attaching lower unit not in forward

Well my first attempt at replacing the impeller on my Alpha One has just one snag. I just realized that before I removed the lower unit I did not put it in forward. It came off fine and I'm waiting for the parts to put it back together. I would like to know how much trouble I will have putting it back on. This piece hanging down I'm thinking is going to be a problem now. Does anyone have any good suggestions? Hope its not too much trouble.... Thanks

you just need to put the lower in forward, and then put the throttle in the boat in fwd. I think yoiu just need to turn the shift shaft stick out of the lower clockwise fully . You can check the lower by turning the propshaft it should ratchet clockwise and lock in gear counter clockwise if its in fwd. Just note you need to hold the prop counter clockwise to keep it in gear with a bungee cord etc, otherwise with out the load of the water on the prop it will pop out of gear, this comes in handy when you reassemble the halves as you will likely need to turn the lower so the splines in upper will line up with splines on vertical driveshaft

reverse is the opposite, just trun the lower shift shaft ccw fully ( it only rotates 90 degrees or so), prop will lock going clockwise... neutral is in betweeen the two

My shift shaft is completely loose and does not feel attached at all as you can see in the picture if you expand it. The lower unit is in neutral and the propeller spins freely without shaft movement. How do I put the lower unit in forward? Then how do I get the shift shaft secured in forward since now it has dropped free from the upper linkage. Sorry for the novice questions but sterndrives are all new to me.

you turn the splined lower shaft fully counterclockwise with the prop locked CW

airbeat said:

My shift shaft is completely loose and does not feel attached at all as you can see in the picture if you expand it. The lower unit is in neutral and the propeller spins freely without shaft movement. How do I put the lower unit in forward? Then how do I get the shift shaft secured in forward since now it has dropped free from the upper linkage. Sorry for the novice questions but sterndrives are all new to me.

Click to expand...

as mentioned above turn the shift shaft in lower clock wise, it is number 43 in this drawing http://www.marineengine.com/parts/m...25577-thru-0d469858/gear-housing-driveshaft-r hold the prop counter clockwise with a bungee to keep it locked in fwd.

if the shift shaft in the upper you referenced as loos has dropped down and completely turns since you dropped the lower , shift the controls in the boat into drive. Look at front of upper u may need to hold the shift shaft up into the mechanism in bellhousing.

if u follow the above both the upper and lower will be in fwd and shift linkage will be aligned for reassembly goggle some u tube videos on alpha one gen one (mc1,R,MR, and alfa gen one drives are the same) , vids showing water pump impeller should show this better than my typing

Thanks so much for the detailed instructions. I have to work all weekend nights so can't get to it until Mon or Tues but will update you on how I make out. Hopefully all will go smooth. (when does anything go smooth LOL). I will hold the loose upper shift shaft in the housing and then have the throttle moved from neutral to forward. Am I correct in thinking that will hold the upper shift mechanism in place once thats done?

1. Spin splined shift shaft in lower CW while turning prop CCW until it locks/stops.

2 put shifter in forward.

3 cover verticle drive shaft in lower (splines) in some grease.

4. Confirm small oring is present at oil hole.
Best to add some rtv to hold. But only enough to hold not blocking hole.

5. Put lower up into upper, carefully push vertical greased drive shaft into sealed opening while lining up copper water tube which should be in upper, into plastic guide tube, which should be in water pump housing.
Once you have got all that in place which can be challanging for a novice, the Bronze shift arm hanging loose has to be pointing straight forward and that fits on shift shaft splines.

6. The lower may not line up and go all the way up so you must spin prop CCW a little to move vertical drive shaft to align to upper gear.
You also need to start the two nuts in the pockets before two halfs meet. About 4 threads or so.

At the same time you have to align Bronze shift arm as described.

If the two half meet and the Bronze shift arm is not in the right location you need to lower the lower enough to adjust the Bronze shift arm to point forward. Also making sure the lower is still in forward and shift shaft is fully CW.

It is a bit more difficult doing it the way you are doing it.
Its easier when the whole drive is off and you can handle the upper.

Of course after doing many, the way you are doing it becomes easier in time.

Just wanted to update you all and say thanks again for your help. I did get the impeller replaced and lower unit attached back to the upper. It took some doing to get everything lined up but it all came together and after start up got good water output. Now the boat is on the market and I'm done with crawling around inboards. Just getting too old for this anymore. Time to buy an brand new boat with outboard and warranty. I'm old, I worked for it, I earned it and it's time to do it. Thanks everyone.