Water inlet tube length alpha one gen one HELP

[pmjr0987]

I'm in the middle of a gimbal/bellow replacement on an 1985 4winns horizon and have a questions bout the water then length

I got all bellows on and about to mount the Bell housing and realize I think I cut the water tube too short. It is the same length as the old one that came off but seems about 2" too short to fit properly on the Bell housing especially if I trim it up.

Do you guys normally cut the tube or was I not supposed to cut it at all? It's a SEI complete kit I'm installing

 

[Bt Doctur]

the water inlet hose is never cut, it comes the correct size either aftermarket or oem.

• Replacement for Mercruiser Inboard/Outboard #32-41725-33
• Hose measurements are 13-7/8" long and 3/4" diameter

 

[pmjr0987]

OK thanks. Would it be possible to put a piece of copper pipe in where I cut the hose with some bellow sealant and two hose clamps to restore the length?

I hope I can fix the length that way instead of undoing all the hours of sweat and curse words getting the hoses and bellows on yesterday

 

[Bt Doctur]

not seeing where you cut it would be impossible to answer, plus it could kink with it, or not move properly when trimming/trailering

 

[pmjr0987]

OK I'm going to take a photo and post it here tomorrow

I cut roughly 3" off the hose. (So the hose i have now on the boat is about 9") So from the Bell housing side the splice would be about 3" from that copper fitting. From the looks of it the splice would sit roughly half way down the cv bellow since that's about how far the tube currently sits. Id put a copper plumbing pipe inside I figure maybe 1.5" total length, 3/4" in each side and than put some bellow adhesive on it.

I just do not want to go through all that hassle again if I don't have to!

 

[pmjr0987]

I am going to replace. Decided i don't need that devil on my shoulder when I'm cruising down the river...

New questions

1-can I use heater hose? Rated at 60psi autozone has it in stock for $1.39 a foot and can get it now only if it will work for my application.

2- is it possible to replace the water intake hose withought removing the CV bellow?

 

[Bt Doctur]

The hose used is a double wall designed not to kink, and you wont save that much if you have to do the job over again with the right parts.
I doubt it, most times the easiest way is when the gimbal , and bellows are removed.A trick you can use is a product called "power tune" from any mercury/mercruiser dealer. another way is to heat the end in boiling water to soften it up some

 

[crazy charlie]

Don't use heater hose.It is not the same.Thanks Charles

 

[Eric 3.7LX Alpha 1]

very thick hose not like a heater hose... way too much work and at stake to "try and see if it works"

 

[Pocket Change]

It's only $15.00 for the correct hose from a mecury dealer. For that it's not worth using the wrong hose or repairing the one you cut.

 

[pmjr0987]

Thanks for the replies guys. Have correct hose ordered, chocking this up to a learning experience lol. Hopefully can get this on without destroying the CV bellow I just installed

I got the old one on by using some grease from the old gimbal bearing. Helped it slide on after an hour fighting with it dry

 

[pmjr0987]

Got the new tube on! I got it on with the bellow in too. Guess practice makes perfect took 5 minutes to get it on. Small amount of grease on the tube inside and end and wd40 all over the outdrive area it would make contact with. Slide right on with a few hard pushes.

The brass tube going through the transom is easy to slide in and out with some pressure. Is that normal? From the inside there are two bolts holding what seems like a gasket in there. Is that a maintenance item as well? I don't want to boat leaking any water if I can help it