1983 Evinrude 15 how to remove drive shaft

[motomanmatt]

Attempting to replace the impeller on a 1983 Evinrude 15 (E15RCNC). When I drop the gearbox, the drive shaft does not come with it (as it does in all of the videos that I’ve watched about doing this). The drive shaft releases from the gearbox but remains in the powerhead on the other end of the shaft. That end is covered by a housing. (See photos). When I remove the housing I can see where the drive shaft enters the lower part of the power unit. There’s a snap ring. I figured it was holding the drive shaft and preventing it from coming free from the powerhead? I removed the snap ring and expected the drive shaft to then come out. But it does not.

This is a problem because, from all the instructional videos I see, when it’s time to install the new impeller, you slide it down the drive shaft, THEN you take the locating pin with a dab of grease and apply it to the groove on the drive shaft. Then you slide the gearbox onto the drive shaft until the locating pin goes into the groove in the new impeller. Then you’re done!

I’ve been puzzling on this for days now and I can’t figure out a solution. I’m older now and feeling my age. But I’ve been working on engines and motorcycles and cars since I was a kid so I’m not complete newbie. My first thought is that the drive shaft must just be “stuck” in the powerhead. So I put a crescent wrench into the groove on the drive shaft so that I could use a hammer to gently tap on it to see if I could get the drive shaft to release from the powerhead. No luck.

I don’t know what to do next. I really thought the snap ring was the solution and that removing it would let the drive shaft come out of the powerhead. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

 

[racerone]

make an adapter to clamp on the shaft.-----Pull it out with a slide hammer.

 

[Crosbyman]

flip the engine upside down an drip some release agent down the shaft to reach the PH
let it seep in a few hrs and retry. tapping on the drive shaft from the other end with a wood block/hammer may break a rusty bond in the PH.

 

[racerone]

Have a 79 model with same issue here.------Took engine apart.---May cut / grind the crank to save the shaft.-----The splines should be greased about every 5 years or so.

 

[3rdtimesthecharm]

They make a slide-hammer with a vise-grip attachment. I got mine off of amazon.I had the same problem with a ‘68 18 Evinrude. Clamp it above where the water pump housing goes.