Boat Engine revs but won't turn prop in forward

[Lasha malazonia]

I have a 1988 Bayliner Capri, 2.3L OMC cobra.the engine runs good but when I put it the shifter in forward it will not turn the prop, however it does turn in reverse. I am new to io boat motors an would like some advice on what could be the problem and how I can resolve it . With the motor off when I put the shifter it reverse the prop locks up and will not turn, when trying to turn it by Hand. When I put the shifter in forward it spins freely with a clicking noise. What should I do and what can it be. Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thank you

 

[bruceb58]

Sounds like your lower shift cable is completely out of adjustment or more likely failed. When they get that bad, its usually the cable. Hopefully the dog gears are still ok.

What was happening before this. It just doesn't get like this overnight.

Tilt your drive up and look at the shift cable where it enters the drive. Is the housing still ok or is it bulging at all?

 

[Lasha malazonia]

Thank you very much for your reply, I adjusted the shift cable and got it to work, but now when I put it in forward in low throttle i hear a kicking sound, and the prop won't turn but once I give it more throttle it gets going. Is that my dog gears failing? Also my throttle is very stiff and hard to press down. Is there any way to lubricate the cables to make the throttle smoother? Thank you

 

[LAC_STS]

Thank you very much for your reply, I adjusted the shift cable and got it to work, but now when I put it in forward in low throttle i hear a kicking sound, and the prop won't turn but once I give it more throttle it gets going. Is that my dog gears failing? Also my throttle is very stiff and hard to press down. Is there any way to lubricate the cables to make the throttle smoother? Thank you

Esp with your gears being questionable you really really need to adjust it by the OEM manual if you didn't. The procedure is also posted on the Stuart Hastings site (just Google Hastings Cobra). If your gears are not already shot you risk hurting them even more by having a misadjusted cable. It's not come thing you can just keep making little adjustments until it seems to work ok. I would inspect the cables really good and then do the manual adjustment procedure at the engine shift bracket. If for some reason you can't get it right by the manual take the drive off and do the adjustment at the pivot housing. Sounds like a lot of work but it's a lot better than having to replace the drive.