Shift cable at transmission bracket

[Zuma]

I am a new owner of a beautiful 29 foot 2010 Ranger Tug. I have the boat with a charter company. They have contacted me stating they noticed when placing the boat in gear, they have difficulty finding neutral. After several phone calls they now say the housing is broken and will need to run a new cable. Would the housing be at the transmission?

 

[Shared Dream II]

There are two points of attachment for the shift cable. One is to a lever at the gear. The other is to a metal bracket that is underneath the throttle / gear handle at the helm. A picture of the broken "housing" would be useful as it is difficult to relate a "broken housing" to the need for a new cable.

 

[LADYBUG TOO]

We had the same issue with Ladybug, Too until lightening took out the throttle sensor on the control head. The new shifter works much better but we did some adjusting to get it loosened up. The cable attaches to the gear at a bracket directly above the transmission shift. There is a neutral safety switch on the transmission shifter and we found it to be binding the movement of the cable shift arm. The control head does have a plastic housing around it that could break under duress. If that is the case don't buy a new housing. I'll send you my old one. It is easy to change out. By the way if yours is like our 2009 R-29 then you probably have the 6BY260 Sport engine with two analog throttle sensors. Tey got toasted by the lightening strike on our R-29.

Pat and Carolyn, Ladybug, Too

 

[joempo]

We recently had a similar situation with our 2006 R-25. We were unable to shift into reverse before the throttle opened, revving the engine.
Troubleshoot the issue yourself with the engine OFF.
The first thing to do is disconnect the shift cable from the transmission shift lever at the rear of the engine. Once it's disconnected, physically shift the transmission by lifting, then pushing the lever. This should help you determine if there's a problem with the transmission. If it shifts easily, proceed to the next step.
Second (best done with another person), hold onto the transmission end of the shift cable while your helper slowly moves the helm control lever forward and reverse. If the cable binds, check for kinks in the solid rod where it exits the cable sheath. Release the cable sheath from the bracket and lubricate the cable inside the sheath and clean any rust or rough areas with 220 grit sand paper.
If those steps don't solve the problem, or there is a problem with shifting the transmission (step one), phone Andrew or Kenny.

 

[conniemarie]

We recently had issues finding our neutral in our 2012 R27 with the neutral interlock preventing a start. We figured it was a minor inconvenience until our next service, everything else checked out fine...

But our trouble came to a peak when we had to kill the engine to prevent fouling the prop after setting a trap. We could not restart the boat and we were drifting into rocks REALLY fast. And I can tell you there was much panic , yelling, boat hooks etc until we finally found the damn location and started it.

It was $50 to have the local boat mechanic come out and adjust the cable where it attaches to the transmission in the back. Neutral (and peace of mind) is back where it should be. We probably could have tried to fix this one ourselves but after our scare it was the best $50 I had spent in a long time!

Don't wait to get it fixed, it can be life threatening to find a fidgety neutral location!!

 

[LADYBUG TOO]

The neutral safety switch on Ladybug, Too was plastic and broke. The replacement is all SS and very sturdy. Easy to adjust. If you have the plastic version I recommend that you get the Stainless Steel version. If it breaks at the wrong time it could be disastrous.

Pat and Carolyn, Ladybug, Too

 

[PhilR]

Pat and Carolyn,
Do you have a spec on the SS neutral safety switch and a source of supply? One day last year, after the local yacht club mechanic did a coolant hose repair on my boat, I cast off with the engine in neutral....drifted away from the dock, towards another crowded dock....shifted into forward and the engine reved up, but no shift. I grabbed a boat pole and placed a hasty call to the mechanic. He forgot to reconnect the cable at the transmission. A learning experience!

Phil

 

[LADYBUG TOO]

The link to the supplier we got ours from is www.pdmarineservices.com/ in Orange Beach, Alabama. I do not have the part number but any Yanmar dealer should be able to get it for you. I am betting that the replacement part was a result of a number of failures.

Pat and Carolyn, Ladybug, Too