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1983 Johnson 25 hp drive shaft question

A

ABrock

New member
Hi guys,
My motor: 1983 Johnson 25 hp, model: J25RLCTE

Last year I had issues of water getting into my lower unit, so I decided to replace the water pump and the seals. When I was pulling off the water pump housing, it ended up pulling the drive shaft up out of the lower unit. I discovered that whoever last replaced the water pump installed a few things incorrectly.

Now to my question; since the drive shaft got pulled out, do I need to open up the gear case to line up the drive shaft with the pinion gear? According to the service manual you should, but I put the drive shaft back in and everything seems to be working correctly. (Shifting in and out of gear, turning the drive shaft turns the prop shaft in both forward and reverse, and it doesn't sound like there are any loose parts rattling around down there. )

Has anyone had this problem before?

Thanks!
 
That driveshaft is designed to pull out of the gearcase just as you've experienced. It simply slides into and out of the pinion gear which cannot move out of its position..... no worries!
 
Great, thanks joereeves!

Do you happen to know why the service manual might say not to remove it? It says "if the shaft should be released from the pinion gear, the lower unit MUST be disassembled to align the pinion gear and drive shaft, then the drive shaft installed."

I realize that the service manual I'm looking at covers a wide range of motors, im just trying to make sure the reference material I'm using is reliable.

Thanks!
 
ABrock said:
Do you happen to know why the service manual might say not to remove it? It says "if the shaft should be released from the pinion gear, the lower unit MUST be disassembled to align the pinion gear and drive shaft, then the drive shaft installed."
Click to expand...

Those manuals that cover more than one engine can be extremely confusing. The quote above pertains to some other engine... NOT the 1983 25hp Johnson.
 
Great, I'm glad to hear it. Do you know of any literature that might be accurate for this motor? It seems to be a model that johnson only made for one year, a lot of information skips from 1982 straight to 1984.
 
Last edited:
No---These motors were common for many years.----------Some of the manuals are best for wiping up the shop floor.------Too confusing and many mistakes.
 
ABrock said:
Do you know of any literature that might be accurate for this motor? It seems to be a model that Johnson only made for one year, a lot of information skips from 1982 straight to 1984.
Click to expand...

J25RLCTE = 1983 25hp Johnson....... Look into eBay for a service manual published by OMC (Outboard Marine Corporation) specifically for this engine.
 
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