TOPIC: Help..1960 Johnson 75 hp shifter seal replacement

I need to replace my shifter seal and need to know how to get the shifter rod out of the lower unit (which is off of the unit) After that is removed, how do people remove the beveled brass bushing at the top of the o ring? Thanks

Assuming you've got the 1-piece "streamlined" lower unit, not the old "Heavy Duty" one that's got a horizontal split-type housing at the skeg area.

You have to pull the upper gearcase section that the shift shaft rides in. This is held in place via 2 stainless studs and Nylock nuts on top. There's an O-ring between the upper and lower housings, so take a note of that. Also there are roller bearings around the pinion gear; the pinion gear bearing shell is pressed into the intermediate housing and the internal rollers may or may not be loose; so be prepared to catch & keep track of these, as you separate the housings. When you reassemble, you can pack that bearing as required with petroleum jelly or OMC Bearing Assembly Grease, to keep the rollers in place.

Re: the shift shaft bushing, you can thread the bushing with a 5/16"-NF tap, then use a puller bolt to yank the bushing out of there. It's just pressed in place. Then you'll have access to the shift shaft O-ring.

Grease up the O-ring and shaft really good when reassembling and also slather a coating of Permatex No. 3 Aviation-type gasket dressing on the O.D. of the shift shaft bushing before driving it back in place.

Last thought, hopefully it's a fresh-water motor. Woe be unto those attempting to dismantle a Salty Dog V4 lower unit!! You will Rue the Day for sure! Just be prepared to have low-yield thermonuclear devices at your disposal!! Or at least a good supply of heat, such as a MAPP gas torch. They can be real Buggers, to say the least, to take apart.

Conversely, fresh-water-run L/U's are quite easy to work on, once you get the hang of it.

Here's a typical parts breakdown, FYI:

www.marineengine.com/parts/johnson-evinrude-parts.php?year=1960&hp=75&model=50522&manufacturer=Evinrude§ion=Starflite+Gear+Case

HTH & Have Fun!...........ed

Thank you for the very knowledgeable reply! So can you leave the shift shaft connected to the lower section and pull it out of the upper section when you slit the two? I’ve heard that if you remove the shifter shaft Phillips screw in the lower end it’s really hard to get back in.

The shift shaft (80 on the attached diagram) is attached to the shift yokes via a bolt and nut (78 and 79) that you'll see when you separate the gearcase halves.

You don't want to undo that bolt because at the bottom of the (2) shift yokes (81), the only thing holding them onto the tangs on the sides of the shift lever (45) is the bolt & nut.

If the shift yokes become disconnected at the shift lever, it's really hard to get them back into place without pulling the propshaft-side guts. The upper part of the gearcase will separate from the lower, leaving the shift shaft all bolted up to the shift yokes.

So you don't really have to mess with anything below the split line. Just be sure to use a new O-ring seal on the 2 halves and I'd recommend dressing the O-ring and gearcase sealing surfaces with Permatex No. 3 Aviation-type gasket dressing, OMC Gel Seal, or Permatex/Loctite 518 anaerobic sealer.

The screw you're referring to (44) does hold the shift lever in place, and it could be a real Bugger to get that all back together properly without pulling the propshaft end apart. Sometimes you may be able to get it if you're lucky, but if you don't win the Evil JohnRude Lottery, you'd be pulling it all apart!

Cheers..........ed