1972 Johnson 85hp hydro electric shift

[sweetwil23]

I am Wil from detroit area, MI. I just bought a 1972 starcraft nova with 85hp johnson. i believe it looks original from looking at old pics online but not sure. either way, boat is solid. took it on lake huron in east tawas, MI over july 4th weekend. problem i have is the reverse doesnt work. i removed lower and the shift wire(blue/green) was pinched from previous owner who had water pump and seals replaced but reassembled lower back himself and pinched wire in process. i took to mechanic here and he said its the wire. i replaced the wire. put everything back. fired motor up with muffs on and water hose and propeller turned in reverse. i was happy til i put in lake to go reverse and nothing. other step is new solenoid. before i do that i was wondering if anyone knew anything about these boats and motors and known history on reliabilty and if this is the next step i take. i appreciate the info. thanks. Wil from MI

[bernd64]

you need to check the fluid in the L/U if it is dark replace it flush the L/U first before you put new oil in it.check your shift sw and see if it works wen the motor is off and the key is off the L/U is in forward you me have a stuck plunger.

[oldrudedude]

The solenoid windings should read 5-6 ohms. Check that out before you take anything apart. Check the the resistance of each of those wires to ground. Put a volt meter on the leads to the solenoids from the helm control switch to ensure you are getting juice coming through when you shift. The gearbox defaults to forward gear when neither solenoids are energized. That means when the engine is off it in forward gear. It does into neutral when the neutral solenoid (green wire) is energized. The blue wire is for the reverse solenoid. The gearbox goes into reverse when BOTH wires are energized. Those gearboxs get a little cranky if the wrong oil is used in them. If I were you I would change the oil. (type "C") fluid only. It is available at all marinas and a lot of auto supply stores. Capacity is 26.9 oz. I have been using my 1971 evinrude 50hp with electric shift for about three years now. When I first got it it would not shift into reverse either. After I changed the fluid it took several shifts before it loosened up and started shifting. It hasn't failed me since.

The manual suggests the fluid be installed through the bottom hole until it comes out the top hole to avoid air being trapped inside. The pump to install it costs about $5.

I also have a 1972 Johnson 100hp with electric shift. The helm control looks the same as yours. I took mine apart, cleaned it, and relubed it. No biggy. I suggest you do the same. Good luck and have fun.

BTW, your boat and motor look good. Wish mine looked that good.

Also, I suggest if you plan to keep that sweetheart to a while, get a model specific OEM factory manual reproduction from Ken Cook Publishing. Money well spent.

[sweetwil23]

i appreciate the info. i will try that oil first, i took it to carls on east side , st,clair,MI and he tested the solenoid and said was good, thats when the shift wire was pinched, when i replaced shift wire and we put muffs and water through it then the propellar went in reverse until we actually got in lake. i hope its just the oil cause forward and nuetral work fine and runs like a champ. thanks again and will keep posted on progress.

The solenoid windings should read 5-6 ohms. Check that out before you take anything apart. Check the the resistance of each of those wires to ground. Put a volt meter on the leads to the solenoids from the helm control switch to ensure you are getting juice coming through when you shift. The gearbox defaults to forward gear when neither solenoids are energized. That means when the engine is off it in forward gear. It does into neutral when the neutral solenoid (green wire) is energized. The blue wire is for the reverse solenoid. The gearbox goes into reverse when BOTH wires are energized. Those gearboxs get a little cranky if the wrong oil is used in them. If I were you I would change the oil. (type "C") fluid only. It is available at all marinas and a lot of auto supply stores. Capacity is 26.9 oz. I have been using my 1971 evinrude 50hp with electric shift for about three years now. When I first got it it would not shift into reverse either. After I changed the fluid it took several shifts before it loosened up and started shifting. It hasn't failed me since.

The manual suggests the fluid be installed through the bottom hole until it comes out the top hole to avoid air being trapped inside. The pump to install it costs about $5.

I also have a 1972 Johnson 100hp with electric shift. The helm control looks the same as yours. I took mine apart, cleaned it, and relubed it. No biggy. I suggest you do the same. Good luck and have fun.

BTW, your boat and motor look good. Wish mine looked that good.

Also, I suggest if you plan to keep that sweetheart to a while, get a model specific OEM factory manual reproduction from Ken Cook Publishing. Money well spent.

[oldrudedude]

I would suggest changing the oil. Then run it for a while on muffs at home and shift it a bunch of times between neutral and reverse. I bet that will loosen it up and will be fine when you put it in the water. Watch for a milky oil when you drain it. That means there is water in the oil. Oil should be amber color.

[sweetwil23]

what is best way to flush oil out. bern mentioned flush out. should i buy extra oil and put extra through til new oil spits out? how will i know i have enough? thanks

[oldrudedude]

I'm don't know how bern would suggest flushing but I would buy extra oil, fill it, run it for a while, then change it again. It would depend on what the oil looks like when you drain it. Doesn't hurt to have extra. You should change it every season. The proceedure for changing the oil is to remove the top plug, then remove the bottom plug to let the oil drain out. It is recommended you refill by pumping the new stuff in through the bottom hole until it comes out the top one. Then install the top plug before you remove the pump from the bottom hole and reinstall the bottom plug. I would suggest getting the pump for a few bucks. It is way easier. First time I tried squirting it in straight from the bottle and ended up with half the oil on the driveway. You probably could get away with filling it from the top but the manufacturer warns of getting airpockets. If you do it from the top fill it, run it a bit, then top it up.