30hp Evinrude - Rope Wrapped in Prop at WOT

[thull]

Hi All,

I'm helping my brother with his 30hp that he ran over his anchor line with. He was running at WOT at the time and the engine came to a sudden stop. It will not shift out of forward gear or restart.

First off, this motor is missing the plate with the model #, however the serial # on the silver plug on the powerhead is R8204391. Can anyone tell me the model # & year?

Can I remove the lower gearbox cover (skeg) without having to replace a seal when I reassemble?

 

[racerone]

Is the throttle handle back to the idle position ?----Picture of this motor ?

 

[F_R]

if it truly is a 30hp with a skeg, it is a 1956--the only year they made them. The "R" before the serial number means rebuilt or replacement. Can't you get the prop off? I suspect it in in gear with throttle open too.

 

[thull]

Here are photos. I was wrong...it doesn't have a skeg. Seems like a 1980s era motor.

 

[F_R]

Looks like you got the rope out, right? Should be no reason to take anything apart. Retard throttle to slow position and then put it in neutral.

 

[thull]

Sorry the photos are sideways. I did turn them in Picture Manager before uploading. The prop is off on the motor. Also, sorry for the misleading info FR, there is no skeg. I was trying to recall what I saw from memory when I posted.

The throttle seems to be all the way down to idle. To clarify what I mean by "stuck in gear," the shift lever will move to neutral, forward and reverse, but the prop shaft still spins as the flywheel is turned while the shift lever is in neutral position. While trying to diagnose this issue, based on my past experiences, I thought I could just undo the shift rod at the coupler and move it up and down to get the clutch dog back aright, BUT this is a later model than I'm used too, and there isn't even an access door on the LU. I see they moved that all up under the cowling and incorporated a more complex gizmo for actuating the shift lever. I'm not sure where to go from here.

 

[thull]

I don't know what I was thinking, but the cowl indicates this is a Johnson, not an Evinrude...not that that matters much.

 

[boobie]

Pull the water pump pick up screens off once and check your shift linkage there.

 

[F_R]

Yep, that's right---the disconnect is behind the water intake screens.

 

[thull]

Okay, I was able to pull the water inlet screens and look at what was happening when I move the shift lever back and forth. Everything from the shift Rod up seems to be working properly. The shift lever moves the actuator cam which is moving the shift Rod up and down and the throttle is moving throughout its range accordingly. The problem seems to be in the gearbox because when I put it into full forward everything gets locked up. The flywheel is impossible to turn the prop Shaft won't turn the whole engine won't move. When I shift to neutral I can again turn the flywheel but the prop shaft is rotating counter-clockwise and also when I shift to reverse same thing. How do I get into the gear case on this motor? According to Parts diagrams it seems that maybe the prop bearing and seal come out and then the whole innards pulls out that way? Please excuse some of my lack of punctuation as I am writing this on my phone. Thanks.

 

[Chinewalker]

It's possible that when running and then coming to a quick stop (rope on prop) that you may have broken something inside the gear case. I'd start by draining the lower unit oil and inspect it for metal filings. The gear case locking up like that definitely points to something more involved than simple disconnect of the shift rod...

 

[boobie]

I'd recommend getting an OMC factory service manual. Good info in there.

 

[F_R]

It can be fun getting the detent balls and spring back in without the special tool. Stuff like this is explained in the manual. iboats sells the manuals.

 

[Chinewalker]

It can be fun getting the detent balls and spring back in without the special tool. Stuff like this is explained in the manual. iboats sells the manuals.

I've used a zip-tie to hold them in place, then clip the zip once they're in...

 

[thull]

I drained the LU. I had a magnet under the dripping oil. No metal shavings. I think I'm gonna refer this particular issue to a more experienced mechanic. Now to address the non-starting problem. One question, why doesn't this motor have the timing marks on the flywheel and armature plate like all my 1959-1975 motors do? Based on parts diagrams, I think this is a 1989-1990s vintage motor and it has a scale on top of the flywheel from 8 to 36. Also "ELEC" and "CD" stamped there. Is that for timing with a light? What is the process to do that? FYI, I know to check spark & fuel...I've brought several other earlier motors back from non-runners. Thanks!

 

[thull]

Update: I got it running. All I did was clean the plugs and shoot a little fuel into the carb and it started right up. It is running fine now. Just won't shift properly. I will provide another update after the real mechanic looks at it. Thanks!

 

[thull]

My brother picked up this motor and took it home. He put it back on the boat and tested it in a barrel and it shifts fine now. Still not sure what the problem was but it seems to have resolved itself. Thanks all for the input..