Two weekends ago Donnybrook was sailing on Lake Michigan outside of Belmont Harbor, Chicago. It was a beautiful day on the water. At the conclusion of the sail we started the engine and turned into the wind to drop sails, only the transmission didn't seem engaged. We tried shifting into gear again and had propulsion.
At dock the transmission clutch was wobbly. It took a couple of tries to put it into reverse. Thankfully Donnybrook was safely at dock while troubleshooting. After some more fiddling the clutch lever started to spin free.
Why did this happen? The $0.49 screw sheared off! I did some internet investigation and found this happens if the screw holding the shift lever backs off, the pressure of shifting is transferred to the screw and it'll eventually break. Edson support confirmed this--lever screws must be tight.
MORAL OF THE STORY: MAKE SURE THE ENGINE CONTROL LEVER SCREWS ARE TIGHT!
I thought I could fix this. Safely at dock I used vice grips to attach to the shaft to shift gears. It was difficult, certainly not practical In close quarters.
I removed the shifter component (easy once the compass was off) and tried to back the broken screw off with tools on Donnybrook. This was impossible.
I took the shifter component to my parents' where they have a much better workshop than I do. (It's funny how at 43 years old I still depend on my parents. Will my boys still depend on me in my 80's?). I spent 2+ hours and two trips to the hardware store to drill the broken screw out only to fail. The screw is much harder stainless steel than the shaft.
In the end I gave Edson $50+ for a lever assembly and new screws. It took 15 minutes to install.
MORAL OF THE STORY: MAKE SURE THE ENGINE CONTROL LEVER SCREWS ARE TIGHT!
IMPORTANT: PAY ATTENTION TO DETAILS as the details keep the major components working.
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