Shifting very difficult

[redlinj]

Had the bellows, lower shift cable and gimble bearing replaced! Now for some recent history! Last fall, I removed the lower Alpha 1 gen 1 unit, but forgot to put the shift lever into forward! Possible dumb thing #1?? Drained the lower unit, but did not refill. Possible dumb thing #2?? The mercruiser 260 hp shifted fine when taken out last fall but now it gets hung up and is difficult to get into/outta gear without jiggling and getting into neutral is a toss up! When the mechanic did his work I told him about the shifter not being in forward and no lower unit oil! He did refill the lower unit! I tried adjusting the lower shift cable with no success. Could letting the unit sit all winter empty have a negative effect! Does this sound like cable adjustment gone wrong or potential lower unit problems? Thanks!

 

[Bt Doctur]

If its hard in and out of gear check for the shift mechanism damage.
If only difficult coming out of gear in the water then check the shift interupter for correct operation

 

[redlinj]

Will head to the boat to check that today!

 

[Grub54891]

On the lower the bronze shift dog will get bent if not in fwd gear. Seen it happen before. You will need a new part, split the lower to put it in.

 

[redlinj]

On the lower the bronze shift dog will get bent if not in fwd gear. Seen it happen before. You will need a new part, split the lower to put it in.

Are you saying split the lower shift cable? The shifter moves very smoothly, both directions and neutral when the engine is off! Could this be an interrupt or switch problem? I did replace the distributor cap and rotor. Perhaps got wires crossed when reconnecting the thunderbolt?? I’ll check it out later this afternoon!

 

[Bondo]

Are you saying split the lower shift cable? The shifter moves very smoothly, both directions and neutral when the engine is off! Could this be an interrupt or switch problem? I did replace the distributor cap and rotor. Perhaps got wires crossed when reconnecting the thunderbolt?? I’ll check it out later this afternoon!

Naw,.... The lower unit, from the upper,.....
Ya probably bent the piece that slides onto the splines of the shaft shaft, in the lower unit,....

 

[Grub54891]

This.

 

[redlinj]

This.
View attachment 366154

Guess I’ll just have to pull the boat out then to check it out! Unless of course, it fixes itself! Thanks!

 

[Grub54891]

Guess I’ll just have to pull the boat out then to check it out! Unless of course, it fixes itself! Thanks!

It can’t fix itself. Sorry to say.

 

[redlinj]

It can’t fix itself. Sorry to say.

Was just being facetious!. So, if this is the problem, ( I have no reason to believe it isn’t) is this a complete tear down of the bottom half?

 

[Grub54891]

No not a complete teardown. Just split the upper from the lower and replace "A" in this pic.

 

[redlinj]

If a “Cave Man “ can do this then I’ll pull the boat out and start today! Thanks!

 

[redlinj]

This.
View attachment 366154

Bit confused! Is this pic upside down? Does it fit in the upper or lower section of the outdrive? As the lower unit comes off in one piece, how does anything in the middle of it get bent if the shifter is not in forward? Please forgive me, but at times, I just have no grasp of the obvious! I’d like to be sure of things before I make a further mess of them!

 

[Eric 3.7LX Alpha 1]

Here is picture of the splined shaft on the lower half of the drive.
The intermediate shift shaft is on the upper half of the drive, and is splined inside to drop over the splines on the lower half of the drive.

 

[redlinj]

Ok, that becomes clearer now. So the pic of the bronze shift shaft is upside down then! Which part of the shaft might bend then if the outdrive is taken off without the shifter being forward?

 

[Grub54891]

The top shoe, just below the shoe will get twisted. Usually not a visual twist, I’ve seen it twice in 20 years.

 

[redlinj]

The top shoe, just below the shoe will get twisted. Usually not a visual twist, I’ve seen it twice in 20 years.

You’ve probably seen a lot of ‘em! I’m starting to think something else could be the problem! Two in 20 yrs. ??? Odds are now, it is something else! I’ll keep you posted!

 

[Grub54891]

Well you did pull the drive when it was not in fwd. So the damage could be there.

 

[redlinj]

No not a complete teardown. Just split the upper from the lower and repl

Here is picture of the splined shaft on the lower half of the drive.
The intermediate shift shaft is on the upper half of the drive, and is splined inside to drop over the splines on the lower half of the drive.

View attachment 366313

Ok, now looking at the above pic, the bronze shift shaft (intermediate shift shaft?)would fit over the circled splined shaft, correct? Is that where the bend would occur?

 

[Bondo]

Ok, now looking at the above pic, the bronze shift shaft (intermediate shift shaft?)would fit over the circled splined shaft, correct? Is that where the bend would occur?

Ayuh,.... The bronze piece, Yes,....