When I shift....

[76GMC1500]

Everybody but Volvo and Yamaha use dog clutches in their outdrives, just like outboards. *It's basically a ring with teeth on it that has to engage another ring with slots for the teeth. *Some grinding is expected as they engage. *Shifting more quickly will reduce the grinding. *More recent drives kill spark to the engine to stall it a little as you engage the gears. *This also works to reduce the grinding. *But, some is still normal. *A fast idle will make it worse. Most v8's should idle around 600 rpm. The 6 cylinders like 600-700. The 4 cyilnders are 700-800. So, if you're idling at 1000 rpm, that is a little high.