9.9 HP, post impeller maintenance, gearbox jammed

I took my gear case off to get to the impeller so I could figure out why I wasn't getting any flow. I think I may have resolved that issue, but somehow I seem to have jammed my gear case.

When I mated the gear case to the lower unit, I lined everything up, and then connected the barrel nut a few turns. Then I bolted the case to the lower unit. When I went to try the shifter at that point, it would not move in either direction. I disassembled everything again at that point and have the gear case in a vise on the workbench. The prop turns freely, but it spins the drive shaft. I tried pushing and pulling on the shift rod that extends out of the gear case and it does not budge.

At that point, I called it a night. All I can figure is that when I tightened the bolts to reconnect the gear case to the engine, it put excessive down force on the rod and caused it to jam something inside the gear case.

Hopefully someone has seen this before and figured out a solution cheaper than replacing the entire gearcase assembly.

TIA,
JPK

Well, I guess you don't need to be told this now but you shouldn't connect the upper and lower shift rods together until after you bolt up the gear case.

Everything may be ok but you will now need to remove the propshaft holder assembly and make sure that what I call the shift ramp or "shoe" isn't turned sideways. The ramp is pinned to the end of the shift shaft. It may actually pop back into place when you loosen tha propshaft holder and take the pressure off of it.

As long as the shift shaft isn't bent then I highly doubt that you did any lasting damage to the transmission.

Good luck.

jgmo said:

Well, I guess you don't need to be told this now but you shouldn't connect the upper and lower shift rods together until after you bolt up the gear case.

Everything may be ok but you will now need to remove the propshaft holder assembly and make sure that what I call the shift ramp or "shoe" isn't turned sideways. The ramp is pinned to the end of the shift shaft. It may actually pop back into place when you loosen tha propshaft holder and take the pressure off of it.

As long as the shift shaft isn't bent then I highly doubt that you did any lasting damage to the transmission.

Good luck.

Click to expand...

I don't have a shop manual for this engine, but I did get a nice exploded drawing of the propshaft assembly from boats.net. (https://www.boats.net/catalog/honda...hp/bf9-9d1-lha-2001/propeller-shaft-propeller)

I'm a little concerned about pulling the entire assembly apart... there're a bunch of parts here. Perhaps most of them can stay mated to one another after I loosen the "prop shaft holder" (Item 10 in the drawing). I'm guessing the shoe that your suggesting got pushed out of alignment is supposed to interface between the shift rod and the 'shifter, clutch" (Item 1 in the drawing).

I guess all I can do is remove the prop, then loosen the two bolts that hold the prop shaft holder in place. Hopefully at that point, I can gently rock the assembly apart enough that (as you suggested) the 'shoe' can return to it's correct position.

I sure hope that's all it takes... it'll be a scary lesson but won't end up being as expensive as I can guess it could (and still might) be.

Thanks again,
JPK

Yes, the parts page's illustrations help alot.

Very simple, constantly engaged transmission.Not much in there to jump out and bite you but I applaud your caution. The spring and pin will usually come out and the reverse bevel gear can slide off the holder. But the main thing is that the seal oring may not reseal after being disturbed.

Item 14 in the page below is the "shoe". That's what I think has gotten cockeyed in there. It's just a little ramp with steps on it.

https://www.boats.net/catalog/honda...5-lha-2005/water-pump-vertical-shaft-l-s-size

If you hunt around you should be able to find a free manual online.

If you keep the front of the gear case pointed up, you should be able to slide the prop shaft holder out intact. Keep it pointed "up" and nothing should fall off. Although, I can't guarantee that as I'm just guessing about what might have happened.

Good luck.

jgmo said:

Yes, the parts page's illustrations help alot.

Very simple, constantly engaged transmission.Not much in there to jump out and bite you but I applaud your caution. The spring and pin will usually come out and the reverse bevel gear can slide off the holder. But the main thing is that the seal oring may not reseal after being disturbed.

Item 14 in the page below is the "shoe". That's what I think has gotten cockeyed in there. It's just a little ramp with steps on it.

https://www.boats.net/catalog/honda...5-lha-2005/water-pump-vertical-shaft-l-s-size

If you hunt around you should be able to find a free manual online.

If you keep the front of the gear case pointed up, you should be able to slide the prop shaft holder out intact. Keep it pointed "up" and nothing should fall off. Although, I can't guarantee that as I'm just guessing about what might have happened.

Good luck.

Click to expand...

Good news and bad news. I removed the prop and then the two retaining bolts. But the housing didn't want to come apart. I was about to call it a night, when my buddy suggested we put a pair of vice grips on the shift rod and tap up. A couple of taps and all was well again. The transmission shifts perfectly.

So we reassembled everything and rejoined the bottom assembly to the lower unit... using care as we bolted everything together and when we were done, everything shifted just right.

Now for the not so good news. The dang impeller STILL does not seem to be pumping. When I fire up the engine, I can see a tiny dribble of water bubbling out of the hole... with a VERY occasional little spurt... Revving the engine up, a couple of times didn't seem to change a thing.

The impeller on this engine is solid rubber. A buddy suggested that teh ones with a brass core sometimes lose the seal between the brass core and the impeller body. That's not the case here.

The little slot that lines up with the woodruff key seems to be in pretty good shape, so I can't see how its slipping. I'm just plain stumped.

I've got a new impeller assembly (impeller, gaskets, woodruff key, & interior rubber gasket) coming tomorrow. I'm thinking I could install that to make absolutely sure that I know water is being pumped. But if that doesn't work, what next??

My buddy suggested that maybe the path that the water follows (from the pump, up the shaft, through the engine, and out the drain hole) might be plugged. He thought maybe we could blow it out (he's got a compressor).

Wondering if you've got any other suggestions if the new impeller still doesn't produce the steady stream I'm hoping for.


Thanks again for the great advice. Happy to be making progress.

JPK

It could be that it's pumping ok but your tell tale is clogged. If you're seeing a dribble out of the case cover that may be all that's wrong. You would have to take the side cover off and remove the nipple screwed into the engine. Then use your friends air to blow in the hole.
The little tube that goes from the nipple to the side cover fitting gets clogged too when it gets old and stiff. It needs to be replaced every 3 years or so because it needs to be very supple and flexible. It also has to be routed a certain way to keep it from being pinched when you put the side cover on. It comes from the engine nipple and up through a hole in the splash plate before going out to the cover. Pay attention to how it's routed as you take the cover off.

Another pitfall is it's easy to install the impeller with the arms pointing the wrong way. You have to keep in mind that the shaft turns clockwise so the impeller arms need to "trail" that rotation. A lot of guys will rotate the shaft clockwise as they install the cover over the impeller. I do it differently but it works either way.

Make sure your pump housing is not beat up.

I use the complete pump kit on these as the metal cup is often scored and moves back and forth in the plastic housing due to wear. Putting a new impeller in a worn cup will never get you 100% efficiency.

Also, the key does wear. Look at it very carefully. I always use a new one. Cheap insurance.

Good luck.