Recently bought a boat with a very rough B1 sterndrive. Corrosion got the best of it. The lower needs to be replaced for sure, but I am trying to recondition the upper. It shifts into forward fine, but there is some hesitation when trying to engage reverse. It doesnt seem to engage until I give it some throttle. Anyway, this past weekend I opened her up and removed the **** assembly. The shif cable bellow was no good and consequently, the shift linkage had corrosion and needs to be replaced. When I pulled the shift fork, I noticed some wear and scoring on it.


I am not new to boating, but am new to Mercruisers and Bravo's. Previously owned Volvo Pentas. I am not sure if this wear is normal or if I should be concerned that it's an indication of bigger problems inside of the clutch assembly. I don't want to continue to spend time and money putting lipstick on a pig for nothing.


Any advice would be appreciated.​​​​​​​

A delay in shifting usually is from the cone clutch worn out