Shift cable problem. Need some help!

[CrownRichard94]

1994 Crownline, mercruiser sterndrive alpha 1 generation 2. Me and a couple buddies just changed out the bellows and when checking to make sure everything was good to go, we found that the boat wont stay in gear. when its in gear and we give the prop a good spin it catches for a minute, then keeps spinning. when looking at it you can see that the piece that is supposed to catch needs to go over just the slightest bit farther and it would stay in. Do you guys think maybe we stretched out the cable or knocked something loose while we were messing with the bellows? Also, it has been sitting all winter. could the cable have stretched out on its own? I just called a mechanic and he said 600 bucks to replace the shift cable. what do you guys think? thanks in advance.

 

[Haut Medoc]

Re: Shift cable problem. Need some help!

Welcome to iboats The cable will not stretch.....<br />What is it you see that is not lining up?<br />Did you only change the bellows?<br />It sounds like you did not make sure that the drive stayed in foreward while installing....<br />Is the helm in foreward?.....JK<br />Did you make sure that the shift slide stayed engaged to the wheel on the coupler?<br />Go to mercstuff.com & have a look at some pics & post back...

 

[CrownRichard94]

Re: Shift cable problem. Need some help!

Thanks for your help. But I just called 3 other places...they all said if its been sitting for a while the cable is stretched and needs to be replaced. the thing thats not lining up is like a little shift lever down right next to the bellows we changed. yes, we only changed the bellows because one had a small hole in it. and i dont know what you mean by helm???

 

[tommays]

Re: Shift cable problem. Need some help!

http://www.boatfix.com/merc/Servmanl/14/14notice.pdf <br /><br /> http://www.boatfix.com/merc/Servmanl/14/14a2.pdf <br /><br /> http://www.boatfix.com/merc/Servmanl/14/14a4.pdf <br /><br />The boat NEEDS to be in forward gear to remove and install the drive if not you may have bent some parts <br /><br />HOW did you change correctly the bellows without a manual ?<br /><br />read up it really helps to use the service manual <br /><br />tommays

 

[Haut Medoc]

Re: Shift cable problem. Need some help!

The helm is the throttle(Next to steering wheel) .....<br />If you replaced the bellows, it is a good time to replace the shift cable as they have approximately the same length of service life....<br />I ain't buying the stretched cable thing.....<br />You are missing something somewhere....<br />If nothing else the 'Barrel nut' on the shift plate would move the coupler to the correct position....<br />& $600. is an outrageous sum to replace a lower shift cable.....<br />The cable is not that hard to replace, look at the site I listed.....<br />You might want to think about getting Mercruiser manual #6 for use as a guide....JK<br />Good link, Tom....<br />You may have some other issues if you had water in your bellows......

 

[hullofalottatrouble]

Re: Shift cable problem. Need some help!

I agree $600 is completely outrageous. A new cable is like $90 and the job shouldnt take more than like an hour and thats if you stand around drinking beer half the time.. <br /><br />And before I go assuming the cable is bad id retrace my steps and make sure I put everything back together correctly.. <br /><br />follow the manual.. <br /><br />i can say so thou that when my shift cable went bad it did what you are describing.. would barely barely catch but not enough to hold it in gear..

 

[CrownRichard94]

Re: Shift cable problem. Need some help!

yes it was in forward when we were working on it, and i know we put everything back together correctly... i personally dont know that much about boat repair but a couple of the guys that were helping me out are pretty knowledgable. And we did go by the manual...merc #14. and we checked on everything else...the ujoints, gimbal bearing, yoke, etc. everything was fine. but now this problem w/ the shift cable has come up and even though all these mechanics are telling me its from it sitting...i cant help but think it was caused by us when we were working down there. So what could it be? i know its not bent or anything. By the way, i also thought $600 was OUTRAGEOUS! but the last guy i talked to said $350.

 

[CrownRichard94]

Re: Shift cable problem. Need some help!

"i can say so thou that when my shift cable went bad it did what you are describing.. would barely barely catch but not enough to hold it in gear.. "<br /><br />so what do you mean it "went bad"??? why was it bad? just over time? and how did you know for sure that it was the cable that needed to be replaced?<br /><br />Thanks

 

[CrownRichard94]

Re: Shift cable problem. Need some help!

Sorry guys its not the lever thats right next to the bellows. thats the shift slide...(that is however what i was worried about that maybe we somehow screwed up because it was right there in our way). but the thing that wont line up is underneath i think its the shift shaft??<br /><br />thanks for all your help so far guys. keep it coming!

 

[Haut Medoc]

Re: Shift cable problem. Need some help!

It will kill the engine when shifted, (esp under load)....<br />You can pick up a shift cable kit for under $50.00 on ebay....<br />Yes they go bad, "just over time"....<br />It is possible that you damaged the inner core wire by kinking it......<br />I'm assuming that you changed the bellows without disconnecting the cable from the inside of the boat, correct?<br />It is much easier to do the bellows jobwithout the cable connected & since the service life of both is about the same it is normal to do both at the same time.....<br />I would just replace it.....<br />If you have the manual, it really isn't that hard.....<br />If you don't want to do it yourself, 2 hours + parts would be reasonable in my book....JK

 

[Haut Medoc]

Re: Shift cable problem. Need some help!

It will not line up side to side?<br />The outdrive has to be locked in foreward & the throttle in foreward...<br />It cannot go together all of the way otherwise...<br />That means that the slot on the bell housing has to be facing foreward & the drive when locked in fwd (turn shift-shaft cw & propshaftccw) will be facing foreward as well.....<br />The fork on the shift slide must engage the wheel on the shift shaft coupler...<br />I would loosen the drive & make sure this occured.....<br />The slide can be out of position if you are not careful...JK

 

[hullofalottatrouble]

Re: Shift cable problem. Need some help!

over time it can get stretched out or kinked so it just doesnt hold the slide in place to hold the shaft in place.. <br /><br />i would just replace it.. its a small ticket item when it comes to boating and something you can do yourself.. <br /><br />you could mess around and try to adjust it and maybe even convince yourself it was fixed.. only to find out that you are half way out on the lake and it stops working again.. <br /><br />buy a new one.. you can do this work yourself it is not hard.. just make sure you have the right tools..

 

[CrownRichard94]

Re: Shift cable problem. Need some help!

yeah we leeft the shift cable connected while we were replacing the bellows. And it will line up but not all the way...it wont stay in place once we rotate the prop.

 

[CrownRichard94]

Re: Shift cable problem. Need some help!

So just replace the cable? should anything else be replaced? Are there any tricks i should know or special tools we'll need?<br />Thanks again for all your help.

 

[Haut Medoc]

Re: Shift cable problem. Need some help!

You will need a shift cable replacement tool...<br />It's basically a glorified socket, but it does have a configuration that works well for the job......<br />Have you looked to see if the shift slide & the coupler are engaged properly?....JK

 

[hullofalottatrouble]

Re: Shift cable problem. Need some help!

you will want to invest in a deep socket for getting the old cable out and more importanly getting the new cable in.. mercstuff cells one http://www.mercstuff.com/page07.htm its the 19.99 piece in the top middle.. you might get it cheaper elsewhere.. i got a whole kit to replace mine.. bellow.. slide etc.. for about $90 at a local shop<br /><br />and then just follow the instructions in the manual.. piece of cake..