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Can't adjust shift cables in both forward and backward on a pre alpha drive

Trim outdrive up 2 inches from all the way down.
Take keys out of ignition!!!!!!!!!!!
Have a second person stand at the prop.

You, remove both the short shift cable and control cable from the shift bracket.
After the cables has been removed, push the plastic cable end all the way in and hold in place while prop is being spun C’Clockwise..
Have second person rotate prop counter clock wise until the prop is fully engaged and wont turn anymore. Maintain light effort on shift cable plastic end pushing it inward to keep forward engaged.

Measure the distance from the center of the brass trunion to the center of the round mounting hole in the plastic end. Adjust trunion to make that distance 6 inches. no more no less! In cases where the shift cable is old but still works well you can adjust this dimension to 5 15/16”. NO MORE.

Put shift control handle in Forward, FULL throttle position as if you were normally shifting in gear.


Install short shift cable back onto bracket at this time.

Take the shift control cable and adjust the trunion so it fits perfectly back into the shift bracket.
Before completely installing it turn the brass trunion 4 complete turns away from the plastic end and reinstall into shift bracket and install the nuts but do not tighten at this time.

Now put shift control handle in the neutral position.
Have second person spin prop, it should spin freely.
Put shift control into the forward detent position at ~ 10:00 position. NO FUTHER.
Have the second person rotate the prop counter clockwise. You should have solid engagement with no ability to continue to turn the prop.

Now shift back into neutral. Prop should spin freely with no clacking or clunking.

Now shift to reverse to the 2:00 o’clock detent position NO FURTHER!!

Have the second person spin the prop clockwise.

If you have positive engagement with no clunking or jumping out of engagement, you are done.

If it does not fully engage into reverse than look at the shift bracket where the short shift cable mounts and there is a slot. Loosen the 7/16 hex that is touching the bracket and move the stud so you are pulling the short cable.

If this all works then tighten all nuts down making sure the cable ends move freely and the nuts are not tight against the shift cable ends. The studs must spin freely inside the cable ends.

Try this and retest in water under load.
If the stalling when shifting into forward or reverse still occurs then you may need a short shift cable replacement or the shift linkage in the bell housing has issues. Either way the outdrive will have to come off. The short shift cable should move very easily. If you feel a lot of resistance that typically means the cable is bad. The shift interrupter switch is activated when the short cable feels resistance when trying to come OUT of gear.
So if the resistance is present when shifting into gear the interrupter switch will be activated and it should not be.





Anyway there are tests that would tell you if the cable is bad but to difficult to type out here but in general if you remove the shift control cable from the shift bracket, shift the control handle to full forward/wide open throttle and make a mark on the cable end, now go full reverse and repeat. Measure distance between marks, (2 7/8" to 3 1/8") any more and replace the control cable.

Short cable measurement test, remove short cable from shift bracket, push all the way in and spin prop by hand until full forward is made. Make a mark on shift cable end where the plastic stops over the metal.
Now with someone holding the prop from spinning pull the cable end out with two fingers, as soon as resistance is felt mark the inner cable where the plastic cable end ends. Now measure between the marks,
The measurement should be, if I remember correctly 1/2 " to 9/16". Anymore and the cable or linkage is bad.
 
kghost said:
Trim outdrive up 2 inches from all the way down.
Take keys out of ignition!!!!!!!!!!!
Have a second person stand at the prop.

You, remove both the short shift cable and control cable from the shift bracket.
After the cables has been removed, push the plastic cable end all the way in and hold in place while prop is being spun C’Clockwise..
Have second person rotate prop counter clock wise until the prop is fully engaged and wont turn anymore. Maintain light effort on shift cable plastic end pushing it inward to keep forward engaged.

Measure the distance from the center of the brass trunion to the center of the round mounting hole in the plastic end. Adjust trunion to make that distance 6 inches. no more no less! In cases where the shift cable is old but still works well you can adjust this dimension to 5 15/16”. NO MORE.

Put shift control handle in Forward, FULL throttle position as if you were normally shifting in gear.


Install short shift cable back onto bracket at this time.

Take the shift control cable and adjust the trunion so it fits perfectly back into the shift bracket.
Before completely installing it turn the brass trunion 4 complete turns away from the plastic end and reinstall into shift bracket and install the nuts but do not tighten at this time.

Now put shift control handle in the neutral position.
Have second person spin prop, it should spin freely.
Put shift control into the forward detent position at ~ 10:00 position. NO FUTHER.
Have the second person rotate the prop counter clockwise. You should have solid engagement with no ability to continue to turn the prop.

Now shift back into neutral. Prop should spin freely with no clacking or clunking.

Now shift to reverse to the 2:00 o’clock detent position NO FURTHER!!

Have the second person spin the prop clockwise.

If you have positive engagement with no clunking or jumping out of engagement, you are done.

If it does not fully engage into reverse than look at the shift bracket where the short shift cable mounts and there is a slot. Loosen the 7/16 hex that is touching the bracket and move the stud so you are pulling the short cable.

If this all works then tighten all nuts down making sure the cable ends move freely and the nuts are not tight against the shift cable ends. The studs must spin freely inside the cable ends.

Try this and retest in water under load.
If the stalling when shifting into forward or reverse still occurs then you may need a short shift cable replacement or the shift linkage in the bell housing has issues. Either way the outdrive will have to come off. The short shift cable should move very easily. If you feel a lot of resistance that typically means the cable is bad. The shift interrupter switch is activated when the short cable feels resistance when trying to come OUT of gear.
So if the resistance is present when shifting into gear the interrupter switch will be activated and it should not be.





Anyway there are tests that would tell you if the cable is bad but to difficult to type out here but in general if you remove the shift control cable from the shift bracket, shift the control handle to full forward/wide open throttle and make a mark on the cable end, now go full reverse and repeat. Measure distance between marks, (2 7/8" to 3 1/8") any more and replace the control cable.

Short cable measurement test, remove short cable from shift bracket, push all the way in and spin prop by hand until full forward is made. Make a mark on shift cable end where the plastic stops over the metal.
Now with someone holding the prop from spinning pull the cable end out with two fingers, as soon as resistance is felt mark the inner cable where the plastic cable end ends. Now measure between the marks,
The measurement should be, if I remember correctly 1/2 " to 9/16". Anymore and the cable or linkage is bad.
Click to expand...

This is what I do basically... And although things are better this time with the new cable it still lacks movement to grab both gears.

I was thinking.. At the bellhousing, you have the upper shift rod that rotates an arm containing the roller. The upper part of the rod (the beginning of the arm) has a screw on top and a screw at the side. I can see previous owners have messed with the side screw. Could it be that the arm is not aligned the right way and the U-shape grabber rotates with an offset or something?

Cheers
 
The top is not a screw, it is a slot in the shaft.
The screw is a 10-32 screw only about 1/2 long the rest is a pin no threads.

So unless the bell crank is loose to the shaft the NO it wont be out of time with the rest.

Your earlier pictures, are you sure when in reverse the bronze shaft was exactly as in the pic and not closer to 9:00 vs 10:30.

It looked good but thats rare on an older boat as yours.

also what exactly is the engagement like between the bronze shaft and the upside down U i described earlier? Is the bronze piece good and square or is it real worn on one edge?

Your answers are vauge!

If all else fails the bronze piece will need to be replaced. It may be bent.
 
Royall said:
This is what I do basically... And although things are better this time with the new cable it still lacks movement to grab both gears.

I was thinking.. At the bellhousing, you have the upper shift rod that rotates an arm containing the roller. The upper part of the rod (the beginning of the arm) has a screw on top and a screw at the side. I can see previous owners have messed with the side screw. Could it be that the arm is not aligned the right way and the U-shape grabber rotates with an offset or something?

Cheers
Click to expand...

Basically is not good enough. It should be exactly!!

I did not write this up to basically do the job.
I wrote this from the experience of doing houndreds of these!
 
kghost said:
The top is not a screw, it is a slot in the shaft.
The screw is a 10-32 screw only about 1/2 long the rest is a pin no threads.

So unless the bell crank is loose to the shaft the NO it wont be out of time with the rest.

Your earlier pictures, are you sure when in reverse the bronze shaft was exactly as in the pic and not closer to 9:00 vs 10:30.

It looked good but thats rare on an older boat as yours.

also what exactly is the engagement like between the bronze shaft and the upside down U i described earlier? Is the bronze piece good and square or is it real worn on one edge?

Your answers are vauge!

If all else fails the bronze piece will need to be replaced. It may be bent.
Click to expand...

It really was 10:30..
How can I get a look at the two rods combined? Because when I put the drive on they are hidden of course :)
 
kghost said:
The top is not a screw, it is a slot in the shaft.
The screw is a 10-32 screw only about 1/2 long the rest is a pin no threads.

So unless the bell crank is loose to the shaft the NO it wont be out of time with the rest.

Your earlier pictures, are you sure when in reverse the bronze shaft was exactly as in the pic and not closer to 9:00 vs 10:30.

It looked good but thats rare on an older boat as yours.

also what exactly is the engagement like between the bronze shaft and the upside down U i described earlier? Is the bronze piece good and square or is it real worn on one edge?

Your answers are vauge!

If all else fails the bronze piece will need to be replaced. It may be bent.
Click to expand...

Here is a quick video! Is this ok? Side to side is almost no movement. In the length there is though
 
Last edited:
I am putting my money on the bronze part!!

Does it rotate a bit before the shaft it is turning actually turns?

There is a splined shaft the bronze part fits to...

It may be time to drop ths lower unit.

Also the hole the bronze part goes thru may be no longer round. It looks coroded
 
Last edited:
kghost said:
I am putting my money on the bronze part!!

Does it rotate a bit before the shaft it is truning actually turns?

There is a splined shaft the bronze part fits to...
Click to expand...

You mean the U shaped rod rotates first for a bit? I will check tomorrow.
What do you mean with a splined shaft?
 
The bronze part in the drive. It fits into the U.
The part that is 12:00 or 10:30.

that part fits onto a shift shaft in the lower unit.
The shift shaft has splined ends.(male)
The bronze part has female splines and it fits over the shift shaft.

When you seperate the lower from the upper the bronze part seperates from the shift shaft....reassembly is tricky as the shift shaft must be fully clockwise, prop engaged (c'clockwise) and when the upper and lower come together the bronze part Must be at 12:00.....

I am concerned by all the slop/movement of the bronze part.
 
kghost said:
The bronze part in the drive. It fits into the U.
The part that is 12:00 or 10:30.

that part fits onto a shift shaft in the lower unit.
The shift shaft has splined ends.(male)
The bronze part has female splines and it fits over the shift shaft.

When you seperate the lower from the upper the bronze part seperates from the shift shaft....reassembly is tricky as the shift shaft must be fully clockwise, prop engaged (c'clockwise) and when the upper and lower come together the bronze part Must be at 12:00.....

I am concerned by all the slop/movement of the bronze part.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the explanation. I was directly thinking about one of the first images I posted with the rod directions for CW and CCW but actually my drive already engages in full forward when the bronze rod is at 11:30 instead of 12:00 (Also displayed in the picture with the red lines. If I really want to get it to 12:00 I have to firmly twist it.

Maybe the lower drive rod is rotated one spline to much?
 
That is telling me the bronze part may not only be twisted, it may be worn at the female splines.

That would be my first target.

Dont sweat the short cable.
Its best to replace an old one.

One question, when you tightened the cable threaded section to the gimbal housing, how far did you tighten it into the housing?
Is there a gap between housing and hex face?
 
kghost said:
That is telling me the bronze part may not only be twisted, it may be worn at the female splines.

That would be my first target.

Dont sweat the short cable.
Its best to replace an old one.

One question, when you tightened the cable threaded section to the gimbal housing, how far did you tighten it into the housing?
Is there a gap between housing and hex face?
Click to expand...

I dont think there is a gap. I fitted it tight.

Ill pull the lower tomorrow!
 
Typically because the threded part is tapered it may not be tightened enough. So as long as it is 1/16" or less gap. It is good!!
 
kghost said:
Typically because the threded part is tapered it may not be tightened enough. So as long as it is 1/16" or less gap. It is good!!
Click to expand...

Pretty sure thats ok then :) You scared me haha

And about the shifting rod thats going towards the gears. Could that one also be rotated one spline tooth too much?
 
One more question,
When you assembled the cable end that attaches to the shift bracket in the boat,
There is a long steel tube threaded that screws into the cable.
Did you tighten that tube into cable as far as it could possibly go?

This is critical!! Once all the way in then tighten the lock nut to cable.
 
Royall said:
Pretty sure thats ok then :) You scared me haha

And about the shifting rod thats going towards the gears. Could that one also be rotated one spline tooth too much?
Click to expand...

No, the splines are equie distant so it is always correct.

My guess is wear between the shaft and bronze piece at this time.
Or the bronze piece is twisted/bent/ worn
 
kghost said:
One more question,
When you assembled the cable end that attaches to the shift bracket in the boat,
There is a long steel tube threaded that screws into the cable.
Did you tighten that tube into cable as far as it could possibly go?

This is critical!! Once all the way in then tighten the lock nut to cable.
Click to expand...

Yup I did. All the way in hand tight. Then locked it with the nut by wrench.
 
But what if the previous owner didn't fully lock the lower drive into forward gear while putting it back together, or they forgot to put pressure on the prop while doing it. Wouldn't that easily mess it up?
 
Royall said:
Yup I did. All the way in hand tight. Then locked it with the nut by wrench.
Click to expand...

Double check that. If any dirt or burrs in/on threads hand tight may not be enough. I typically use a vice grip lightly tight to the tube and turn.
The key is lightly tight so not to damage tube but tight enough to turn it.

Ask why?

Hand tight doesnt always seat the tube....
 
One last question,
When you shift, you are either getting forward and no reverse or reverse and no forward?

Correct?
 
kghost said:
Double check that. If any dirt or burrs in/on threads hand tight may not be enough. I typically use a vice grip lightly tight to the tube and turn.
The key is lightly tight so not to damage tube but tight enough to turn it.

Ask why?

Hand tight doesnt always seat the tube....
Click to expand...

Thought I read it in the manual. But I will check :)
 
kghost said:
One last question,
When you shift, you are either getting forward and no reverse or reverse and no forward?

Correct?
Click to expand...

That's right! And I can adjust it so it barely goes into forward gear and then reverse is only a light rattle. Adjust for reverse and it does the light rattle on forward.
 
Prior to assembling the plastic end, you can double nut (jam nut) the tube and use that to tightenbthe tube allbthe way in.
 
Royall said:
But what if the previous owner didn't fully lock the lower drive into forward gear while putting it back together, or they forgot to put pressure on the prop while doing it. Wouldn't that easily mess it up?
Click to expand...

No, it would make the 12:00 impossible and the drive would not go into gimbal all the way, thus possibly bending/twisting bronze part if they forced it back together
 
Royall said:
That's right! And I can adjust it so it barely goes into forward gear and then reverse is only a light rattle. Adjust for reverse and it does the light rattle on forward.
Click to expand...

Yup,
When one or the other and no adjustment will change that,

Replace bronze part. Note: this what is left after cable replacement.
At least when diagnosed over the internet and not hands on!!
Hope you understand this!!

Take special note of splined shaft. Take pics also!!
 
kghost said:
Yup,
When one or the other and no adjustment will change that,

Replace bronze part. Note: this what is left after cable replacement.
At least when diagnosed over the internet and not hands on!!
Hope you understand this!!

Take special note of splined shaft. Take pics also!!
Click to expand...

Of course I understand :) Already happy with your input and help!
I'll post some photos tomorrow!
 
kghost said:
Yup,
When one or the other and no adjustment will change that,

Replace bronze part. Note: this what is left after cable replacement.
At least when diagnosed over the internet and not hands on!!
Hope you understand this!!

Take special note of splined shaft. Take pics also!!
Click to expand...

Ok I pulled the lower and actually couldn't find a thing... Bronze shaft was properly outfitted with the washer and the lower shaft also has the washer. The bronze rod was not bend also. I put it back together with just 2 bolts and no oil. Same thing. Could not get it adjusted...

I also did a few tests on the cables.
When I take the lower shift cable out of the bracket and shift by hand while someone is turning the prop and apply some pressure when in gear I calculated the amount of slop in the cable. Meaning that when I have it in forward gear (and pressure is applied to prop) I can push the cable a little back until I feel resistance. This movement is as follows:

Forward gear can be pulled back 1.8cm without releasing gear
Backward gear can be pushed in 1.5cm without releasing gear

I also took the control cable out of the bracket and calculated the total travel which is 7.8cm
Then I checked how much travel is needed on the lower shift cable to shift correctly in both gears which is 5.8cm

Is this within spec?
 
5.8 cm = ~ 3 inches so that is ok

Because you changed the short cable I will consider that to be ok also.

How you measured it is incorrect.

When in gear with prop held, as you pull or push and as soon as resistance is felt, you make a mark. The measure between the marks.

That should be between 1/2 to 9/16" ( 12.7mm - 14.3mm) This is the acceptable error/slop.


Just to be clear, and of course I am not touching or seeing this first hand.

If the bronze part is twisted 1mm or more (and you would not be able to see this clearly) you cannot adjust the cable system to properly engage in both directions.

Do this test, Test only!!

Adjust the short cable to 5 7/8" (149.3 mm)

See if this works.

If this works, the the issue (s) are with the bronze part or the shift spool/shift crank. (shift crank is the large U shaped part that moves the shift spool in the lower unit.

I have seen older shift cranks that simply have too much movement within the spool some due to wear either on the part itself or the spool.


I am still focusing on the bronze part.
 
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