The gear shift axle is known to rust. Remove the gear, and check if the
shifting works directly on the gear. If it does, your shift axle is the
culprit.


"Mark Wynkoop" wrote in message
7...
First, the background info:

I recently bought a 1968 Mercury 650 (red 65HP). The guy I bought it
from had the motor laying on its side. When I brought it home, I put it
on a stand.The next morning, I found oil leaking from the water vents
and exhaust. Not sure if that is normal from laying on its side. This
last weekend I put the lower unit in a tub of water and fired it up.
Thus I discovered the problem of the motor stuck in forward.

The problem:
No matter where the shifter position was, it stays in forward.I could
not get it out of gear. So, under inspection, the slider that the
shifter cable connects to in under the cowl moves freely along the
rails. That is connected to a lever, which is connected to a rod which
goes directly down to the lower unit. The rod moves freely
counterclockwise and clockwise. Also, I was able to move the slider by
hand. I don't know if one should be able to move this by hand with only
a slight amount of force.

My thought is that something came loose since the motor was laying on
its side, or something happened when the guy disconnected the cables. I
don't know if maybe this rod slipped out of something in the lower
unit.I haven't taken it apart to find out. The guy said it was shifting
fine this summer when he sold it to me.

If this is something major, I'm just going to take it back to the guy
and get my money back. But, I'm willing to for go that if it is just
something simple.

Thanks,
Mark