i have an old morse control box w/ one handle, and i just changed outboards, w/ the same problem. I had an old 1982 evinrude 140 hp, that was a waste of money, never worked. I just purchased a 2000 johnson 150 hp ocean pro. had a mechanic to get me fired up. after he got it going he told me I was all set, just to tighten up the trunion nut and cover the opening. The cable for shifting in and out of gear, gets jammed trying to go into neutral never mind reverse. The same thing happened as last year, last year i tried to force it w/ a brand new cable and snapped the cable. the cable was covered under warranty, and it's only a year old.
I'm trying to trouble shoot the problem, i adjusted the trunion nut to fit the proper way. i thought it may have been too tight a turn, near the out board. to rectify it, I cut a tie wrap, that lets the cable have a larger arc. When the cable is disconnected from the motor it works fine. The forward/reverse/ neutral settings on the engine work fine when moving by hand.
I'm trying to trouble shoot the problem, i adjusted the trunion nut to fit the proper way. i thought it may have been too tight a turn, near the out board. to rectify it, I cut a tie wrap, that lets the cable have a larger arc. When the cable is disconnected from the motor it works fine. The forward/reverse/ neutral settings on the engine work fine when moving by hand.