Alpha one lower unit will not go back to upper without cuss words.

[Crawfish Dundee]

I just installed a pump kit in my Alpha one gen 1 , and I can not get it any closer than a half inch. Im frustrated and have three hours into this chore already. It came apart hard, I had to shake it like it owed me money. I can only get it together this close and I can't seem to keep it in forward gear when wiggling and shaking it up into position. I can feel the splines line up, but can't figure what the hang up is. Any suggestions are welcomed. Thank you. ( I did search in the archive a while, but was just growing a beard)

 

[achris]

Easier to remove the unit as a whole, then split on the bench, replace the impeller, do the seal/pressure test, fill it with oil and then refit the drive, as a complete assembly, to the bell housing. While you have the whole drive off, you can carry out the other annual maintenance items, uni joint lube/check, engine alignment check, gimbal bearing check/grease, bellows check, and make sure the upper shift shaft seals are still sealing.... You can also check/replace the upper drive shaft lower seal in the drive shaft housing. On the 'Gen I' it's very common to need replacing almost every service. If that seal leaks, it's all over. The splines in the bottom of the upper drive shaft rust out...

As for what is hanging you up now, could be the splines of the shift shaft, the splines of the lower drive shaft or the water tube... Could even be debris from a worn out lower seal hanging you up....

Chris........

 

[Bt Doctur]

Did you slide the upper shift shoe onto the lower splined shaft ? Do not attempt to force it .
Put control box in fwd gear
Apply some grease in the rubber sleeve in the pumps top cover
Lubricate the impeller with soapy water, K-Y, anything BUT a petroleum product
turn lower splined shaft fully clockwise while turning prop CCW until locked,
Raise unit, turn prop CCW about an inch to line up the splines
Start front nut by a few threads
Align upper shift shoe on to lower splined shaft making sure it`s in a straight line
Install side nuts making sure the shift shaft has a bit up free up and down and sits in the U shaped section of the upper unit
fill with oil

 

[Crawfish Dundee]

Did you slide the upper shift shoe onto the lower splined shaft ? Do not attempt to force it .
Put control box in fwd gear

Thanks. I put it in forward before tear down. The intermediate shift shaft is bent badly, I just ordered a new one. I straightened it some, but I think it may be part of the issue.

 

[Rick Stephens]

I would second it that it is much easier, and safer for the drive components, to remove the entire drive and split in a slotted bench fixture. First thing I built when I started doing maintenance on Merc sterndrives was a 'U' shaped slot that sat on a couple sawhorses and allowed the drive to slide on. It got much fancier over the years, but I wouldn't dream of trying to lift a lower up to the upper on the boat. Too easy to mess up shift alignment and also easy to screw up the seals in the bottom of the upper as you cram the shaft in.

Besides, if that is your annual maintenance, you need to inspect and grease u-joints, gimbal bearing and bellows.

 

[Crawfish Dundee]

There is lots of grease at the joints, well lubed, smooth moving unit. My initial plan was just the water pump. If I’m working on this boat to much, then I ain’t fish’n, .

 

[savetexomabeaches]

Put it in forward and spin the prop.. up it will go
You can also put a ratchet strap around that sucker to help hold it up..the higher you can lift it, the tighter you can ratchet. it will help hold it high enough so you can move it around as needed without killing your arms or legs trying to hold it

 

[achris]

Put it in forward and spin the prop.. ...

Spin the prop BACKWARDS, or you'll spin it back into neutral!

And DO NOT tighten up the racket strap.. Great way to break things... By all means use it to hold the drive up, but....

Chris......

 

[Bondo]

and I can't seem to keep it in forward gear when wiggling and shaking it up into position.

Ayuh,..... With a bungee strap from the housin', around the prop, to the housin', you can hold tension on the shift dogs, so it doesn't pop back into neutral,.....