350X: Got It Fired, Doesn't Shift Right...HEY DIRTCRASHER!!

[Qdude79]

Hoping Dirtcrasher will chime in here....

**Apologies ahead of time for not realizing I wasn't taking pics in landscape..

Got my project fired, ran it around the block gently. When I got back my clutch (new) seemed bottomed out (no pressure on the handle) and I couldn't shift out of 2nd. Noticed that my shifter seems to move in/out quite a bit. Pulled the stator cover and noticed that the shifter wasn't situated over this piece:
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In fact, when I pulled the cover it looked more like this:
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This last pic is what is behind the shifter "stem" when I pull it out (is it supposed to come out by hand?):
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Any thoughts? I'd say there's almost a half inch of play with everything installed...

Thanks...

[Dirtcrasher]

I have seen this before, even with crate motors (take out motors).

The gear shifter that sits on a collar is not engaged enough. I usually gently bend them in and add thrust washers to the other side of that shaft.

There is too much endplay with those things. The only other issues are pin breakage, came loose or a dead spring in one or both of the shifter pawls that grab the drum.

A half inch of play is enormous, 1 quarter of an inch should be more like that....

I just shimmed mine when I put it back together after powdercoating. It's a problem I've seen before but when I mentioned it, no one else seems to have seen it. I've seen it 3X now....

You may have to get some thrust washers at McMaster/Carr that fit over that shaft.

Easy fix....

[Qdude79]

Kind of what I was thinking, but I didn't know what else I might be throwing out of whack by doing that. To be clear:
(Gently!) bend this plate so it engages better...
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...and then throw a thrust washer (or two) at the base of the shifter stem here:
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Did I understand that correctly?

[Qdude79]

Well, apparently I did! You, sir, Mr. Crasher of Dirt, are quite a resource! Thing shifts like butta... BUTTA I TELL YOU!

Took a 5/8 bronze thrust washer, bored it just slightly, slipped it on, works great! Thanks again!

[Dirtcrasher]

Yup, that's all I do myself but I also add a thin thrust washer on the left side of that....