I don't have any experience of the four-cylinder engines or their gearboxes. All gearboxes for the 1, 2 and 3 cylinder engines are dipped with the threaded boss on top of the case.
mack boring, the east coast distributor for yanmar USA, taught us in yanmar tech school that all the yan KM gearboxes' oil was to be checked with dipstick unscrewed, then just resting on top of case . do not check screwed full in as you will get a false reading. and don't overfill that gearbox. gear oil should come to just even with the fill line which is about 1/2 inch from the bottom of the dipstick.
Most Yanmar's have a Kanzaki transmission fitted however some models (4JH3/4JH4/4LHA/6LPA/6LY) are supplied with ZF Hurth or Twin Disc transmissions depending on model. Most engine models have various transmission options, Discuus with your dealer the most suitable unit for your particular requirements.
V-drive models are not sold in all global markets (not sold the UK market).
Kanzaki is a wholly owned Yanmar subsidiary, visit their English language WEBSITE.
CAUTION: When checking the transmission oil quantity, sit the dipstick on the threads regardless of model, do not screw it in.
SD20/31 do not run before dipping otherwise oil may be aerated which can be misleading, looking as if oil is emulsified. Twin Disc models check oil level with engine idling. Hurth hydraulic models run engine then dip immediately after stopping....
i'd call those marine guys back and ask them why they said what they said...
hmmm interesting question. there is not a lot of oil in the gearbox reservoirs to start with. and my guess is that running the engine and using the trans for say 100 hrs will result in some trans oil being used. if that were not the case, yanmar would not recommend checking the trans oil level at least yearly as a 'c(over) your a' move. in fact i check this trans oil 2x a year and have had to add just a wee amount to get the oil level perfect on the dipstick mark. every 250 hrs i change the gearbox oil just for the fun of it.
i once bought an old boat knowing it had engine problems and the gearbox oil was down to 3/4 of what it should have been. the engine probably went 15 years with no gearbox oil being added.. and there was no leak apparent in the gear case.