Shift cable adjustment

[jakwi]

Hey guys, just a little background and then my question.

Back when I first bought the boat, I broke the skeg off at a sandbar. It was a painful lesson, but I guess I learned it the hard way. Anyway I bought a skeg guard and life continued.

I found a good deal on a used Alpha 1 Gen 2 that according to the seller had an issue in the upper, but for which the lower was in good shape. Perfect for my needs and at $80 I figured it was an easy way to fix my prior mistake.

So my plan was to swap it out during the annual impeller swap and oil change. It seems to work fine. I replaced the seal under the water pump, reassembled with my original upper, Pressure test passed. At 12psi it lost 1/2psi after 12 hours, but that could have just been the fact that the shop was much cooler in the am than it was in the evening. Anyway I reinstalled and it seemed to work, except that reverse didn't engage. Now prior to this I have never had any issues with the shifter.

I watched Achris's video on Shifter cable adjustment. (Thank you by the way!)

I have the pinned lower cable, and the adjustment was at the lowest position in the slot originally. In order to get this new lower to engage reliably I had to move it up basically half way in the slot.

Ok, so here is my question. I thought that the point of shift cable adjustment was to manage cable stretching over time. I didn't think it had anything to do with the drive itself. Does wear in the drive require this type of adjustment, or is this indicative of the lower being worn out?

Worst case scenario I go back to my broken skegged lower, and the adjustment seems to be ok, although I haven't had a chance to water test yet.

I'd love to hear your thoughts on this one. Thanks!

 

[alldodge]

Is the shift foot straight forward when its rotated clockwise and the prop locks counter clockwise?

 

[jakwi]

I'll have to double check, but it seems to me that when shifted into forward from the helm the prop locks in counter clockwise and pops or clinks if you rotate it clockwise. The opposite is true when shifted into reverse. But I'm working from memory. When I ran the engine it rotated clockwise when shifted into forward. I think. I remember thinking it was correct, I'll check again tomorrow after work

 

[tank1949]

I'll have to double check, but it seems to me that when shifted into forward from the helm the prop locks in counter clockwise and pops or clinks if you rotate it clockwise. The opposite is true when shifted into reverse. But I'm working from memory. When I ran the engine it rotated clockwise when shifted into forward. I think. I remember thinking it was correct, I'll check again tomorrow after work

maybe a counter rotating drive but I'd bet that you missed something. That OD keyway, I BELIEVE only has a 90 degree arc between reverse and fwd. You will need a buddy to do the shifting while you watch keyway. Precisely in the middle of arc is neutral. My Alphas always made some sort of clanking if not in water to absorb the shock.

 

[achris]

I'll have to double check, but it seems to me that when shifted into forward from the helm the prop locks in counter clockwise and pops or clinks if you rotate it clockwise. The opposite is true when shifted into reverse. But I'm working from memory. When I ran the engine it rotated clockwise when shifted into forward. I think. I remember thinking it was correct, I'll check again tomorrow after work

That's correct for a NORMAL ROTATION drive...

 

[jakwi]

Well the lower shift lever is definitely properly seated in the upper shift shoe. I looked to double check when I was connecting the speedometer connector, and it operates as described Neutral in the middle.

I'll have my sun operate it this afternoon and I'll watch the movement just to be sure it's working the way it should.

I just thought it was strange that the lower cable needed to use up half of the adjustment, when with the original lower drive it wasn't using any of that adjustment. Like I said it seems to be working fine as it sits now, pending a water test of course.

Chris it is a single engine Normal rotation. BTW thanks for your video, it helped a lot.

 

[jakwi]

It operates as described in my previous post. Pretty hard to get a picture of the shoe/shift lever, but here it is in Neutral. I was actually surprised it isn't more fully seated, but I don't know what normal looks like. Does this look normal to you guys?