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thunderbolt 500 no reverse????

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gamefisher9.9

New member
i just got a merc thunderbolt 500 50hp motor today for my pontoon, i hooked everything up and it starts up right away, fwd throttle worked great when i put it into rev and rev it up it looks to me like its in neutral the prop doesnt really spin. i rev'd it in rev and nothing what do i need to check to problem solve this issue. thanks for the help guys
 
Remove the shift cable from the motor push the shift rack, The part that slides inside the bracket all the way to aft of the rack while spinning the prop with your foot and then see if you have a lock into reverse the prop will only spin each way a little bit and lock. If it does then slip the rack back into neutral and re-adjust the shift cable and try it out. If the lower was removed for a waterpump or the like then the lower shift shaft may not be in the right position when the lower unit was reinstalled on the motor.

If that's not doing it you could have worn ramps on the clutch dog or the reverse gear or a worn out shift shaft or finally a worn cam or cam follower. Either way if the shift cable is not doing it and the shift shaft is not worn out from rust and the lower unit was not taken off then the lower unit will need to come apart and be checked.
 
well the guy did say they had the bottom end off recently and put a new water pump in. what should i do to get the shift shaft into the right position
 
Drop your lower unit again,put motor into neutral,shift the lower unit is in neutral and make sure the shift cam is in correct and bolt up
 
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