Review on Quicksilver 74639Q02 Shift Cable Bellows by David Herman

This is one of those purchases where saving a few bucks is not a good investment. If that boot fails while boating, you could cause serious problems and incur huge repair costs. Not worth the small additional cost of a Mercruiser certified part. Aside from that, you can also replace this shift boot by disconnecting the engine side cable, attaching a strong piece of rope to the cable, and having a friend help you push the cable through while you pull on the outside of the boat. My friend and I took our time and carefully fed the entire cable through the transom (be patient and don't kink the cable), removed the defective sheath and applied liberal amounts of 3-in-1 oil to SIMPLY put the new sheath over it to massage the end of the metal sleeve and along the cable knot. After we put on a new housing and oiled the cable, my assistant pulled the strings after I inserted the cable into the mirror. He gently pulled and I pushed until the cable returned to its original configuration, which saved me about $1,500 in repairs at the wharf where they would have removed the entire bottom block from the motor. Not necessarily. It took us 45 minutes to complete the entire renovation.