Forward & Reverse Gear are Backwards!

[bbboat]

Anyone out there ever encounter this, or know of a way to fix:

My E39 was repowered by a previous owner back in the late 1980s, converted from an Atomic 4 gas engine to a Universal M40 Diesel. The installation looks like it was professionally done EXCEPT that, on the pedestal, you must pull the gear shift aft, toward you, to go in forward gear, and you must push the shifter forward, away from you, to put it in reverse!

A worker at the marina said that this happens sometimes when boats are repowered, and they don't have the throw room to install the cabling, so they just put it in backwards

I've lived with it this way since I bought the boat, but now, after a tense docking maneuver in 20knot+ winds, I found myself on the brink of getting confused as to which way was which. So now, I want to fix this.

How do I assess this situation and/or resolve it? Also, I'm assuming this involves some disassembly of the pedestal - is this a major endeavor, or something that can be accomplished on a weekend? Any thoughts are much appreciated. Thanks!

 

[ref_123]

May be simple, may be not...

When you open the binnacle (just remove the compass), check to see if the cable clamp that sits on the gear shift lever axis (I am sure I am not using the right terminology) can be flipped over - this is most probably what happened in the first place... That will fix the problem.

Regards,
Stan

 

[Glyn Judson]

Reverse cable dilemma reversed into a solution.

Dan, If what Stan suggests doesn't work for you, consider the following that some of my E31 friends including me, have done to our throttle cable attachment when re-powering to an engine with the throttle arm turning in the opposite direction. Let's start with a few assumptions for the sake of illustration. Let's assume that the present transmission shift arm on the side f the transmission is.....say, 3" long from the center of the shifter shaft to the cable fitting, is pointing upward at 12 o'clock and when pushed by hand toward the engine, shifts the transmission into forward. Now what you're saying is that to actually get the transmission to do that, you need to pull the shift arm at the binnacle toward the transom or aft. Try to see if you can make the following modification work for you if the space below allows. Stay with me on this one my friend, it isn't crazy and really will solve your problem, space allowing. Fabricate a shift arm from aluminum strap or the equivalent and drill a hole in one end of it that is 6" from where the existing shift arm hole would be if it were drilled into this strap you've just crafted. Remove the original shift arm from the side of the transmission and attach this new strap over it using standoffs and fasteners to elevate it above the nut and shaft that attaches the original shift arm to the transmission. But now instead of the cable fitting hole being at the top (12 o'clock), you've mounted this new arm such that the cable fitting hole is at the bottom (6 o'clock). You'll have to do the same to get the outer cable clamp hardware 6" lower too. The result is that you've effectively reversed the throw of the shift arm at the binnacle by now "pulling" the new shift arm from BELOW the pivot point of the shaft instead of "pushing" it as was the case before. Think about it, as you pull the new arm aft from 6 o'clock towards, 5 o'clock, then 4 o'clock, etc, the old arm is still moving in the same direction as always from 12 o'clock to 11 o'clock to 10 o'clock, etc but the action at the helm is just the opposite as it was. Problem solved, make sense? I ran into this with my throttle when the engine was changed from a Yanmar 2QM15 to a Yanmar 3GMF. The throttle arms both pointed up but operated in the opposite direction so that to increase revs I had to pull the handle back and to decrease revs I had to push it forward. Talk about an accident waiting to happen with someone at the helm other than you, in a panic situation!! I made the same conversion and now anyone can operate the controls the way they expect them to. Please feel free to email me back channel at glynjudson@roadrunner.com if you have questions or want to see a photo of what I did. Good luck and keep us posted, Glyn Judson, E31 hull #55, Marina del Rey CA

 

[Guy Stevens]

Most of the time the binacle does it

I can take a photo of the binnacle solution if you would like it.

Guy

 

[Greg Ross]

Shift Reverser Lever

I just produced a little sketch that demonstrates Glyns' elegant solution;

 

[bbboat]

The solution appears to be down below?

Wow. Great responses! This forum is amazing.
I took another look at it this w/e, and the connections in the binnacle are the only way they could possibly go. There's no room to swap either the connections or the levers.

Guy, take a look at this photo (think I attached it) and if you think your solution would work with this setup, please post it. However, I don't see any room in there to modify anything.

Down below, the Teleflex cable for the shifter makes a wide arc aft before turning forward to connect to the transmission. It appears that there MAY be just enough length to re-route the cable down the opposite side of the engine, and loop it underneath and around, but I'm guessing it's not a good idea to have a critical component like a shifter cable surrounding a hot engine. Glyn's elegant solution may be the ticket.

Greg, in looking at your drawing, am I correct assuming that Glyn's aluminum strap would actually have 3 holes in it? One at the top to tie in with the old shift arm, one in the middle - ideally attached to the same pin as the old shift arm (the pivot) and one at the bottom where the shifter cable would now connect, yes?

 

[P Abele]

Our boat had the transmission shifter reversed when we purchased it as well, and I ended up swapping the lever on the transmission end (as opposed to the binnacle end as was suggester earlier). I honestly don't recall exactly how I did it but do remember it was an easy fix and the layout was pretty obvious, to the point where it almost looks like it is intended to be reversible for different configurations of shifter connections. Good luck!

 

[chaco]

Shift or Throttle Linkage Reverser

Here is a Throttle Linkage Reverser on Beta 902. Use the same Design to Reverse your Shift Linkage. Its the old push-pull thing !