Volvo Penta 280 outdrive gear engagement rough

[Zumy73]

The outdrive was rough going in and out of gear, and it has progressively got worse over the last year or so. I removed the cable from the drive to see if it was a bad cable or control head related. The control head and cable are as smooth as butter and when I engage the gear by hand its very rough and hard to get into gear and reverse is even worse.

any ideas on what to check next?

Are their any external parts that need service, greace, etc?

thanks in advance for any input

 

[sqbtr]

Re: Volvo Penta 280 outdrive gear engagement rough

drain the oil and see what comes out

 

[Zumy73]

Re: Volvo Penta 280 outdrive gear engagement rough

Thanks, I changed the oil the other day and it looked pretty good

no metal shavings

maybe shes just old..

 

[Don S]

Re: Volvo Penta 280 outdrive gear engagement rough

Has the gear lube been run low by any chance? Or water in it? Have you checked the bellows to see if there is gear lube or water (or both) in it?
Old drives should shift just as smooth as new ones. Remove the shift mechanism from the back of the upper gear box. Check the ramps on the shift mechanism where the pin rides, are they worn over really round? Also look where the shift shoe rides inside of the shift cone. Is there any score marks?