Does Merc still make ratcheting gearcases?

[David]

I was chatting with friends the other day, and one showed me a picture of a broken boat that had hooked.

I hope I am smart enough not to chop the throttle in my boat, but of course engines fail. Were only the 2.4/2.5 2 stroke gearcases ratcheting? 300XS? 300R? 200R?

[25two.stroke]

None of the big engines have been ratcheting for a long time. All 3.0L 2 stroke gearcases that were 1.75 or 1.62 did not ratchet. Early 3.0L 1.87 did ratchet. 3.0L 150 4stroke do not ratchet, 2.1L and 1.7L fourstroke don't ratchet. 3.4L and 4.6L fourstroke do not ratchet. The 1.0L fourstroke 1.83 gearcase ratchets and the 2.33 ratchets in FWD and locks in REV.

[skialot2]

2.4's always ratcheted. 2.5's stopped ratcheting around 1995. At least on standard gearcases. Not sure about high performance gearcases.

[Mark Poole ModVP]

This reminds me...I went to merc service school near Orlando many years ago. Instructor was a cool, very knowledgeable guy. He told the story of how he fixed a V6 crossflow OMC on his friend's bass boat and took it out for a test. Having been a lifelong merc guy he got the crap scared out of him when he chopped the throttle at 70 mph! Said that was his introduction to a locked clutch dog.

[sick_nick]

why would merc stop making ratcheting case when boats are going faster every year?

[108]

why would merc stop making ratcheting case when boats are going faster every year?

Machining costs.

[sick_nick]

do any of the I/O boats have ratcheting cases?

[Brad Zastrow]

I/O's do not rachet. Bravos and Super Speedmasters all are locked. I see no reason to have a ratchetting gear case. I have locked up motors at 160 mph with Number six drive and all I did was slow down. Zero drama. My 300X and 300R do not rachet.

[25two.stroke]

I/O's do not rachet. Bravos and Super Speedmasters all are locked. I see no reason to have a ratchetting gear case. I have locked up motors at 160 mph with Number six drive and all I did was slow down. Zero drama. My 300X and 300R do not rachet.

Gen2 Alphas ratchet

[CUDA]

I/O's do not rachet. Bravos and Super Speedmasters all are locked. I see no reason to have a ratchetting gear case. I have locked up motors at 160 mph with Number six drive and all I did was slow down. Zero drama. My 300X and 300R do not rachet.

That's because you are in a tunnel, Try that in an Allison

[Brad Zastrow]

That and many other reasons are why I gave up my Allison for cats. I like training wheels.

[sick_nick]

That and many other reasons are why I gave up my Allison for cats. I like training wheels.

i totally agree. i believe it is much safe to go fast in a cat/tunnel. v-bottoms do weird things you have to be ready for at speed when theyre set up to go fast.

i guess the non ratcheting case would give more control while slowing down? maybe not having a ratcheting case allows them to design a smaller case as well.

[David]

That and many other reasons are why I gave up my Allison for cats. I like training wheels.

Do you think the big cats are more fun than Allison’s? Certainly faster, and more capable in the rough. I had a couple of rides in 25, 28 and 33 foot cats, and briefly drove the 25. The SS2000 suits me better.