Re: What do I have?

[Don]

Well, reinstalling the gearcase is definitely easier with an assistant. I would sand off the end of that water tube so it won’t bind going into the grommet. Add some grease to the end of the water tube as well. Be sure the upper driveshaft oring is in place and grease the splines (not on top of the driveshaft) with the OMC moly lube. Did the shift rod brass connector come down with the gearcase, or is it still inside mounted to the upper shift rod. If the connector came down with the gearcase, take the time to spread it open a bit so it will slide over the upper shift rod easily. Be sure the threads on the clamp screw are in good shape, these are easily damaged.
Next, slide the gearcase assembly back up inside the exhaust housing, peak inside the housing with a light to make sure the tube has found its way into the grommet while your assistant rotates the flywheel (plug wires off) to line up the splines, the gearcase should slip most of the way up into the housing easily if/when everything is lined up. You needn’t worry about the shift linkage at this point.
Once you have two of the gearcase screws snugged up you can connect the shift linkage. Pushing the shift lever into reverse will push the shift rod down, you can pull the lower shift rod upward and slip the brass connector over the upper shift rod using needle nose under the brass connector. The tough and important part is getting the groove in the upper shift rod properly located in the brass connector. Misalignment will make it tough to install the connector screw/washer, throw the shift linkage out of adjustment, damage the screw threads and probably cause the connector to be loose on the shift rod. It is also extremely frustrating when you drop the screw/washer down inside the exhaust housing while trying to install it.