Play in reversing gear shaft

[joshua_thomson]

I have recently become caretaker of a Ranger 33 driven by the mighty A4! When testing the engine for basic functions, I found that both the forward gear and the reverse gear worked fine- however the coupling to the prop shaft had sheared. With the help of a small friend, I removed the three 9/16 bolts to 'break apart' the forward end of the coupling. I thought that I could replace the part that had sheared and be on my merry way. My friend (who is a little more mechanically inclined than I), was alarmed at the amount of 'play' in the shaft exiting the transmission housing after being uncoupled from the prop shaft. In neutral, I could move the shaft up and down about 3/4", when the forward gear was engaged it was a lot more rigid. My question is- Is this movement normal? Can I recoupled the shafts and use the engine without damaging something? Thanks
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[Don Moyer]

Joshua,

I'm not sure I understand your situation. If you removed the output coupling from the engine in the process of repairing whatever sheared, then it's not unusual for the tail shaft to move up and down. The part of the output coupling that extends into the engine fits into the inside the main thrust bearing just ahead of the oil seal. With the output coupling removed, there is nothing holding the back end of the tail shaft, and it can move quite a bit in all directions.

If the output coupling is installed and you still have 3/4" of play in any direction, it would indicate that the rear thrust bearing is totally destroyed, which is very unlikely.

Don

[joshua_thomson]

Thanks

Thanks Don,

I think you've answered my question. If the output coupling is the 'break-apart' piece held together by three 9/16 bolts, then that is indeed the part I removed. Do you know what part/parts I now need to be able to recouple the output shaft with the output coupling? Thanks again.
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[Don Moyer]

Joshua,

I still don't believe that I understand your situation well enough to advise you. Is it possible for you to take a few digital pictures and email them to me?

What I think may have happened is that the 1 1/8" nut may have fallen off which holds your output coupling in your engine. Output couplings are not usually easy to remove so I can't imagine anyone removing one "accidentally".

If the output coupling did come out of the engine inadvertently, there is a good chance that the key and/or the keyway slot in the tail shaft have been damaged to the point that it will need to be replaced. If, on the other hand, the output coupling came off so cleanly that it and the shaft are still OK, and you can find the keyway, you may be able to simply reassemble everything. But again, if you can take digital photos of all your parts, I may be able to make more concrete recommendations.

Don

[joshua_thomson]

Further investigation

Thanks for the reply Don,

When I get back down to the boat, I'll follow up with some email pics. Could be a few days.
Thanks again,
Josh.
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