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highway.
I have a 1995 Pantera II with a 1996 Mariner EFI. I loaded the boat on the trailer and everything was fine until I went to engage the moter in gear so the prop would not spin while towing. I am now having a hard time shifting the linkage from forward to reverse. I do not want to force the linkage into gear. I can get the linkage to engage into forward then its tough to get into reverse. Then vise versa. I can get the linkage to shift into reverse then its tough for it to go into forward. I have not tried to disconnect the linkage from the engine yet to see if the cables are in a bind. Any Suggestions???
Sure. Dont do it. Else, have someone slightly move the prop. The clutch dogs have to mesh. With nothing moving, it is not easy. Much like trying to shift a car when the thing is still and the motor is off. I would not worry about the prop spinning. I doubt it will spin much, if any. If it does, it doesnt hurt a thing. If you really want it in gear, Id leave it in gear and kill the ignition after loading…2008 Pantera Classic2014 Mercury Pro XS 200
OT57 has given you good advice, though from our experiences be cautious if your propeller free spins easily. Often if you can whirl it simply, there is water in the gearcase. We have seen this more than you would imagine and they will run on water a good while before busting loose inside. The propeller should have a bit of resistance and would not worry about towing.
Thanks for the advise! I do remember when going to the rear of the engine and turning the prop just a little and then the shifter did ease into gear. I never thought of backing the boat back into the water and trying to shift the engine. I will hook the flusher up tomorrow and try it when the engine is idleing. Also the note about the free spin of the prop. It does not free spin it does have some resistance. It was just an old wise tale I had heard years back. You know just thinking about it I would assume it wouldnt get that much air back there anyway. Heck I have been needing advise from friends since the corp, why stop now. LOL Thanks for your advise. USMC
First, as my dad (a WWII vet) taught me to say, “thank you for your service…” the free-wheeling doesnt hurt a thing. The gearcase is full of oil, and it is not like an auto transmission on a car that will burn up due to lack of oil circulation if you tow the things more than 30-50 miles or so, so spinning isnt an issue. The bearings, races, and prop shaft (all that is spinning) are so hard, the little bit of spinning wont wear a thing. Youll find that it shifts easily on the muffs, although I personally try to avoid that, as you get some rebound that makes a noise I dont like when the clutch dogs engage, and the prop, without any tension on it from being in the water will rapidly accelerate, overrun the drive shaft speed, then slow down, then bang back up to speed. You can hear this if you listen carefully. Not particularly harmful, but I just hate to hear it. If you look inside your lower unit, you have a drive shaft with a pinion gear, and two gears facing each other one on each side of the pinion, both have the prop shaft running thru them. These two gears are spinning whenever the motor is running, but they are not tied to the prop shaft and spin freely. The clutch is a cylinder on the drive shaft that slides between the two gears. On each end there are three large ears that mate with three large notches in the gears. If you slide it one way, the ears (dogs) engage with a “whack” and now that gear is driving the propshaft. Since the two gears are on opposite sides of the pinion, they are spinning in opposite directions. Which ever one you engage with the clutch mechanism determines which way the propshaft (and therefore the prop) spins. And those ears are what produces that loud “thunk” when you go from neutral to reverse or forward. If the two gears are not spinning because the driveshaft is not moving since the motor is dead, you cant get the ears and notches to align correctly. The ears and notches are slightly tapered and sometimes you can freely shift in and out of gear with the motor off. But if the ears/notches are not aligned, it is not going into gear unless you spin either the drive shaft or the prop shaft. Hence your problem. And it is perfectly normal.2008 Pantera Classic2014 Mercury Pro XS 200
Thanks for the advise OT57. You were 100% correct. The linkage worked fine while the engine was running. I guess thats what happens when I start thinking. LOL I sure thought I was fixn to spend a few bucks. Thanks again!!
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