No Reverse!

[dmksails]

Just tried to leave the dock - had it in forward at low RPM to hold me against the dock while I pulled the mooring lines. Hopped back no, shifted to reverse - nothing. Tried a number of times - nothing. Odd thing is I ran the engine a few days ago and had no issues with forward or reverse. The linkage looks fine. I had made marks on the case so I could tell if the shift was fully engage and that still looks right.

The previous owner had the gearbox rebuilt. Shortly after I bought the boat I had problem getting the gear to engage. I had found a blockage in the pedestal that was preventing full travel to reverse - so I fixed the issue and had the gearbox rebuilt. Now after 40 hours I can't get into reverse!

Engine is a 3gm30f with a KH3-P gearbox.

Question - how many times can the gearbox get rebuilt before it's time for a new one?

[Copacabana]

Have you tried to manually engage the linkage on the gearbox? Remove the cable and engage it by hand to see if it goes into reverse.

If you just had the gearbox rebuilt, I imagine the shop will be willing to have a look at it for you.

[gamayun]

Can you shift into neutral and back to forward? If not, it might be the shifter arm inside the pedestal. Mine broke shortly after I got my boat. It made docking singlehanded quite exciting as I had to lay down to reach the shift mechanism on the 3GM30, which was thankfully accessible at the front of the engine. A real PITA to replace though. At least it seemed to for me and I hired someone who knew what he was doing. Didn't take him more than 30 minutes, IIRC.

[dmksails]

UPDATE: It's not the linkage. I made marks on the gearbox so I can tell if the lever is fully engaged - it's going stop to stop. In reverse I'm getting very slow turns - less than half the rpm's I'd see at the lowest throttle setting and it doesn't change with increased engine rpms. Checked oil and it's clean and at the full mark.

[JPA Cate]

Is your prop fouled? How clean is the hull? Your type of boat is not known for reverse maneuverability.

Long time ago, we watched a guy with a Westsail 32, unable to maneuver, due to biofouling on hull and prop. The wind blew him down onto the fuel dock.

Ann

[Compass790]

Originally Posted by dmksails

UPDATE: It's not the linkage. I made marks on the gearbox so I can tell if the lever is fully engaged - it's going stop to stop. In reverse I'm getting very slow turns - less than half the rpm's I'd see at the lowest throttle setting and it doesn't change with increased engine rpms. Checked oil and it's clean and at the full mark.

What post#2 said. The shop who rebuilt it should be responsible for figuring it out after only 40hrs usage.
I'd suspect an assembly issue assuming you havent hit something whilst reversing.