Shifting from forward to reverse to stop/slow down boat: harmful ?

[Vronsky]

I'm reading (general outboard, not specific Suzuki) conflicting opinions about stopping/slowing down the boat by shifting from forward->neutral->reverse->neutral
Some say this creates tremendous load on the gears, and should be avoided, others seem not so worried.

Of course, in principle it is possible to stop/slow down the boat by simply shifting to neutral early, and let the boat slow down/stop by itself.
However, when the speed becomes too slow, the steering becomes ineffective, so maintaining a minimum speed is often needed, and then ultimately some kind of 'braking' is necessary. Apart from throwing out an anchor, shifting to reverse appears to be the most obvious option, unless this might harm the motor of course....

[Solarman]

River currents & winds being a considerable force, often against boats, cause a captain to use reverse and forward gears on single, or multi-engine boats to dock, or put a boat back on the trailer are common. It is better at idle rpms to shift back and forth, as the motors are meant to do. A skilled captain can maneuver his craft with the greatest of ease, and not damage a dock, trailer, or his boat.
Yes, flying up to a dock, or beach area (to park a boat), then throwing it into reverse, and gunning it, to slow down is not good.

Be a safe, and careful boat captain. The waterways are only getting more and more crowded.

Happy boating.

[Harper]

Ditto what Solarman said. You should be slowed already and approach a dock at idle. Shift back and forth as needed but only at idle. Usually in a marina, if you have to use throttle in addition to shifting, you came in too fast to start with (possible exceptions with high winds/currents). There are a number of decent videos about docking available on you tube.

[Vronsky]

All very true.... when conditions are friendly and benign.
Was entering a lock with other boats present the other day, with 25 knots of wind to the rear of my pilot house mobo >
would love to see a 'skillled captain' handling such a situation with a motor just at idling and no bow thruster.

I'm not referring to a silly reverse at WOT, but neither reverse at idle, somewhere in between.

[tnadeau]

Try to minimize shifting at speeds above idle but when the situation calls for it, do it. It's better than smashing into something. If you can pause a moment between forward and reverse to allow the propellor to slow down or stop then all the better. Habitually slamming the gearbox from forward to reverse without pausing for the prop to slow down will eventually damage the gear set.

[ageorgakis]

Hi everyone. First post here. I’d like some more information on this topic. I never shift from forward to reverse at higher than idle speeds. Yet my dealer has mentioned that he finds metal shavings in the lower unit from the gears grinding. Service is always done on schedule. I’m running a pair of DF350s (2019 model) and there is no mention in the Suzuki owner’s manual about how to shift from forward to reverse. One could assume that newer engines can be shifted at any speed without an issue. Don’t newer engines have a clutch or synchronization gear or something to prevent damage to the gear teeth?