Alpha 1 Shift Slide instructions?

Hello,

I recently got handed my brothers boat for repair work and have had the worst time imagineable getting everything apart. He's got a mercruiser 140/3.0L I/O motor with bad bellows that he let sit in his yard for two years, all the while having been hooked up to a stone dead battery. Talk about corrosion and decay!

Anyway, I have been working hard on cleaning everything up and using a tap to straighten out all the threads on the bell housing. One of the fastners (hinges) actually had to be drilled out just to get it removed. Everything is now starting to come together ... except for one minor detail. There seems to be instructions missing on how to attach the new cable end to the shift slide. The butt end of the old cable (after drilling it out) looks to be twice as big as the new cable, and seems to be made of much softer metal. How is one supposed to attach the new cable end inside the shift slide piece? I cannot find instructions anywhere in the manual we purchased that explains how the set screw secures the cable end, etc. Am I missing another part, like a brass fitting for the end of the new cable? Is it even possible to re-use the old shift slide, or should I purchase a new one? The kit I bought has a replacement (vertical) shift lever for the bell housing, but not the shift slide for the cable. I thought I could try using the old shift slide and have purchased a new screw for the end after cleaning the threads with a tap.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Re: Alpha 1 Shift Slide instructions?

Usually a cable kit comes with a new shift slide end. There are new and old style cables. At any rate, I hope that you replaced everything while you have it down, all 3 bellows(driveshaft, shift and exhaust), as well as the water hose. The cable goes inside the cable end until it bottoms, then the set screw goes in and you crank it down to hold the end on. Don't be skimpy with the grease when reassembling the cable end to the shaft. I use a nice red synthetic waterproof grease for all my marine usage. I can't believe that you're doing this without a manual. You will definitely need one when it comes to adjusting the shift cable when you get it all back together.

Re: Alpha 1 Shift Slide instructions?

First of all, thank you for the advice bowhuntrrl. I think I understand what you are telling me about fixing the shift slide to the end of the cable.

Secondly, I now feel like an idiot because I just found the new shift slide stuck inside the bottom of the box from the new cable. Doh!

Third, I do have a SELOC manual for mercruiser stern drives that I've been trying to follow. I must say (even though this is my first I/O boat job), I've done plenty of automotive work over the years and have quite a collection of Clymer, Haynes and Chilton's manuals on the shelf. IMHO, this SELOC manual .... leaves much to be desired (to put it nicely) in the way of explaination and instruction. They document steps and procedures like the author is/was suffering from ADD or something.

BTW-There seems to be one extra piece made of black plastic that came with the shift slide, resembling some sort of automotive fuel line connector (or spacer) that would fit over the shift cable somehow. Again, no mention of this in that blasted manual, or anything for that matter on the attachment of the shift slide itself. I am guessing that this piece is for the back side of the bell housing (opposite the brass fitting)? I have the new style cable and bell housing.

Thanks again in advance.

Re: Alpha 1 Shift Slide instructions?

What year is this Mercruiser 140/3.0L I/O motor?

Re: Alpha 1 Shift Slide instructions?

It's marked as 1985, same as the boat. The only thing is, it looks as if someone has been through this thing before, and they did a lousy job putting things back together. The hydraulics for trim/tilt were missing the grounding springs on the inside, etc., and my brother leaving it hooked up to a dead battery for two years ... what a mess!

I'm headed to the local marina for some answers today. Thanks again ppl.