E27 Shifting Very Hard

I have a 1975 with inboard (Atomic 4). I am having a very hard time shifting it into gear. I can get it but it takes a lot of force. I also can not get it to stay in reverse without holding it down. Any ideas whould be great.

Thanks

Tom Heideman
Basackwards

It's possible to adjust the transmission for forward. Take the cover of the trans, rotate the notched ring one notch after removing the locking screw. The tradeoff is if you loosen the trans up, it may slip at higher rpm, the engine will race and the boat won't go. On my boat I had to compromise with a tighter setting to prevent the slipping problem. More info can be found at moyermarine.com

Reverse is another story, there is no detent to hold the transmission in reverse, you must hold pressure on the lever or just let it run.


Dave

Difficult shifting

I would not adjust my transmission until I checked out the cable/housing which transfers the leverage from your shifter rod to the transmission. Mine has pedistal steering and it would be the same principal on tiller steering. My '76 E27 had the same symptoms. I found that the poor seal on the compass was allowing water to penetrate the pedistal. By design, the water was following the lever mechanism and dripping down to the cable/housing. This resulted in trapping moisture in the housing. The end rusult was it rusted up tight.
Troubleshoot it by disconnecting the cable at the transmission and attempt to move the shift lever. I removed the complete cable assembly late in the fall. You can get away with doing this in the boat. Take pictures or draw a sketch to aid in reassembly. I hung it up in my basement with generous doses of rust inhibitor squirted in at the top of the cable enterance. Place a rag under the end of the cable to prevent contaminating your bilge. It loosened up after a couple of days. Just start moving the cable back and forth. Oil it after you have it moving freely. I would suggest you add this lubrication to your annual maintenance even if you replace this item.
The other option is to purchase a new cable assembly for $150 plus labor. Good luck.

Shifting Difficulty

John,

I would agree the first thing to do is disconect the shift cable and manully test shifting into forward and reverse right at the trans. Then cable can be tested at the controls to determine if the cable is causing the problem.

Dave