can get neutral or reverse to work plz help

franky doo

Recruit
Joined
Jul 27, 2011
Messages
2
First start Good morning everyone
i got a mercury70 the guy that sold it to me said to be a 86 sin # starts with 719****
bought it two days ago. now i put it on the boat, head out to the docks get the boat in water, start de boat , i m heading toward the shore got no neutral, so hit it in reverse the boat fly onto land WHAT THE HELL ... try to contact the guy that sold me the outboard to my luck no anwser , so now what to do try to get neutral with cable unattached but prop is stuck in foward can t get it to spin freely or lock both ways.
from what i ve been reading it could be just the shift shaft that could be hooked up wrong can this be fixed without taking the lower unit off , i see the shift shaft in between the head and lower unit it turns but where ever postion a try it in the prop stays in engaged,
if it not the shift shaft what else should i be looking at ?

also is it pretty hard the remove lower end what should i be careful with ?
been into boat for 3 weeks now , pretty new at this but i am mecanical incline
 

CharlieB

Vice Admiral
Joined
Apr 10, 2007
Messages
5,617
Re: can get neutral or reverse to work plz help

Someone may have recently replaced the water pump and was not careful reinstalling the lower unit, the shift shaft is either not plugged in or out of time.

The lower has to come off, rotate the short shift shaft on the lower until it 'clicks' into position. Turn the prop counter clockwise, if it turns the vert shaft it is in Reverse, if it rachets it is in Forward. Put the shift control into the same position and reinstall the lower, taking care to be sure the water transfer tube and the shift shaft engage correctly.

Test shifting before you head to the water, just to be sure.
 

franky doo

Recruit
Joined
Jul 27, 2011
Messages
2
Re: can get neutral or reverse to work plz help

Well here we are start to drain the oil .... no oil juste a little bit of water .... now what to do with this lower end ....
man oh man i ain t been lucky with this hobby lol got a broken down top end 73 johnson65 hp that i got with the boat and a broken lower end mercury 70 what year is this any how SIN # 7199338

anyone in montreal or around got a lower end for a mercury that fit #7199338 :)
 

stackz

Master Chief Petty Officer
Joined
May 29, 2008
Messages
830
Re: can get neutral or reverse to work plz help

pull the lower unit and with just the lower unit propped up on say a picnic table or what not, spin the prop. same ratcheting, etc? the shift cam isnt in place.

grab the shift shaft splines (very front) with plier and pull to one side or the other until you feel resistance. once you feel resistance, keep pulling firmly but controlled to get the cam to "roll" level. this should be neutral and it should allow the prop to freewheel.

after you understand this. go ahead and pull the prop and then the gear set out and inspect them to see if the gears got eaten by the water.

if not, just grab a new seal/o-ring kit and redo the seals and fill it with quicksilver gear oil...re-aline the shift cam again and slap it back on and see how it shifts.

oh yeah, make sure the prop shaft is facing down when you pull the shaft out to inspect as (if its the same as my 90hp) there will be three ball bearings inside the tip of the shaft that you dont want to lose lol.

if it shifts fine with the lower unit off...you probably still need a new gasket/o-ring set to prevent the water intrusion but you likely need to adjust the shift levers up top. service manual will walk you through that.
 
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