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I am trying to take the lowere unit of the little boat today, to change the water pump, and the lower unti will only come down about 3/4 to 1" and then stops. I can rock it back and forth but thats about it. It is a '90 Merc "Classic 50" 45hp, and I have removed all the necessary bolts including the one under the steering zinc. Any help would be great, I have worked at it carefully for the last hour or so, trying to pry it down....HELP , is there something I am missing???
Peter
Thanks for the replies...Ok I checked the shift linkage wher it comes in under the power head...BUT in seems to come in under a sealed round housing of sorts that is a one piece unit leading to the shift cable assembly....I dont see any bolt that I can loosen to let that rod if it s connected drop out from under the powerhead area.....I REALLY APPRECIATE the posted pics , and that will really help once I get the lower unit down....ANY other ideas????
Peter
Is the motor in neutral? If not, make sure it is. Last thing I can think of is to twist it a bit while it is down a couple of inches. There are splines at the top of the shaft and you need to make sure they line up (can't see it) so it will let go. Same thing goes for when you put it back up there- make sure you twist it a bit (rotate) to get the splines to match up.
The only other thing which prevented my Yamaha from dropping was the speedo cable but that was obvious once all the bolts were out. I simply cut the zip tie and pulled the plastic tubing off.
Firefly-
Thanks, I had the motor in forward, as a buddy of mine told me it had to be...I tried wacking it while it was in neutral, as you suggested...No go. I cant see what is holding this thing on, maybe it is shift linkage, but I dont see where to loosen that rod from the round casing, there are some VERY small allen wrench set screws on the side of that casing , I guess I could try, but I cant imagine that those would hold the entire unit on.....I m getting desparate with this whole thing, its a good thing I only have a rubber mallet in my hand!! any more ideas?
I am at a loss on this one but I am no expert, just a rookie with recent experience. Just keep it in neutral when doing this- not sure about the wacking idea but I do know people have used wooden wedges to separate the lower unit.
Do a search here and look for the latest thread with the words wedge and lower unit. You should be able to find it.
Let us know how you do. Wish I could be more help.
Firefly-
Thanks, I have tried wooden wedges, just wont go lower then 3/4- 1". I am completely boggled with this one!! I would imagine that even if the drive sshaft were rusted on, then the unit wouldnt move AT ALL. There must be something about this motor that is locking that unit on, if it is the shift, then I really cant see where to release it, I guess I will go back outside and keep at it and check this forum , in a bit to see if anymore ideas come up, Thanks again!!!!
Get the manual or talk to somebody with one before you break something expensive
I just did the lower unit on my Mercury 200 SW Classic for its first 100 hour service last weekend. I bought the Merc factory service manual first and am glad I did. Excellent detailed instructions. Merc was very specific about which nuts to loosen when and how much.
My lower unit hing about 3/8 " down. I double checked the manual to verify I had everything right. I did so I just worked back and forth by hand a few times and voila, off it came.
The shift shaft on the 200 just slides into a splined socket in the lower unit. Nerc specifically said it should be in neutral for disassembly.
Don't know that any of that is relevant to your motor though. Get the Mercury manual for your motor, its worth th $45.
Could the splined pieces be rusted together? Is there someway to get liquid wrench or something up in there? I guess this is why they say to use water resistant grease on reassembly. Try jacking it back up and then dropping it back down several times.
Let us know how it goes.
Don
__________________ Get the Captains Club Membership, worth 20 times what it cost's.
Just did my 1997 merc 90 today manual says put in gear remove 5 bolts an away you go.did use rubber mallet to help it along. Otherwise after some shaking an tapping it came down
Thanks for all the responses....I had to hang it up for the day.It was geting too dark out. I will take the advice of getting a manual. I think that should help answer some of the conflicting responses of whether the motor should be in gear or neutral. I may be back online the next nice day we get , when I start this project again...THANKS AGAIN, and I will let you know how it turns out...
Peter
Danielb-
LOL....BUT I have done several before, just not on this motor.....So I didnt really think I needed instructions.You make a good point though,I am SO glad my girlfriend wasnt around today to heckle me on just that exact point...She would been ruthless about it, mighta gotten the ol' rubber mallet to her head!! I guess thats the bright side to the day, huh, no heckling??
Lower unit stuck!!! 
I guess thats the bright side to the day, huh, no heckling?? 
