Alpha Gen II water hose.... kinky

doing my gimbal brg and bellows and I can't get this water hose in any position where it won't kink....
is any amount of kinkage ok?
I'm sure it's not kinked shut, but still doesn't sit well with me
still fighting....my arms are tired

Re: Alpha Gen II water hose.... kinky

Howard Sterndrive said:

doing my gimbal brg and bellows and I can't get this water hose in any position where it won't kink....
is any amount of kinkage ok?
I'm sure it's not kinked shut, but still doesn't sit well with me
still fighting....my arms are tired

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Sorry, But what engine set up do you have???

Re: Alpha Gen II water hose.... kinky

Boat Tech said:

Sorry, But what engine set up do you have???

Click to expand...

Alpha I gen II. It's in his title

Re: Alpha Gen II water hose.... kinky

havasuboatman said:

Alpha I gen II. It's in his title

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I hate when I miss that.:redface: Thanks.

Re: Alpha Gen II water hose.... kinky

Is it a new hose or same old hose?

If it's a new hose, Is it a MerCruiser OEM or aftermarket hose?

If I rembember correctly there is sometimes a little bend in them to where you think it would be a kink, But it's not, But you need to work at it to make sure it's not a kink, Like I know you did.

Re: Alpha Gen II water hose.... kinky

If it's an aftermarket hose, make sure it's the proper length. Too much excess will make it kink.

Re: Alpha Gen II water hose.... kinky

The length of the hose is VERY critical. That's one of the things I absolutely recommend being OEM. A kinked hose can destroy your engine.

Re: Alpha Gen II water hose.... kinky

1st i don't know if this will work for you because i've never done a genII.

but i sure had plenty of grief from a mc-1 for a kinked water hose.

-for sure on the proper leangth.
-i went oem hose cause i wanted the best i could get cause i knew it'd be a drag to install it. which it was/is.
-don't have any kink in it after install, it will come back to haunt you.
-what worked for me was installing it on the gimble housing nipple 1st even though the s/m for my old rig said install it on the bell housing first. i found it easier to install the hose on the gimble houseing nipple first because ya got room to move the free end around and you can twist it onto the nipple easier w/o the bell housing end attached. + when it's attached to the bell housing end first. the hose is pretty short to be grabing with your hands to do anything to the gimble housing end. like stick it on the nipple. once the hose is on the gimble housing end. i routed it and it was a straight shot onto the bell housing. w/o twisting it. i felt that the twisting that i did on my 1st try, on the gimble housing end 2nd is what caused me to have the fun of doing it twice. once to replace the hose and 2nd time to get rid of the kink i created. i thought that hose was the worst part of the job for serviceing the bellows and all that stuff back there. it was miserable.

also ya might try heating up the hose till it's pliable. the oem hose is very stout and i thought near impossible to get on the nipple. i heated mine, and worked it with a cone and pliers trying to expand the hose so i could get it onto the nipple. that helped too.

good luck and hope this is applicable to your genII.

Re: Alpha Gen II water hose.... kinky

First, do not try to reuse your kinked hose, it's now junk.
Yes, get the OEM hose, when installing the hose on the transom shield side, you can use some Mercury Power Tuner (Spray can of stuff for outboards. See your local Mercury dealer for some) and spray the inside of the hose and the tube which will make it easier to get on. (Note: I said easier, not easy).
When must get it all the way on, or it will be too long at the other end, and it will kink.
Also try to use the natural curve of the hose to your advantage.

Yes Ziggy, the Gen II hose is about as bad as your's was.

Re: Alpha Gen II water hose.... kinky

thanks guys. It was an aftermarket hose. I just took your advice and ordered a Mercruiser one.