35 hp force engine jerking, looking for advice

[fickesd]

I own a 35hp force outboard but I don't know exact year or serial number due to nameplate being unreadable. The boat is a 1991 so I guessing the engine is as well. The engine starts, idles and shifts into gears just fine. Recently it start jerking periodically as I drive it more than a few miles/hr. The faster I drive the more frequent and harsher the jerks are. By reading other posts I was guessing the clutch dog was skipping a tooth on the gear. The jerking occurs in both forward and reverse which made me question issues with the gears and made me think it was the clutch dog or an adjustment issue. Another little bit of information: When I go from neutral to forward or reverse, I have to push the shifter pretty far before the boat starts to move.

So here is my question. Should I try to take the gears and clutch dog out and inspect to see what is the issue or just try to find a used lower unit. My issue is trying to figure out what parts or lower unit I should purchase if I don't know the year/serial number of my motor. I've been looking for a lower unit and asking the seller for shaft length, # of splines, and distance between mounting holes and one that looks the same visually. The ones I'm finding seem to have just slight differences in dimensions so I can't tell if it's just the angle of the picture taken with the tape measure showing the dimension between the mounting holes. Does anyone know of a better way to find the right parts or the right lower unit asy since I don't know the year or serial number of my motor? Could it also just be an adjustment issue?

Your help would be appreciated

 

[jerryjerry05]

From the description. it sounds like the shift rod in the lower unit could be binding where it enters the lower unit.
Or the shifter is wearing out.

Take the connectors off and try to shift by hand.
You'll need to spin the prop as you shift.
It should go in and out of gear fairly easy, if not?
Then the rod's seizing?

Check the shifter for slop.

The longer you use it, the worse the dog will be.
You probably will need to resurface or replace the dog.

 

[fickesd]

JerryJerry05, Thanks for your quick response. I'll have to take a look at your suggestion tonight. One thing to clarify in my previous post is that it does seem to shift into gear normally (fwd and rev) but I have to move the shifter/throttle pretty far to get it to drive faster. I re-read my post and I wasn't very clear on that. Don't know if it changes your response or not.

 

[jerryjerry05]

The pushing it farther ton go faster?
That could be the linkage isn't set up right.
The top 3-4 posts in this forum have tips and suggestions and directions on some repairs.
There is a post that covers a procedure called a link and sync.
That helps set up the linkage and shifter.