Paragon SAOV Transmission Rebuild or Replace?

[SS Little-Devil]

Hey guys. Yesterday while coming into my slip, my transmission seized in reverse. It's a Paragon SAOV Transmission in a 1976 Cal 34. It's a westerbeke diesel. I think a 4-91 25HP but it could be a 30. Not on the boat right now...

I had a mechanic come to check it and and he could not move it either even with a big wrench. We could hear inside that some things are broken. He said it could be rebuild for $8-1200, but recommended I buy a used one instead.

I'm concerned that if I get a used one, I could end up with the same problem soon. If I rebuild it, I think it should perform better and last longer. I can buy a used one now for $550 but am not sure how hard it is to install.

[atoll]

id go for the used one,fairly easy to get off,
undo the prop shaft coupling,slide shaft outboard.
undo control cable
un bolt rear engine mounts
prop up engine
undo flywheel cover bolts,slide back housing.
undo bolts holding gear box.
reassemble with new gear box

[SS Little-Devil]

It came off a 1975 Cal with a 30HP Westerbeke, so I'm guessing if it's a SAOV it should work regardless if mine is a 25HP?

[atoll]

Originally Posted by SS Little-Devil

It came off a 1975 Cal with a 30HP Westerbeke, so I'm guessing if it's a SAOV it should work regardless if mine is a 25HP?

you need to check
a it is the same model
b it is the same ratio
c the spline is the same.
d the prop coupling is the same(should be standard)

[engele]

Originally Posted by atoll

id go for the used one,fairly easy to get off,
undo the prop shaft coupling,slide shaft outboard.
undo control cable
un bolt rear engine mounts
prop up engine
undo flywheel cover bolts,slide back housing.
undo bolts holding gear box.
reassemble with new gear box

This is an easy thing to do. I would take the top plate off if it has one and take a look inside the transmission. If it is the mechanical one, you will be able to see what is wrong in all likelihood. There are two main adjustments, the forward adjustment, and the reverse band on the mechanical transmission. If the bolt wore down (its a set bolt with a machined tip), and the bolt broke under load it may have just tightened up. Unlikely, but an easy thing to check and to fix.

[SS Little-Devil]

Ok. Thanks. Already bought the other one and am On my way to pick it up. If mine can be repaired I'll do so and sell it but at least for now I can get the boat running either way.

[perchance]

Although no expert , I have been on the inside of a Paragon transmission. They are quite simple. The forward clutch pack is not adjustable but the reverse band can be tightened (0r loosened) via a screw on the side of the transmission." Seized in reverse" is a sign that the reverse band has welded itself to the planetary drum and requires disassembly. keep the old one for parts and education and buy a good used one.

Reverse adjustment: In neutral tighten the screw until the transmission just begins to roll over and back off 1/2 turn. You may have to do this a few times to get a feel for it but it is simple to do. You cannot buy a reverse band in my experience but must buy the liner and rivets and get mechanical on it. There is an online manual that is well worth downloading even if just for reference.

[SS Little-Devil]

Just picked up the replacement. He had the cover off so I could see it working. Looks fantastic and he used synthetic 30 and said he had no leaks.

Now that I see inside, I understand better how it works. I'm quite sure reverse was slipping. Could be the bolt broke off or something simple but I'll know soon enough once I pull those four bolts. Could be I have a replacement for nothing but we'll see soon. Picked up a muffler and the spline for the flywheel too just in case. The guy went to electric.

[atoll]

well the splined damper plate is a couple of hundred bucks to replace,and an exhaust mixer more,could be if the gear selector bolt has broken off inside and been ratteling around it has caused a bit of gouging inside the old box as well

[SS Little-Devil]

We're having trouble separating my old transmission from the engine. It seems rusted on there or something. The four bolts are out but it's not budging. Any ideas on how to get it out?

[Kalinka1]

Plastic hammer worked on mine. Also you might check the angle that it is going into the bell housing. Damper plates were $60.00 last year. contact Stanley at beta marine. One thing to check on both transmissions is the pinion gears inside the clutch. I paid 2500 for a total rebuild last August so 550 is a good deal even for the parts alone. did it come with a v drive?

[muised]

Had the same engine and trans - both with problems which added up to my decision to repower this year. Feedback I got on the paragon was not good - I hope you have good luck with yours.

[atoll]

make sure the gearbox is not bolted from the inside of the bell housing as well,on hurth boxes it is nessacary to remove the bell housing.

if there is an inspection plate,,remove and try spray penetrating oil on the splined shaft.
you may also get access by removing the starter motor.

[SS Little-Devil]

Got it off! Just had to give it a few taps with a mallet while pulling backwards.

Kind of lucky the transmission malfunctioned actually. The packing gland underneath it had completely disintegrated and was leaking. It was oozing black goo and split apart. If it went while at sea I would have been in trouble there.

We just finished putting new hose with 5200 inside, new wax cord and securing it in place and are about to get started putting the new transmission on. It did indeed come with the v-drive.

The dampener on the shaft looks good so were going to lube that up and keep the extra one as a spare or sell it with the old unit amd v-drive to recoup some of my costs. The brake band on both look really good and if they crack or wear out they are $800 alone to buy new. Ack!

[SS Little-Devil]

We got everything back together except the the v-drive to the prop shaft. We now have about 1/16" or so gap between the v-drive plate and the prop shaft collar and that we can't seem to get flat. We think the key for the collar/shaft might be sticking out a bit. Hope we can figure that out because we needed a puller to get the collar off and it was a huge ordeal to get the whole thing lined up and onto the splines of the dampener and internal collar. Yikes!

We called it a day and will see if we can get it figured out in the morning or if necessary, might try some shims. Wish we had some that fit the diameter and hole pattern correctly.

It looks like the previous owner had been running with a slightly broken transmission for a while. My guy looked at it and the there is an adjustment screw for play that had broken off. The transmission still work but will chatter, which is what I have heard all along if the throttle was anything much above idle. It was most obvious in neutral while sailing and we would put it in reverse to stop the noise. There was also one of two adjustment screws missing for side-to-side adjustment of the shift lever shaft. The other was super loose. This with the rattle caused one of the little levers to pop off, locking the unit in reverse.

It also seemed underpowered from day one, but that was mostly my fault. I did not know you had to push the shift lever forward until it clicked and locked. I also did not know that the reverse gear was friction driven, so I was not pulling that back far enough either. My bad.