TOPIC: 950ss gear selector adjustment

Can't seem to get my '67 950 ss to go into neutral. With the throttle/gear control in N position, shouldn't the prop spin freely in either direction on land? Is there a procedure to adjust the gear selector/shift shaft?

The first thing to do is to tilt the Merc up, and set the tilt lock.
Then see if you can shift the controller into Neutral. (to continue into Reverse,...Have someone slowly rotate the propeller as you attempt to shift into Reverse)
If the Beast shifts into Neutral in the tilted up position, shift the control box in to Forward gear, tilt the Beast down, and then see if you can successfully shift into Neutral.
If everything works correctly following these instructions, just remember to always shift into Forward gear before attempting to lower the Beast down after traveling, etc.
doc

Hi Doc!
Thanks for the info regarding the shift/gear selector. I purchased the Seloc manual you referenced and have spent a considerable amount of time trying to familiarize myself with the info pertaining to my 950ss powerhead. I was able to get the gear box and shift lever to match up with virtually no trouble; prop spins freely in either direction when the selector is in neutral. Is it normal for the reverse lock to only "release" when the shift lever is in "F"? As it is now, the powerhead will not tilt in either reverse or neutral. Not really finding much info in the manual re: reverse lock setup. Aside from that.......i stuck a set of muffs on the LU, mixed up some fuel, primed er til the bulb was solid and hit the key. Admittedly, i forgot to choke (which functions perfectly,btw) and after a few cycles on the starter she rolled to life. The Beast, as you call her, ran famously on the warm up lever. Immediately i noticed water coming out ot the "flush" hole adjacent to the VENT screw on the upper LU. Also notice no water from either the "tell tale" or the exhaust diffuser at back of prop. Prior to startup and as a primary step in this resurrection, i replaced the water pump impeller and inspected the plate above it.
A) is there supposed to be a plug in the flush hole
any thoughts on my lack of water circulation .??
Mike

" Is it normal for the reverse lock to only "release" when the shift lever is in "F"?"
Yes
"Immediately i noticed water coming out of the "flush" hole adjacent to the VENT screw on the upper LU."
You must put the proper screw (plug & gasket) in the "Flush" port, or water will not be able to go up into the powerhead and subsequently out the tell-tail & exhaust.
Great observations and critically important questions!!!
doc

Got it! Thanks, Doc. Ordered a full set of screws/plugs/gaskets/washers for fill/drain/vent /flush ports.
As long as the water was on the LU via the muffs, was water making it at least as far as the impeller/pump housing? I didn't run it for long but i cant imagine it needs to run for long with a dry pump for it to smoke an impeller. Just making sure i haven't done that.

Hi, Doc.
Finally found the time to replace the seals in the lower unit and get the boat on the water (first run since 2007). After a little priming she fired right up. Shifts great, seems to run well and after an initial "burn off" stage there was very little smoke. I'm running Amsoil Dominator oil in rec fuel at 50:1? Hopefully that is ok.... when I replaced the fuel lines I noticed that the new fittings I used to replace all of the factory fittings seemed to have smaller orifices than the factory fittings....also used 1/4" fuel line. now am wondering if I should have used 5/16" fuel line and larger corresponding fittings? I put an inline filter in just prior to the primer bulb to catch any stray debris and have changed it twice but still get cut-out to idle at higher rpm......acts as though it's starving for fuel. If I use primer bulb while this occurs, I get no change in engine performance and a collapsed primer bulb. If I squeeze the fuel line ,vigorously, between the bulb and the fuel tank while this occurs I get recovery of engine performance. I'm thinking debris on in tank filter of some kind? Strainer on siphon tube perhaps? Speedo is inoperable so no way of knowing ROS but tach works and she clips along at 5K RPM smoothly.....until she starves.
Mike

Doc,
other observations.....questions
there is no power tilt option on this boat and manually tilting is a BEAR. Are the little rams on either side of the motor supposed to be aiding in this process at all or are they merely dampeners? Also wondering how to run the motor at "half tilt" through shallow water without a power tilt setup. seems unlikely to have to reset the tilt limit pin? on the fly. also, the first few outings produced no visible oil/fuel/water sludge mix on exhaust ports on prop....after raising the motor after the last outing, I DID notice some light brown sludge on the interior of the prop. This was also and outing where I was experimenting with the "squeezing the fuel line" scenario to recover from fuel starvation. Is it possible that it is just excess/unburned fuel exiting the system due to my "flooding" the unit during operation?
mike

dampening effect only. take them off and lube the pivot points will help