Clutch Slipping

[John Collins]

I have an Atomic 4 on my Catalina 30 and when I try to aplly full power the engine suddenly begins to race and the prop shaft slows. Clutch slipping? Is this just an adjustment or do I need to do something more expensive.

 

[Kevin L. Woody]

Slipping

Dear John:Thank you for your note. It totally depends on the make and model of your transmission whether or not it will slip. Does the transmission always work astern? If so the transmission may only need adjustment. If you transmission is a mechanical gear, the slippage may simply be the throw of the shift cable is not enough to fully drive your transmissions shifting lever forward. When you place the transmission in gear next time, try manually, to drive the shift lever on the transmission forward. You may find that the engagement is slight and not full. You would then adjust the cable to allow the lever to be driven further allowing for full transmission engagement. It is often seen that when a transmission is not fully engaging, an increase in Rpm’s will force the engagement. Often resulting in a massive gear impact. Hope this helps. Sincerely, Kevin L. Woody

 

[Del Carnes]

Transmisson

John: The transmisson on the Atomic 4 is adjustable. It has been a while since I have worked on one. But as I remember there is a collor that adjust the forward and reverse gears. Take the top off the transmission and you can see the linkage. Also check with Dick Dickens tektalkdik2alo.com he is the Catalina 30 Owners Association tech person. The is a write up on transmisson slipping in the Catalina 30 tech talk collection. It tells how to remove the glazing that can happen on thaat transmisson. Good Luck