Engine won't shift out of forward gear

I have a 1982 Mercruiser 140hp 3.0L

My engine will not shift out of forward gear! I've removed the lower unit twice now and twisted the little shifter into the correct position, then slid it up while keeping the propeller locked into forward (with the gear shifter in forward as well).
Everything seemed fine at that time, prop still only spun clockwise and locked going counter clockwise. Pulled the gear shifter/throttle into neutral, went back to the prop, and it spun in both directions freely.

Now, this is when things got me pulling my hair.

I finally put it into reverse to test the prop, but it spun freely in both directions still. Putting it back into forward... still spun both directions, even though when first put back on, it would lock counterclockwise.

Now, the reason I say I think it's still in forward gear (regardless of locking) is that when I start the engine, in the idle position, the prop starts spinning like crazy like it's in forward position. I'm told prop spin is normal even in idle, but this.. this spins like it's going 10-15mph

What am I doing wrong? Anything to fix it??

The way the outdrive gets the motion to do the shifting is through the shift interrupter mechanism (not directly from the shifter in your hand). Friction comes into play here, for if the cable from the interrupter to the lower unit is binding, the gearbox won't shift properly. The cure is to pull the outdrive and lubricate the cable and the lever it moves.

Hope that helps.

Jeff

fastjeff said:

The way the outdrive gets the motion to do the shifting is through the shift interrupter mechanism (not directly from the shifter in your hand). Friction comes into play here, for if the cable from the interrupter to the lower unit is binding, the gearbox won't shift properly. The cure is to pull the outdrive and lubricate the cable and the lever it moves.

Hope that helps.

Jeff

Click to expand...

With some digging around at my shifter behind my motor, I found my lower unit cable is severely stuck. Pulling it off of the shifter arm, I couldn't get any of it to move at all, even when putting some force behind it. Sliding the cable is damn near impossible on it, so it looks like it's past time to replace it.