'96 Evinrude Intruder 150 Shift Rod Height

My '96 Evinrude Intruder 150 Model #E150GLEDB has had some issues at times where the forward gear seems to slip at idle/trolling speed. I have NOT seen chunks of metal in the gear oil so I don't think this is an issue of bad/broken gears.

I'm wondering if this lower unit has been off before and maybe they didn't set the shift rod height properly. My guess is it's a bit too high and when it pulls up to engage forward it doesn't quite fully move the clutch dog. I'm going to drop the lower unit this weekend and double check that before I start chasing other things.

I'm certain this is a 20" shaft engine and I think I have the HiPo gear case. I believe the shift rod height is supposed to be 21 1/4" but could someone confirm that for me?


Thanks,

KJ

Help Help Help!!!!!!
I found a height in this thread:http://www.marineengine.com/boat-forum/showthread.php?376721-1995-Evinrude-150-shift-rod

But, this doesn't work for my gear case. I made a tool at 21 1/4" and the threads on my shift rod bottom out before i can get down to that measurement. My gear case is pointed on the front end with a speedo pickup and measures 4 1/2" OD just under the water pickup. It flares out a little on the rear by the prop? Is this a High Performance gear case? Does that make a difference on the shift rod height?

Here are measurements I got with the rod at the very top, bottom, and in 6 full turns

Top = 22 1/16"

6 turns = 21 13/16"

Bottom = 21 9/16"

I think I have something well beyond the standard gear case but for the life of me I can't find the right measurements.

Kevin

Okay....I've spent the last hour searching until my eyes are bulging and I think I finally nailed it down. My lower unit looks to be the lightning gear case. So this is definitely not the standard OEM lower unit for this engine.

I found this chart and if I'm reading it right the shift rod height will be 21 3/4". Coincidentally when I made tool at with that measurement it pretty much exactly works with the shift rod set at 6 turns down from the very top. I'm going to go with that setting this weekend and see how it goes.



Kevin

You got a mess.....1) the lighting case only came on a select few Johnson 150 Fichts and a lot of 200-225 HP engines 2) if it came off a ficht 60degree it was the later model and the shift rod is .500 longer due to cowling pans. 3)the correct height is 21 -1/4 no matter the gearcase 4) what type of boat as that gearcase is designed to run at 70mph+, on hull not capable of that speed over trimming will cause nose to dig and actually slow boat down.

faztbullet said:

You got a mess.....1) the lighting case only came on a select few Johnson 150 Fichts and a lot of 200-225 HP engines 2) if it came off a ficht 60degree it was the later model and the shift rod is .500 longer due to cowling pans. 3)the correct height is 21 -1/4 no matter the gearcase 4) what type of boat as that gearcase is designed to run at 70mph+, on hull not capable of that speed over trimming will cause nose to dig and actually slow boat down.

Click to expand...

You're not kidding I have a mess. I tried the 21 3/4" and ....surprise, surprise.....it was a definite No-GO. I had no forward shifting at all. If I threaded all the way down until it bottoms out with the 21 9/16" measurement I can get it into all 3 shift positions, but I'm not terribly confident on the forward gear.

1) I'm 99% certain this is a Lightning case and it's definitely been swapped on by a previous owner. I have no idea what engine was original donor.

2) That extra 0.500" makes sense because that's just about how far off I am from the OEM shift rod measurement. Do I get a different length shift rod? Or do I remove the one I have and cut in another 3/8" of threads on the end? If cut in more threads will I need to cut the excess 0.500" length off the end so that it doesn't bottom out in the case?

3) Thank you for confirming the 21 1/4" shift rod adjustment length.

4) This is on a Ranger 461VS. The LU does okay, but I have noticed I never quite get the top RPM and speed I thought I should. I'm running a 4-blade SS cupped prop (came on the boat) and most of that lower RPM and speed is probably due to the 4-blade. But, now I'm curious if some of that decreased performance is LU related.

If I thought I could find a good OEM gear case and make a swap for this one it might be best. I don't know if it's worth that effort and cost, but it could be an option. If I can make this one work that is my cheapest route, but if it's going to turn into a frankenstein then I don't want to deal with it. I'm not caught up in go-fast high performance, I just want my fishing boat to run and be reliable.

KJ

I ordered a new shift rod (part# 335509) from MarineEngine.com and it arrived today. I'll get that installed and set the height to 21 1/4". Once that's done I'll be able to water test and know for certain if I've defeated this beast.

I'm glad I didn't attempt to cut longer threads on my existing rod. The new one looks like the end is machined on a lathe to a smaller diameter than the rest of the rod, then the threads are cut it. I possibly could have gotten that done locally but it would been a pain.

KJ

FaztBullett nailed it. My new shift rod arrived and I got it installed this morning. Below is a picture of the old and new rods. The one with black paint was the original and the all metal one is the new. They were exactly 1/2" different in length: the new is 31" and the old is 31.5". I was able to get the shift rod adjusted exactly to 21 1/4" and had to make HUGE adjustments to the shift cable to get the linkage centered. Tomorrow will be the lake test but man, I can tell you already the linkage feels a lot smoother and has much more free action. I really have no idea how this was ever working in the first place.

Okay, we can stick a fork in this thread. Lake test was 100% amazing today. The controls were much more free and when shifting into gear there was a nice clean clunk as it engaged and there was no slipping at all. Previously I would have to give it some throttle to ensure it was fully shifted into forward. As I said previously, I just have no clue how this thing was working before. Now everything is all good and I won't have to worry anymore if I'm going to ruin my gear case due to poor shift adjustments.

KJ

Glad its working......

For sure. Shifting is as slick as a whistle now. It was sooooooo nice on that 1st shift into gear when I heard a light, normal clunk and it was solidly in gear.

Thanks for pointing me in the right direction. I'm betting your guess that it came off a late model FICHT 150 is probably right. At least the length of the original shift rod tells that story.