Saildrive gear-shift - which way?

[prv]

Quick one, on the phone, on the boat. Can't run the engine, don't have any docs, google's not helping. Which way is forward and which way is reverse, moving the gear lever on the top of a volvo S120 saildrive?

Cheers,

Pete

 

[Dipper]

Unfortunately I can't remember. Can you just manually rotate the lever into gear then turn the engine over and see which way the boat moves?

Edit - there's nothing helpful in my saildrive workshop manual.

 

[prv]

Can't run the engine - no electrics.

 

[Bav34]

Logically I would say that as the top of the lever in the cockpit goes forward, the pull on the cable is aft ... so forward gear is selected by moving the engine lever aft.

Yes? :encouragement:

Second thoughts ... just go and select forward in the cockpit and see what has happened to the engine lever ... no?

 

[Dipper]

Can't run the engine - no electrics.

Bummer. Presumably you don't have that useless starting handle on board either although by the time you've rushed outside to see which way the boat had tried to move it would be moving back the other way again.

 

[prv]

Engine too new for a starting handle.

Bav34 comment too stupid to respond to on a phone

Pete

 

[Dipper]

I'm slightly confused by your description. According to my saildrive seal installation instructions, the 110S and 120S have the gear lever on the side but the 130S and 150S have it on top.

On the 120S the gear operating plate is vaguely triangular with the point down and the single cable attaches to that. If you still have the gear cable attached to the control then it should operate the correct way once it has been attached to the gearbox.

I think I have now exhausted all my available literature!

 

[scottie]

Which ever way you want you can run it either way

 

[Bav34]

Engine too new for a starting handle.

Bav34 comment too stupid to respond to on a phone

Pete

Which one?

 

[prv]

Good point Dipper - I think this is actually a 130. The old one was a 120. Sorry.

Scottie - this installation is the conventional way round, engine in front of drive.

Either of you know now that's cleared up?

Pete

 

[Dipper]

Sorry. I can't help any more. Mine's a 120S. It may also depend on how your control lever is set up. When I fitted a new Morse control, the gear operation was affected by which side of the cockpit the control was mounted and whether the mechanism behind the lever was forward or aft of the lever. There were lots of permutations.

 

[prv]

Back home now, left it for next time

I might have done it on a 50-50 basis, except that there's a piece of trim around the lever that needs to be sikaflexed on, and I don't really want to have to cut it off and clean it up if I guess the wrong way.

Pete

 

[colhel]

Is the boat back in the water?

 

[prv]

Is the boat back in the water?

Been in the water since just after New Year, but not in commission. No sails, no steering, no electrics, big piece of cabin woodwork missing, engine box dismantled, alternator in my living room...

Touch wood we should by sailing by Easter.

Pete

 

[prv]

Just for the record, to help the next poor sod googling this...

With the standard Volvo 3-blade folding prop, which turns anticlockwise (viewed from astern) to go forwards, the lever on the top of the gearbox works in the logical sense. That is, move the lever forwards (towards the engine) to go forward and backwards (away from the engine) to go astern.

Pete

 

[Dipper]

We all knew that but we didn't want to make it too easy for you.

Glad you got it sorted.

 

[prv]

We all knew that but we didn't want to make it too easy for you.

Glad you got it sorted.

Well, it's not sorted yet. But I should be able to fit the thing on Wednesday as I have the day off work.

Pete

 

[aluijten]

I don't want to frustrate you but according to the workshop manual the lever needs to be moved away from the engine to put the gear in forward motion. The propellor moves in counter-clock direction (left-handed propellor)
See workshop manual page 13

 

[prv]

I don't want to frustrate you but according to the workshop manual the lever needs to be moved away from the engine to put the gear in forward motion.

Well, that's puzzling.

My source was my dad, who for one reason and another currently has a 130 saildrive in his garage. I emailed him once I knew which way the propellor revolved (anticlockwise, we're agreed) and he reported back:

Hi Pete -

After much oily business (the gearbox, vertical leg and horizontal driveshaft are in separate lumps on the garage floor), it is apparent that with the selector lever in the fully aft position, the horizontal driveshaft, on which the propellor sits, rotates in a clockwise direction (when viewed from astern). So this must be reverse gear - and, yes, with the selector lever fully forward, the shaft rotates anticlockwise!

He's a professional engineer, with thirty years' experience of looking after large helicopters, so I trust him to know a thing or two about gearboxes. Obviously anybody can make a mistake, but I wonder about other explanations...

EDIT: I wonder if the lever on top of the selector shaft has been swapped over on our drive. I.e, made to point roughly starboard rather than port. That would swap the sense of "forwards" and "backwards" to give the discrepency we see. I wonder if the design of the shaft allows that to be done?

Pete

 

[aluijten]

Well, that's puzzling.

My source was my dad, who for one reason and another currently has a 130 saildrive in his garage. I emailed him once I knew which way the propellor revolved (anticlockwise, we're agreed) and he reported back:



He's a professional engineer, with thirty years' experience of looking after large helicopters, so I trust him to know a thing or two about gearboxes. Obviously anybody can make a mistake, but I wonder about other explanations...

EDIT: I wonder if the lever on top of the selector shaft has been swapped over on our drive. I.e, made to point roughly starboard rather than port. That would swap the sense of "forwards" and "backwards" to give the discrepency we see. I wonder if the design of the shaft allows that to be done?

Pete

Well the picture has been taken from the workshop manual for the MS25S. That is the model that was used for most of the MD20x0 engines. AFAIK the S130 is used with the D1/D2 models (different RPM) so I may be they have changed the gear lever for whatever reason. I vaguely remember the clutch for the S130 was changed so this may be the explanation. I don't have the workshop manual for the S130.