lower unit question

pulled the lower unit off of a 76 merc.1150. when I turn the drive shaft by hand the prop shaft turns and when putting shifter in reverse it still turns in the same direction as in foward. it does'nt seem to have any neutural , it always turns the prop shaft the same way. what gives? lower unit shot....Thanks for any input.

Re: lower unit question

^^^

Re: lower unit question

cm, what do u mean when u talk about shifting w/<br />the L/U off?

Re: lower unit question

I'm talking about the lower unit is off and on a bench. I can move the gear shift rod back and forth but seems to have no affect to the prop shaft. The prop will lock while turning drive shaft ccw and click while turning cw which I think is foward. I can't get neutral or reverse.I don't know if its stripped or just me. thought maybe someone else has seen this before. thanks

Re: lower unit question

There is a large degree of rotation where the shift shaft just walks back and forth and doesn't do anything. It'll be in forward gear all that time.<br /><br />The shift shaft is rotated CCW to shift to neutral then just a bit more for reverse. If you rotate it further CCW past this point it falls into the 'null' zone again and you can rotate it around CCW until the shift cam starts to push on the plunger in the end of the propshaft which moves the shift dog and effects shifting to neutral and reverse.<br /><br />Does your shift shaft free-wheel 360 degrees? If so, it's not engaged in the shift cam properly. If the shift shaft was inadvertently pulled out, it's a little tricky to get it back in the correct position.<br /><br />Basically, when in fwd gear you turn the prop in the direction it 'clicks'. But, while turning, you stop just before the next 'click'. This takes pressure off the shift cam which is rattling around loose in the front of the lower unit.<br /><br />Then, very carefully so as not to disturb the position of the prop shaft, you peer down the shift shaft hole (with the bushing/seal assy out) and jostle the lower unit around until you see the shift cam and align the hole up so the shift shaft will engage properly. Then insert the shift shaft & reinstall the bushing/seal assy.<br /><br />You will have to drain the lower unit completely in order to be able to see the shift cam.<br /><br />If this isn't what's going on, you may have something internally broken, which will require disassembly of the lower unit for inspection.<br /><br />HTH and Good Luck...........ed

Re: lower unit question

the shift shaft is still in the foot. I can move the shaft 1/2 turn to the left or right and before it stops it feels like it locks into gear but by turning the drive shaft the prop shaft always turns in the same direction. did'nt want to pull it apart unless I had to. the oil still looked good and no metal shavings and no water leaks. Waiting on manual to arrive to learn more.unit may be ok might just be me not understanding the way it works. Thanks

Re: lower unit question

i had this same problem with my merc 850 lower unit. it was in forward gear and wouldn't into N or R, and i didn't want to force anything or take it apart. so, i took it up to the merc dealer and explained the situation. one of his mechanics came out with a pliers. the shift had turned too far. a couple of turns and he had it shifting FNR in 10 seconds. yeh, that was a relief.