On a routine check I found evidence of leakage into the gear case of my Alpha drive. I pulled it and took it to the shop to have it pressure tested and resealed. They found it leaking around the prop shaft and resealed. The mechanic said he had a time getting it resealed due to some pitting on the housing and he had to do the job several times. (cost me extra in labor) Exterior if the outdrive is fairly clean.<br /><br />That's not my issue though. I went to put the drive on and found that the shift shaft has about a half inch of play in it (vertical) and no longer sits up high enough to engage the slot in the shift lever on the bell housing.<br /><br />I read the manual closely when I put it on, throttle in forward gear, drive in gear to index the splines to match the engine coupler, slip the shift slide into the slot on the drive and verified the shift coupler and shaft were aligned. The drive slipped into place with very little pressure mostly just some shaking back and forth to get things lined up. Slipped into place with about an eighth inch gap which I tighted up with the mounting bolts. Started the engine on the hose and tested the shifting nothing. Went back and looked under the boat at the shift coupling on the drive and the shift shaft was too low to engage the shift lever on the bell housing.<br /><br />So the question is did I damage it in the removal/installation process, or is it something the shop could have done? Thing is I don't see any scratching or marring on the shift shaft or slot that would indicate I did not have them aligned though I also doubt the shop was working in that area, but don't know much about the work to reseal the hub. The shift shaft does move the drive in and out of gear in both directions. What holds the shaft at the proper level? Is it something simple, or do I go back to the shop?
