Velvet drive

Hello all,
I drove my 1977 34 over to the boat yard to have the bottom painted 2 weeks ago. On the short trip over I took on some salt water when I had a salt water line break. No Its time to put her back in the water and I find that my shift control is frozen up. I have not investigated my cables yet but I have a couple of questions: What kind of velvet drive do I have? What model # etc. In case I have to replace it. Does the motor need to be pulled out to replace? Can anybody give me advice as to where to start in checking this out? Thanks for any advice help you can offer. It's a Perkins t6.354

Is the lever control/cable stuck or the actual lever on the transmission.

The transmission will have a tag with the model number. They all have the same actuator.

I can't tell you which unit you have. There should be an ID tag or some numbers on it to tell it's model. You say,"1977 34", that's not enough info to go on. What manufacturer and model boat do you have?

Usually, the control cable connections can be removed and the cables lubed or replaced without removing the transmission. Most boats the transmission can be fished out. However, I don't think your problem is transmission related. It sounds like, from your description, you may have some corrosion on the cables where they enter/exit the sheathing.

meridian said:

The transmission will have a tag with the model number. They all have the same actuator.

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A VD has an actuator? I thought they were cables to a lever on the transmission.

Thank you very much for the several replies. It is a Mainship. It has an actuator arm where the 2 cables (upper and lower helm) attach. I have not removed these cables yet to see if the actuator arm is free. As suggested, I suspect the cables anyway because they were stiff before I started. I am not on the boat now so I can't look at it to see where the serial numbers are.

If the corrosion that locked up the controls is only 2 weeks old you should be able to wiggle it free pretty easily with a little WD40 or Liquid Wrench on the cable ends. Just gentle pressure in each direction with the engine OFF. Don't force it!!!

I will be back down on Saturday. Yesterday I soaked the lever with WD-40. I will remove the two cables and work the lever and hopefully that will do the trick. I probably need to replace the cables too. Thanks for the tips.

Velvet drives have a detente ball to locate neutral. If it suffered saltwater intrusion the corrosion maybe keeping the bearing from retracting preventing the gear shift from moving.

Some oil and some hammer tapping should solve the problem.

gotcha. After I remove the cables I will give it a little tap and wiggle it with a pair of channel locks. Thanks

Greetings,
Mr. GB. MY opinion only.

I would recommend you also soak the lever and associated cables and connections with a good penetrating oil as well. WD-40 is a Water Dispersant with minimal lubricating qualities. Good for an initial treatment to potentially dispel any remaining water but NOT the best for rust dissolution or lubrication.

will do. I will get a can of liquid wrench or do you have a recommendation?

Greetings,
Mr. GB. Nope. No specific recommendations. After you remove the cable, tilt it upward and fill it with penetrant. Tie or wedge it in the upright position and wait. You might also try to pour some penetrant down the cable from the helm position. Use paper towels so you don't slop it all over.

Motorcycle shops sell cable lubricators that will fill even boat long cables with lubricant.

Antifreeze , the cheap green stuff, leaves a nice slime and is usually onboard.

If there are no tight bends the more expensive 43 cables will usually fit where the outboard 33 sized cables were installed.

If you have to go to the hassle of installing new cables , install a pair , seal off one set at both ends , should the working cable seize changing over to the new cable should be really quick.

Update: I followed the advice I got from you guy's and soaked down the cables and actuator lever with Liquid Wrench penetrating oil. Worked all parts gently and they freed up however I did manage to break the very end ring on one of the cables. I made a quick look on the internet but didn't see a replacement. Looks like West Marine has a nylon one that might work for $5 but mine are brass. I'm thinking I can rummage through somebody's junk pile and find one. I have no idea what brand of shift cable I have. Thanks to everybody for the guidance to get me going

I'd go ahead and use the olastic one until you find a brass one. All of mine are plastic. They are what Seastar sold me. They seem to work fine with no wear. I think my last boat was in the same situation when I replaced the cables.

Personally, I worry a lot more about the thin little E-clamp retaining ring, which I inspect constantly, than the plastic fittings, which seem to be good plastic.

I will be the outlier there. I've always tossed old Morse 33 cables out when they get difficult. the cables are not expensive, although I will admit running them up and down thru conduits filled with wiring is not trivial. On my outboards they want to rust the outer twisted steel and crack the jacket, or the inner strands wear thru the nylon sheath. I do believe the oiling story will help, not sure how long. Agree on using the larger 43 series or better when the radius of the install permits. Also, I find that testing the cable without a load is not a good test. The high forces tend to present themselves only when in place with bends and loaded.

When you replace the cable, replace BOTH in the same run. Trust me, the other will fail soon and you will have to repeat the pull hassle.

It's very easy to remove the cable connector at the tranny shift lever (on the tranny itself) to verify the smooth operation of the tranny. If it's shifting smoothly, then it's the cable that's bad.

If it's the cable that's the culprit, the cable can be replaced in a couple of hours. I had to replace one of mine last year. It was much easier than I feared.

Thanks to all. Cable replacement looks like it will be in my future. Do you suppose there is an easier way to find out the length of the cable without pulling them out first? The salon helm looks easier than the upper helm. Could I use the old electrician's trick of taping the end of the new one to the end of the old one and then pulling it thru? I have a 1977 Mainship I.

From Jamestown Distributors site....


For Replacement of Existing Cable:

If you removed the old cable, measure for replacement cable as follows:
Measure from tip to tip and round up to next whole foot, if necessary (aftermarket cables are sold in foot increments).
The control cable part number contains its length Teleflex cables are usually listed as CC???XX, where XX = length in feet. Morse cables are listed as ??????-??-XXX.0, where XXX.0 = length in inches.
For example:
Part Number CC63320 = 20 ft. CC633 Control Cable or Part Number 032377-03-240.0 = 20 ft. 33C Control Cable (240" = 20')

When my cable broke, I pulled the inner cable out and and measured it to get the length. (mine was ~$50 for 16 ft) You'll need to pull the entire cable to replace it anyway, so you might as well get to work removing the old and, in the process, running a line to pull in the new cable.

Then when the new cable shows up, you'll be familiar with the project needs and ready for the installation.

gkesden said:

I'd go ahead and use the olastic one until you find a brass one. All of mine are plastic. They are what Seastar sold me. They seem to work fine with no wear. I think my last boat was in the same situation when I replaced the cables.

Personally, I worry a lot more about the thin little E-clamp retaining ring, which I inspect constantly, than the plastic fittings, which seem to be good plastic.

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That E-clip? That would be a "jesus clip", as in "jesus, where did that thing go?".

Gaylord Ballard said:

Thanks to all. Cable replacement looks like it will be in my future. Do you suppose there is an easier way to find out the length of the cable without pulling them out first? The salon helm looks easier than the upper helm. Could I use the old electrician's trick of taping the end of the new one to the end of the old one and then pulling it thru? I have a 1977 Mainship I.

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If you look along the cable, the lengths are often embossed into the outer sheath. I replaced all of my cables and thats what I found.



Ken

Salt water got inside velvet drive ?

bgillroy said:

Salt water got inside velvet drive ?

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No. Have another read through.

I recently replaced the flybridge shift cable on my 82 mainship 34. I would have never thought it was 36 feet long, but it was. Even with running a retrieval line it was a real pain to run the new cable as it sort of bends awkwardly around the stbd fuel tank. My cable ran from flybridge to the lower helm station. Make sure the new one is adjusted properly so it lines up with the detents on the transmission when in fwd neutral and reverse.

Gaylord Ballard said:

Thanks to all. Cable replacement looks like it will be in my future. Do you suppose there is an easier way to find out the length of the cable without pulling them out first? The salon helm looks easier than the upper helm. Could I use the old electrician's trick of taping the end of the new one to the end of the old one and then pulling it thru? I have a 1977 Mainship I.

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If you are not already on



https://www.facebook.com/groups/1693844340850251/

(Mainship Owners Group)


Then you should be. I have a 78 Mainship 34 (hull #95, whats yours?) and there are at least a dozen MK1 owners on that facebook page. Probably one of them can give you the length to the nearest quarter inch.....

Break free is the extreme lubricant I seem to have best results using.