[godofthewaves]

My 1969 evinrude 85hp had gear case rebuilt last summer with shift solenoids and shaft replaced.
Suddenly I lost reverse and gear case click on reverse and neutral. Neutral work but clicks in lower part. Forward is fine.
Any help would be great.
Stef

[WillyBWright]

Check your gearube if you already haven't. You should be getting 12v+ to the green wire in Neutral, and both the green and blue wires in Reverse. Make sure you're using Premium Blend gearlube and not conventional gearlube. I hear that ATF works too, though I'm skeptical.

[Joe Reeves]

Check the gearlube as it's possible that a leak exists. If low on lube, use only Premium Blend, also know as Type C, available at your dealership.

(Hydro Electric Shift)
(J. Reeves)

The shifting setup of the lower unit is what's called a "Hydro Electric Shift", which is quite complex consisting of voltage being applied to solenoids in the lower unit which in turn change oil passages via a oil pump that supplies various pressure on a spring loaded shifter dog. The wires leading to the lower unit (at the powerhead) are "Green" and "Blue". The engine must be running or cranking over in order to shift out of forward gear.

You CAN NOT use HI VIS lube in that lower unit. You MUST USE what OMC calls "Preminum Blend" lube, commonly called "Type C". (A thinner lube)

In neutral, you need 12v to the "Green" wire.
In reverse, you need 12v to both wires, the "Green" one and the "Blue" one.
In forward, there should be no voltage to either wire. (The spring loaded shifter dog forces the unit into forward gear)

To check the lower unit for proper shifting to make sure you have no trouble there, remove the spark plugs to avoid problems and to allow a higher cranking speed.

This next step eliminates the actual shift switch in case problems may exist there.... Disconnect the blue & green wires at the knife connectors (the rubber insulated boots) leading to the lower unit at the powerhead, then using jumpers, take voltage direct from the starter solenoid to apply voltage to the "Green" wire for neutral, then both wires 'Green" & "Blue" for reverse (Remember the engine must be cranking over in order to shift).
With no voltage applied, the unit should be in forward. No need for a ground jumper... the lower unit's already grounded. You may crank the engine with the key switch or by energizing the starter solenoid with a jumper wire.

http://stores.ebay.com/Evinrude-John...tc?refid=store

[godofthewaves]

gear lube is fine. This engine stays on forward by default and switches to neutral or reverse only when powered. I am scared to run in in neutral or reverse because of the clicking. Any thoughts?
Stef

[godofthewaves]

When I talked to mechanic he said solenoid is bad, sound to me reverse spring has jumped. If I start engine and run in neutral or reverse I am scared to hurt it.
Stef

[kauboy]

If your mech is right, and the solenoids are bad, thats quite a pickle. The replacement kit is $164 and not many places can get them. I know there is a place up in Seattle that still has them to sell to distributors.

I found mine on eBay for $15. The lady had no idea what they were. That was very lucky. You might get lucky too, just keep looking.

First, before you jump to that conclusion, do some testing.
You can test the continuity of the solenoids with a multimeter. Disconnect the blue and green wires at the powerhead and kick your multimeter to the ohms setup. Stick the red probe on the wire (pick one) leading down to the solenoids and the black probe to a good ground on the engine. You should read 5~7ohms. Do this to the other wire and look for the same reading.
Be extra positive that you have a good ground. A bad one will make you think both solenoids are bad. I used a screw on the starter solenoid I think...
If either solenoid shows up as 0 ohms, you still may not be in hot water. The next thing to do is to drop the lower unit and visually inspect the wiring. It turned out that my wire was broke when I finally dropped the unit. But I had already bought the solenoids, so I replaced them anyways.
You may get lucky and just have an easy to mend break in the line.

If both solenoids show a reading of 5~7 ohms, I'd start looking for a different cause. Maybe your not getting enough juice down there to fully actuate them. That might be the clicking.
With the batt plugged up, the ignition set to "On" but don't start the engine, and the gear buttons set to the "Forward" position, check the wires coming from the powerhead that would hook to the ones going down to the solenoids. The one for the green wire should have 0v, and the blue one should have 0v also. Again, you'll need a good ground.
Then push the button for "Neutral" and check them again. The green should show +12v, and the blue should show 0v. Now push the "Reverse" button and check the wires. Both green and blue wires should have +12v.
If any of these readings are bad, you have a break or a short somewhere. If any of the readings are less than +12v but greater than 0v, you need to start finding where the voltage loss is occurring.