1987 mercruiser alpha one wont go into gear

i was going down the river and

i was going down the river and stopped to rest for a while. started boat back up and now gears wont engage. if you put the drive in gear it locks the propeller like it should but the engine doesnt turn it. in forward or reverse. ita an alpha 1 gen 1. any ideas?

"Don't have any ideas, but

"Don't have any ideas, but almost the same thing happened to me this weekend. Mine makes a lot of noise when the motor is idling. Would be very interested in any ideas you hear."

"I hate to say this but you ma

"I hate to say this but you may both have internal drive damage. (Read "expensive") Best thing to do is drain the drive oil and look for metal filings. Hope you don't find any.
If you find matal, you can pull the drive top cover and inspect the gears. If these look good, then it is almost certain the lower gears are gone.
If there is no metal in the drive oil; Jimmy you may have a shot U joint or engine coupling.
Mike you may have a shot gimbal bearing or U joints. This is a much less costly scenario."

but i was told if you turned t

but i was told if you turned the prop and the shaft turned at the motor then its the coupling is this true?

"If you can turn the prop and

"If you can turn the prop and see the shaft turning at the engine coupler (with the engine not running), then yes it must be the coupler. Have you actually seen this?
Are you still getting cooling water flow (ie; not overheating) with the engine running?
If so, this means the cooling water impeller in the drive leg is still operating, which means that your coupling, U joints, upper gears, and vertical shaft are all working fine. That means your lower unit is not shifting gears for some reason. Could be lower gear damage, or lower shift cable not working.
Rod"

"yes i saw the shaft turning,

"yes i saw the shaft turning, and like i said the boat goes into gear and its still pumping water fine. and the boat shifts from forward to neutral and reverse fine. and the prop indicates when it is in each one by the movement. just no thrust from motor."

"About the only thing left is

"About the only thing left is your Flo torque clutch inside the prop must be slipping, if equipped.
Rod"

"I learned a lot from this dis

"I learned a lot from this discussion. I can turn the prop, and the shaft turns (motor off). The shaft doesn't turn when the motor is running at idle in neutral. Doesn't appear to be cooling water coming out, but I didn't let it idle long. Seems like there is a load on the motor too. Lots of noise and some metal shavings around the rear of the motor, 4.3l V6. Is that the gimbal bearings? Do I have to have the motor and/or the lower unit removed?"

"Mike;
If you have metal shav

"Mike;
If you have metal shavings visible at the back of the motor, that sounds like the coupler is tearing up. The bad news is that will require leg and engine removal to repair. No big deal if you are set up with an engine hoist. Disconnecting everything is a half day job.
Rod"