of the shift rod thing that goes oround the shaft. do I just yank the pressed in rod out really hard and then pull the cotter pon on the other side or what???

 

[JUSTINTIME]

Re: 35 johnson outboard jumps in & out of gear

those where known for the clutch dog
not a cheap part!

 

[pabloescobedo96]

Re: 35 johnson outboard jumps in & out of gear

ok I see. the shift rod unscrews and the cotter pin doesnt matter. got the gears out. will be posting pics of my dog and gears soon!!