So here's the story. I bought a boat with a 1998 Mariner 115 on the back of it that hadn't been run for 3 years. I've been systematically going through everything and replacing stuff that was worn or missing. I got to the lower unit and was draining it. The lower unit oil had gotten some moisture in it and was a little off-colored so I replaced the prop shaft oil seal and water seal. After re-installing the carrier bearing (which went flawlessly due to this forum), I noticed that the lower unit will either be in forward or go into neutral but not reverse. The cam follower assembly appears to be all there. I can manually slide the clutch to get it to engage with the reverse gear when the carrier assembly is removed from the lower unit. But when I do that, I noticed that the tip of the cam follower is recessed inside of the shaft a little. Is there an adjustment that can be made to allow the cam follower to extend farther out or is that not necessary? How far out of the shaft should the follower protrude when not under a load? Should the face of the shift cam be smooth or should it have a channel in it for the tip of the follower to ride in?
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