How to repair a stiff/jammed Reverse lever on Virage, MSX, Genesis with reverse lever

[skiversinc]

Can anyone tell me how to remove the reverse selector from my 2001 Virage TX 1200?

Basically the cam shaft has sheared & I'll be needing a new one (see WTB in classifieds) I just need to know how to get it out!!

Any help you can offer will be gratefully recieved.

[bossd]

i would download the sevice manual for this model. u can go to www.polarispartshouse.com and selecting polaris parts lookup and follow the steps. see if that helps u atall with getting it off

[skiversinc]

No info

Thanks for the suggestion. The manual isn't really much help I'm afraid. All it says is that it shouldn't need much maintenence! That's it! Not very helpful at all.
I thought possibly there might be someone on the forum who might be able to shed a bit more light on the matter, from personal experience.
Thanks for the suggestion though.
Cheers

[bossd]

ya i was looking at the pictures of ur pwc and ur reverse seems much more complex than my slt 700 but what is it exactly u are trying to take off... can u shw me on this pic if it is the right model?(i could not find any with "1200" in the name)

[K447]

Thanks for the suggestion. The manual isn't really much help I'm afraid. All it says is that it shouldn't need much maintenance! That's it! Not very helpful at all.
I thought possibly there might be someone on the forum who might be able to shed a bit more light on the matter, from personal experience...

Download the 2001 Virage TX PARTS manual.

It has an exploded diagram of the reverse assembly on page 17.

Or use the Polaris Industries online parts diagram for 2001 Virage TX

I have never removed a Virage reverse assembly (Edit: I have now), but it is a hard spot to get into under the steering shroud, beside the oil tank.

You can take the Virage oil tank out, if you need more elbow room.
Unscrew and move aside the reverse electrical switch bracket, and disconnect and cap the oil filter from the nipple on the rear end of the oil tank.
Disconnect the oil level sender wire connector.
Now you should be able to lift and wiggle the oil tank forward. Be careful not to damage the nipple on the rear, or the little vent fitting on top.

The oil tank has a recess that fits around a bump on the fuel tank, so you must lift and twist the oil tank to clear that bump. Once you get it forward the first inch or two, it comes right out. The oil tank is actually rather long.

[skiversinc]

Thanks for your input guys.
Basically, the part I need to replace is number 12 in the diagram. Unfortunately, I think I need to remove the whole unit in order to access this part.
It is a bit cramped under there, but I think I should be able to get into the unit - if I know how to get it out.
Are the reverse units bolted into place?
There's a ring under the shroud which is screwed into place with 4 philips screws. The shaft fits through the hull, through this ring, and the selector fits onto the shaft from there.
It's the other end of the shaft which seems to be screwed to item number 9. However, this is screwed together from the other side, so it's unaccessible. There IS a metal bar which bolts onto the hull and onto the centre of the reverse mechanism (item #26).
I think I need to remove the entire unit due to its construction, but I can't seem to work out how to do this properly.
Any ideas?

[K447]

You could try sending Private Messages (click on the poster's name at the left of their post) to the members on here who have recently parted out a Polaris with this type of reverse handle (Virage and Genesis models without electric reverse). Look in the Classifieds to see who has parted one out.

They might be able to tell you how it comes out, or perhaps take some photos of it out of the hull, or even sell you the whole handle + mechanism if they still have it.

[K447]

How to repair stiff/jammed/binding manual Reverse lever on Virage, MSX, Genesis

Well, my own Virage TXi mechanical/manual (not PERC electric) reverse lever was binding and getting hard to operate, so I had a look at how it works.

Per the attached photos, you do not need to remove the entire mechanism from the hull to fix it.

Pry the plastic cap (1) from the outside of the reverse handle (33). Use a 10mm driver to unscrew the long bolt (2) inside the hollow handle. Remove the handle.

Under the hood, remove the cotter pin (25) and washer (18 ) connecting the reverse arm (26) to the reverse cable (34). Slide the cable out of the hole on the reverse arm.
Note: This step is not entirely necessary, but it is how I got mine apart.

Remove the Philips head screw (19) holding the Reverse Lock (17).

Remove the 10mm bolt (15) holding the metal bracket to the center of the large reverse arm. Don't lose the washer underneath (14).

Note: There is a captive nut on the back side (13).
Don't push too hard on the bolt while unscrewing it, or the nut will push out into the hull and go hide somewhere.

Gently bend the metal bracket (20) away from the reverse arm, enough to allow the reverse lock (17) to be removed.

Alternate method; If you don't want to bend the metal arm, remove the hidden 10mm nut from the rear support stud (30). This will allow the metal bracket to be removed. Don't drop the nut or washer

Slide the plastic reverse lock pawl (17) and spring out from under the metal bracket (20). Don't lose the spring (16) that is inside.

Now you can use the 10mm driver to gently tap on the end of the cam shaft (12). Mine was quite snug. Tap the cam shaft all the way through. The pinion (9) will come with it.

In my case, the problem was that the nylon plastic cam shaft diameter seems to have expanded (or the pinion gear hole shrank), enough that the pinion no longer freely rotates on the cam shaft.

This causes the reverse gear arm to remain locked when you try to move the lever, and it feels like it has jammed. Fight with it enough, and the lock suddenly releases and works, or you break things

I had to use a hammer and drift to tap the pinion off the cam shaft, and it was tight all the way. Time to do some fine sanding...

Apply sandpaper to the shaft until the pinion slides smoothly on and off the shaft. Also make sure the shaft now slides freely into the hole where it goes when re-assembled.

The pinion (9) needs to freely rotate on the cam shaft (12) (next two photos).

Apply waterproof grease to all contacting and sliding parts, shafts and gear teeth as you reassemble.

I see that Babbitts shows the cam shaft part# 5433955 being SUBSTITUTED BY 2202170 ($18US), also the pinion part# 5434067 also SUBSTITUTED BY 2202170
Sounds like an updated version, perhaps because of the binding shaft issue

This video shows the pinion and cam action, without the locking pawl present.
Note the motion of the cam before the pins move the pinon gear.

And finally, mounted in the hull.
All moving parts have been greased.

It really is about a two finger amount of force to move the reverse lever when everything is working properly.

Update: In addition to reducing the binding friction on the pinion shaft, the slotted holes can be elongated, allowing the latch to be lifted farther away from the pawl slot.

[skiversinc]

Thank you

Guys, you have been so much help! Especially you K447! Don't tell me you actually went out & took yours off so you could give me that information???!!!

You're a legend. Your guide has enabled me to get my cam shaft out & a new one has been ordered.

Thanks again.

[K447]

...Don't tell me you actually went out & took yours off so you could give me that information?...
...Your guide has enabled me to get my cam shaft out & a new one has been ordered...

Well, I was already working on my Virage, to fix the burned out coupler.

Once that was done, I figured I might as well fix my own sticking reverse lever. Since you needed the info anyways, it seemed like a good time to get into it.

Did you order the updated part# 2202170, which appears to include both cam shaft and pinion?

Photos show the mounting area for the reverse mechanism.

To remove the four flat head screws that are tucked just inside the cowl hole, I needed to remove and loosen the front shroud bolts. Don't loose the spacer washer tucked between the two plastic layers

Then I could lift and flex the shroud enough to get a screw driver on the screws, and work them out.

[skiversinc]

Re: cam shaft kit

Thanks so much for doing that. I really do appreciate it.
Apparently, according to my dealer, the cam shaft comes as a kit now, so I'm thinking that's the new part number.

Once I had your guide in my sweaty little hands, the whole thing was out in about 10 minutes. Thanks again.
Maybe we could get that guide pinned somewhere in case anyone else has a similar problem.

[K447]

MSX reverse lever handle retaining bolt is on the inside

Update: The MSX 140 reverse lever is the same mechanism inside as the Genesis and Virage, but the handle is different.

On the MSX, there is a long bolt running through the cam shaft (item 12) that you undo from the inside the hull to remove the handle. It is a 10mm head. Loosen the bolt until the handle becomes free, then pull/wiggle the handle straight off the shaft.

Once you get the long bolt out from the inside, the rest of the repair is the same as the Virage/Genesis method outlined earlier.

[movan]

MSX 140 Reverse Lever Differences

I was thrilled to see your very descriptive write-up of your Virage reverse mechanism removal instructions and pix! My friend muscled my reverse handle and now it doesn't function (lever spins freely).

I printed out your instructions, along with my MSX 140 parts picture, and began by removing the handle. I got the lever out but the bolt seems to be too long to remove, as it bumps into what appears to be the steering assembly. Does it need to be fully removed?

Also, your instructions refer to Virage part numbers, and I believe that the MSX parts in my diagram are numbered slightly different. I tried finding the Virage part numbers so I could then look at your instructions and then handwrite onto my MSX 140 parts picture so I knew what to remove, but couldn't find a Virage parts diagram online (as links have been taken down).

Any pointers appreciated!

Update: The MSX reverse lever is the same mechanism inside as the Genesis and Virage, but the handle is different.

On the MSX, there is a long bolt running through the cam shaft (item 12) that you undo from the inside the hull to remove the handle. It is a 10mm head. Loosen the bolt until the handle becomes free, then pull/wiggle the handle straight off the shaft.

Once you get the long bolt out from the inside, the rest of the repair is the same as the Virage/Genesis method outlined earlier.

[K447]

Polaris Industries parts diagrams are still online as far as I can tell

http://parts.polarisind.com/Assemblies.asp

I just looked up the 2001 Virage TX Reverse info and the diagram is there (but I did not check whether the part numbering is exactly the same).

That long bolt from the handle does run into the steering when you try to remove it. My memory is fuzzy but I think that when you start removing other parts you can wriggle the bolt out at some point.

Like almost everything on a watercraft the reverse mechanism is a pain to work on the first time.

[movan]

Thanks, right after I sent my note I found a diagram for an 02 Virage on the Polaris site, and renumbered my MSX parts diagram. I'll take your description and update for an MSX and post it shortly. Given my free swinging reverse lever, would you guess it's the sae problem that others have experienced and I'll have to replace the pinion and cam shaft parts?