Clarification on position of shift cable bellows

[khe]

I'm almost finished replacing my alpha one gen 2 shift cable bellows. Less than 3 years on a Sierra part that my local dealer said was as good as Merc's part... right.... This time, I used a OEM bellows.

The Mercruiser shop manual states: Be sure bellows is in the relaxed position 2-1/2" from the bell housing before crimping clamp. The manual is not clear if it is the transom side of the bell housing or the sterndrive side of the bell housing. I want to get this right. The illustration in the shop manual shows the clamp equidistant from either side of the bell housing.

 

[khe]

The rain stopped so I went out and took some measurements. 2.5" from the transom side results in the bellows completely compressed when the drive is down. The old ones were not in that position nor was the original that I replaced almost three years ago.

 

[Bondo]

Ayuh,.... It wants to be fairly compressed when down, so that it can make the stretch when up,.....

I use a tiny zip-tie rather than the steel crimp ring supplied,....

 

[khe]

I called a marina and they said to raise the drive and position the bellows so they're not overly stretched and crimp them in place.

 

[JASinIL2006]

Zip ties are a ton easier....

 

[thumpar]

I used a zip tie also. Run it around 2 times so there is no gap.

 

[Bondo]

Ayuh,.... I used 2 tiny ones, one each direction, with the lock nubs on opposite sides,....

Merc makes a tiny one for fuel lines on outboards that make a full circle by themselves, with an extra tiny inner nub,....

 

[khe]

Thanks for the info. I started to crimp the clamp and it started to form wrong in the tool so I removed it. I couldn't locate a replacement so I bought some zip ties that were made for hoses. The latch portion of the tie is curved so it wouldn't cause a gap when tightened.

It is all tight but I am somewhat concerned about the longevity of the zip tie with respect to UV degradation over time. On the other hand, the fit of the shift cable in the bellows is so tight, the clamp is probably redundant.

 

[JoLin]

Relax and go boating. The zip tie will outlast the bellows.

 

[JASinIL2006]

Relax and go boating. The zip tie will outlast the bellows.

^^^ This!

 

[achris]

Merc makes a tiny one for fuel lines on outboards that make a full circle by themselves, with an extra tiny inner nub,....

I also use these... 20c each in your country, $2 in mine (which is why I 'import'. )

...It is all tight but I am somewhat concerned about the longevity of the zip tie with respect to UV degradation over time. ....

That zip tie should be well out of the sunlight. And as it's black, it's UV stabilized anyway...

Chris.........