Alpha leg
 

I have been storing my boat with the Alpha one leg in the up position. I have just been told (or rather read) that this could do some damage to the Universal Joint Bellows (what the hell are they?), are they expensive to replace?
The boat has been laid up with the Leg in the up position for the past 9 weeks, as I work offshore. I get home tomorrow night so first job will be to put the leg down (well the second job... the first will be to put the leg OVER:D).

If anyone can let me know about laying up over a "mild winter" please, I would truly appreciate it.
Cheers, Tony

I've read in the past that it is a good idea to store the outdrives in the down position as well as it reduces the strain on the various components in it. The specifics of why you should store it down i have no idea as i've never really heard any justification for it. I've always stored my outdrive in the up position because then it's ready for when i drive down the road with the trailer and i don't have to remember to put it back in the up position. One less thing to remember and damage if i forget.

Perhaps someone else here can chime in and educated us as to which position is best to store the outdrive in?

I too have heard the "store it down" advice, but everyone I know has always stored up, and I've never stored it down in the 12 years I've had boats. drive by your local boat dealer and see how they're storing theirs.

The bellows on the boat is the big black boot section around the outdrive. basically the way the transmission connects to the outdrive, and the seal to keep the water from coming back in. inside the bellows are the u-joints attached to the driveshaft (just like a car's driveshaft) these are what goes bad. No, they're not expensive to replace, but they're a total pain to get to. The drive has to come off and all... Not fun.

I honestly wouldn't worry about it at all, unless you develop a leak in your bellows, which you'll notice by a large amount of water in your bilge. This will cause your bellow joints to rust and go bad. It's pretty rare that this would happen, since you have such a new boat, so you really don't have anything to worry about. :)

Something I've read...

If your drive is usually in the down position (moored in a slip, etc.), you're putting strain on the bellows by storing them in the up position over winter. The rubber begins to take "memory", and can deteriorate faster.

I don't really buy into it. Just be sure to replace the bellows every few years and avoid the issue altogether.

Gidday Guys, I have spoken to the local dealer here in Perth and he said, for the short period (Less than six months) leaving the leg up is no problem. After a while the boots (I think thats it) can create a memory. If you are using the boat it wont cause any dramas. By the way they had legs both up and down in their yard.