Sounds unlikely its the cable. More like too much play in the shifter. Bad
cable is usually sticky and results in the engine stalling because of the
shift interrupter.

This is described in the Seloc manual. The crimping tool can be made with a
3/8 inch nut welded to the jaws of a pair of pliers (get the cheapest).
Drill out the threads with a 1/2 in drill and cut the nut in half, viola,
you've got a crimp tool.

Several things to note:

1. Remember to remove the spiral wrap before pulling the sleeve out.
2. Tie a string to the sleeve (very string and small knot) before pulling
it out, the string will help guide the new sleeve from butting against the
flywheel cover and you having to reach down to get it. But if your boat has
good access to the stbd area around bottom of the exhaust horn, you're ok.
3. There's a chance the brass fitting will be seized. I had to drill
mine out. Tricky and threads can be damaged. Get a tap to clean the thread
if you need to drill.
4. Cable adjustments (lower and upper cables) must take into account the
inherent freeplay. Try adjusting again with pulling or pushing the cable
ends in as appropriate. Follow the Merc procedure.

While you are at it, might want to consider changing the shift lever bushing
and seals. If the seal leaks, your new cable is a goner.

Good luck.

Tan PS



"mike hicks" wrote in message
news:K42ec.9668$192.6820@lakeread06...
So, it looks like I'm going to have to change the shift cable on my
Alpha drive. No amount of adjusting will let it go from forward to
reverse and engage the clutch. I've ordered the cable kit and the
special socket to get the nut and I've read up on the procedure (I have
the Selock manual + online stuff). Anyone have any thoughts on what I
should look out for during this operation? How much cursing and
unhappiness am I facing here?