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Question about V6 gearcase propshaft play.

R

rotus623

Contributing Member
To the guys with much experience re-building lower units:

I have a buddy's 1995 Evinrude 175HP intruder. E175GLEOM
He hit something hard enough to really bang up his SS prop. He also ate some fishing line and ruined his prop seal. Now the engine will not shift into reverse. I told him to bring it to me sooner than later, and to STOP RUNNING IT!!!

Anyways first thing I did is grab the prop shaft and pull it outward to check for play, and it pulled out 3/4 of an inch!!! I know this is not normal because I have the same gearcase on my boat and there is maybe 1/8"-1/16" of movement.

Obviously I am going to pull the carrier and start there, but what do you guys think broke inside of there to actually allow that kind of prop shaft play?
 
Check gearlash before taking it apart. With the water pump off push in real hard on the propshaft and wiggle the driveshaft that is forward gear backlash and then pull out real hard on the propshaft and wiggle the driveshaft that is reverse gear backlash.
 
Yea the propshaft basically floats between the forward and reverse gear. Checking the gearlash will give you a good idea the condition of the gears and thrust bearings/washers. Everything is precision machined. The only shims are for the verticle pinion/drive shaft be sure and lift on the shaft as you wiggle it to check gearlash. Let it completely drain of gearoil as well. Another way to do it is to push or pull on the shift rod you dont want it to go into gear line up the high spots on the clutch dog and put pressure on the gears forward or reverse and then wiggle the driveshaft.
 
If that propshaft freely moves 3/4 inch in and out, then something is broken in the area of the clutch dog and the pin that goes thru the propshaft and clutch dog to "connect the two" parts. That pin has a spring load on it to hold it in place, and you are reporting free movement back and forth.

Something is wrong in that area, possibly even shattered the clutch dog...something catastrophic.

You will not be able to get the propshaft out until you remove the pinion nut and pinion gear from the bottom of the driveshaft.
 
Since it took such a hit you need to check the housing to see it warped out of alignment. Find a dealer with a gearcase alignment tool as if warped it changes the sideload on forward gear and pinion and causes them to fail. Any V-6 gearcase that has had a impact or that gears take a chit from impact or no reason the housing needs to be checked.I have thrown away housings that look brand new that was warped. Also there is no backlash settings on these gearcases and problem is going to be on/in propshaft.....Below is link to the tool....


http://www.marineengine.com/parts/technical_information/omc_5006349_tech_1.pdf
 
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Thanks guys thats what I figured. Das, that's what I was looking for. I thought there was a pin through the clutch dog and it makes total sense that that may be what has broken. Fazt, that looks like a pricey tool!!

So upon further inspection, I realized that the bearing carrier is cracked badly where one of the screws is located. The gearcase is also cracked right where the carrier retaining clip is located. I am thinking that this means that (if i replaced the carrier) there would be nothing to hold the lower half of the carrier in?? The carrier itself was setting out 1/8" or more when I went to dissemble it.

Problem that I ran into is the puller wont pull the carrier out. There is not enough "meat" left to grab at the side where the carrier is cracked. When I apply torque to the puller the screw on that side starts to pull out.

From the looks of the housing, is it even worth messing with? I do not have the pullers and presses to get the bearings out and into a new housing, assuming that the internals are any good at all. I am thinking about just buying a good used gearcase. What do you guys think?



 
Haha, thanks guys!! I appreciate you saving me the time and headache here.

Now for my next question. I understand that the driveshaft lengths changed in 1992 and are a bit longer. Should I search for a '92 and older? They are much harder to find. Will the crank catch enough splines from the shorter shaft of the '91 and belows?
 
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