Alpha gen 2 shift adjustment

Archnawan

Seaman Apprentice
Joined
Apr 26, 2005
Messages
31
After putting lower unit on my boat I thought I'd go ahead and adjust the shift cable to make sure it was set correctly. I have a selco(?) manual that is fairly vague about this process. Can anyone provide a better explanation? I'm most concerned about the consequences of too little or much travel. Too little seems obvious but what about too much?
 

Archnawan

Seaman Apprentice
Joined
Apr 26, 2005
Messages
31
Re: Alpha gen 2 shift adjustment

Man that service manual is nice. Is there a link I can access to give me an index?<br /><br />Thanks again guys!
 

Archnawan

Seaman Apprentice
Joined
Apr 26, 2005
Messages
31
Re: Alpha gen 2 shift adjustment

Alright, I hate my boat. I just spent about 3 hours trying to adjust my shift cable per instructions and it is not making me happy.<br /><br />When I put it in reverse it clicks heavily in couterclockwise direction then catches in the other. In forward it clicks very very lightly in clockwise direction but will catch in the other.<br /><br />Assuming the springs are the same load on the clutch in forward and reverse, why can I not equal out the clicking? When I try to make the forward clicking equal the back then the back just clicks in both directions. I would be much happier if it were the sounds were the other way around as I spend much more time in forward and want to feel comfortable that I'm getting postive contact.
 

Don S

Honorary Moderator Emeritus
Joined
Aug 31, 2004
Messages
62,321
Re: Alpha gen 2 shift adjustment

From this link,<br /> http://www.boatfix.com/merc/Servmanl/14/14cover.pdf <br />Click in the red box that says "Sterndrive units, Alpha I Generation II"<br />From there scroll down to the index on 4.<br /><br />Now, to your problem. Sounds to me like one of your cables has a lot of excess slop in it. Probably due to wear. The outer sheath of the cable gets worn and the inner cable that does all the pushing and pulling just has more places to go so there isn't the total movement needed anymore.<br />It could be the engine to drive cable, or it could be the engine to shifter control cable.<br />You shouldn't have more than "Maybe, about, Uh, not sure" 1/4" slop in the forward cable, and a lot less in the engine to drive cable..
 
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