Home › Forum › Ask A Member › 1957 Evinrude Big Twin 35hp HELP
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1946zephyr.
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July 11, 2015 at 2:13 pm #1986
Does anyone here involved with the club live anywhere near Allentown PA? I’m looking for someone qualified to work on my 1957 Evinrude Big Twin, and I’m done taking it to Dave’s Boat Repair in Sellersville. I had the lower unit rebuilt by them this season for $550.00 (I supplied all the gears, shift dog, etc. and lower unit housing) and they supplied the seal kit, and installed everything. Problem is, yesterday while I am pulling a water skier (small female), the thing bucks and slips out of gear, but was running perfectly fine when not pulling the skier all day and the motor ran like a champ the previous weekend as well, although there were a few times it "bucked" a little bit.
So yesterday I had the motor full throttle, and it was running perfectly after I pulled the skier..It was running perfectly fine all day then towards the end of the day (right after I had pulled the skier) I slowed down to a leisurely speed, and the motor just puttered out and stopped. I thought I had finally run the gas out of one of my tanks, so I switched to the other tank, pumped the fuel into the motor, went to start it, and just got a clicking sound…no engine turn over or anything.
So I went back to the motor and tried to start it by hand with the pull start rope, and the thing wouldn’t budge…It’s frozen up, and I’m scared to death!
I’ve read that when the flywheel freezes up on these things it’s either the powerhead or the gears are locked up in the lower unit. When I put the boat in neutral, I can turn the propeller by hand, so I don’t know what’s going on.
Please tell me it’s likely the lower unit gears that are locked up, because I just can’t believe the powerhead would have frozen…I had a 24:1 oil/gas mix, and the motor ran like a champ all day except when it was slipping out of gear while pulling the skier for a short time….
If there is anyone that could work on my motor somewhat close to Allentown, PA please let me know because I simply don’t have time to do this work myself.
Thanks as always for any feedback!
July 11, 2015 at 2:32 pm #19856Sorry to hear all this bad luck
In any event, go ahead and drain the gearcase. If it is full of water or burned/black oil, the gearcase may be seized. The prop shaft would still spin in neutral if the pinion was seized.
Nonetheless, who reinstalled the gearcase after the boat yard rebuilt it? The darn thing sure shouldn’t have been jumping out of gear, perhaps the linkage/control cables aren’t properly adjusted. Improper adjustment would not seize up the gearcase though.
I would bring the engine back to the repair shop if you fear the gearcase is seized, don’t give them an excuse to deny coverage by saying "you messed with it".
Hope the problem turns out to be something simple, like the flywheel rubbing on coils, sorry but I don’t live near Allentown. DonJuly 11, 2015 at 2:48 pm #19858The entire lower unit was put together (gears, etc) and seal kit installed including new impeller, etc, etc. by Dave’s Boat repair. When I picked the boat up, the motor was ready to go….I get the feeling they don’t like working on my motor, and I’m just sick about all of this…I really need a resource that can help me locally..Someone who actually knows and loves these old outboards. I’m very happy to pay someone to help get this thing running right!
It’s so frustrating because I hear about how reliable these motors are, etc. etc, and every season, I still break down and new a tow back to the boat launch…It’s a beautiful, well maintained motor, so I’m just at a loss…Everyone is afraid to go out on the lake with me because this motor has such potential for problems…I just don’t get it, and I continue to pour money into the thing…just venting, and tired of it..I want to enjoy it..thanks again
July 11, 2015 at 3:02 pm #19860There are lots of things that could make it freeze up, so don’t just assume it is the gearcase. Only a systematic inspection can isolate the trouble. Looking in the membership directory, I find 88 members in PA, but none in Allentown. And my geography isn’t good enough to know what other town is nearby. Perhaps somebody else will see this and contact you.
July 11, 2015 at 3:13 pm #19862First the powerhead on those motors are ultra reliable if they are cared for.
Story time…
Once upon a time I rebuilt an nice underused ’57 Johnson Javelin 35hp. Did a mechanical tune up and cosmetic restoration. So out for sea trials on the first run with of this motor…ran like a champ! Up the river…down the river…then she bogged down and died. I grabbed the starter rope and she barely would turn over. Electric starter wouldn’t budge the motor!!
I get a tow home to the dock( I hate being towed! It’s a pride thing for me!!). Take the motor home…grab the rope…and she pulled right over, but I could feel something was wrong elsewhere!
Started checking the usual suspects…including the lower unit and it would spin in neutral, but not in gear!
Ah ah!
Pull the lower unit and open it. Guess who forgot, in their haste to go play, to put oil in the lower unit???
ME!
The pinion gear looked like a mushroom. Real nice n smooth. Well gears ain’t supposed to be smooth. The gotta have teeth to mesh with othe gears. That lower unit was still warm when I got it apart.
So I put in a new gear set and pinion. Reused the clutch dog. Seals were new…so I reused them too. New spaghetti seal on the clamshell halves. But she’s still running just fine today.
These motors by OMC take a helluva a lot of abuse before your screwed. My guess is the lower either lost it lube or never had any and fried. It is possible your lower unit has an internal crack that allowed the oil to go bye bye. I seen it happen due to improper storage. That would not be the fault of the shop that did the work…unless they did not catch it while pressure testing the lower after resealing it. Which they shoulda done.
Keep us posted! I’m not near you, but someone could help I’m sure!
Good luck!
Greg
July 11, 2015 at 3:18 pm #19863Thanks for the info everyone! I just released the lower unit oil, and it looks to be in good order..(noticed the screw seals are brand new, so I assume this was part of the seal kit that was installed) not one bit of water thank goodness, but the gear oil is a dark blue color..Nonetheless, I do wish to find a human resource in the area…
Thanks for your continued support!
July 11, 2015 at 3:59 pm #19870OK, the gear lube looks good, so it would seem as though the gearcase is not locked up, but it is still possible.
The electric starter just "clicks", and you could not pull the recoil. Perhaps you have the throttle up too far which might be the problem causing the interlock to lock up the recoil. I know, seems unlikely that there is an electrical problem AND the recoil is locked out, but anything is possible.
I would try removing the recoil and turning the flywheel by hand. Yes, I know you will have to remove the interlock pivot screw and the compression release arm, but that only takes a few seconds.
The engine quit while it was running slowly, so that is encouraging, any signs of overheating? Again, I am trying to rule out all the simple stuff.
I know you want to find a local member to help out, but I just don’t want you to give up over something that is hopefully simple.July 11, 2015 at 4:38 pm #19873Thank you Fleetwin! When starting, I make sure I have the throttle as far back as possible..I have tried to start this thing before when the throttle was set too high, so I know this drill.
My apologies, but I do not know where the recoil, interlock pivot screw, or the compression release arm are..I’ll check my Johnson/Evinrude book to see if I can locate and remove without messing things up. If someone has a quick reference diagram they could show me, I would appreciate it!
There were no signs of overheating at all…no puffs of smoke, no rolling smoke, etc..engine didn’t smell, etc…nothing like that at all…
Thanks!
July 11, 2015 at 5:08 pm #19876Could the interlock have "frozen" into place since the engine died while I was still in gear moving forward slowly? In other words, when the engine died, even though I pulled the throttle back as far as I could prior to attempting to restart, is it possible that the interlock stayed in a "locking" position thus causing the recoil to be stuck in this position regardless that I’ve moved the throttle back as far as possible? Is this even a possibility?
Thanks!
July 11, 2015 at 8:09 pm #19883I would drop the lower unit and see if its the lower unit or powerhead thats siezed. You can also remove the recoil assembly to eliminate the possibility of it being the culprit.
24:1 should not have let that motor sieze up. That motor can actually survive with 50:1, provided that it never gets hot -
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