We removed the bell housing from my friends 898. With all exposed, the construction of everything becomes pretty clear. The bushings themselves press into the bellhousing mount arms from the bottom up. The hole is stepped so the so the bushings will only go in so far.
On top of the transom bracket arms and between the bellhousing mount arms, a fiber washer and a spring is supposed to sit. Well guess what! Someone has had this out before and the springs had been installed between the bottom nut and the underside of the transom bracket mount arms. As such, on the port side, the fiberwasher had begun to be forced up into opening of the bellhousing mount arm bushing hole. The result, of course was the lowering of the engine in relation to the gimbal bearing. This perfectly corresponds with the readings we had been getting on the alignment bar.
Now my question is this. The new bushings that we got came with a gold colored spacer ring that is supposed to be installed on the underside of the bellhousing mount bushing. It neatly fits up into the space remaining after the bushing is installed as far in as it will go. The net result is that the bottom of the spacer ring would now be flush with the bottom surface of the bellhousing mounting arm.
Are we still supposed to use the fiber washer and spring? The only function I can determing for this metal spacer ring is that it would prevent the fiber washer from being forced up into the mount bracket hole as had been occuring. Of course with the spring in the right place that would have also helped that from happening as the spring sits on the bellhousing mount arm and up against the inner core of the mount bushings assy's. It would also seem that the fiberwasher and spring should still be used to establish the minimum height of the rear of the motor.
Does this sound correct?
On top of the transom bracket arms and between the bellhousing mount arms, a fiber washer and a spring is supposed to sit. Well guess what! Someone has had this out before and the springs had been installed between the bottom nut and the underside of the transom bracket mount arms. As such, on the port side, the fiberwasher had begun to be forced up into opening of the bellhousing mount arm bushing hole. The result, of course was the lowering of the engine in relation to the gimbal bearing. This perfectly corresponds with the readings we had been getting on the alignment bar.
Now my question is this. The new bushings that we got came with a gold colored spacer ring that is supposed to be installed on the underside of the bellhousing mount bushing. It neatly fits up into the space remaining after the bushing is installed as far in as it will go. The net result is that the bottom of the spacer ring would now be flush with the bottom surface of the bellhousing mounting arm.
Are we still supposed to use the fiber washer and spring? The only function I can determing for this metal spacer ring is that it would prevent the fiber washer from being forced up into the mount bracket hole as had been occuring. Of course with the spring in the right place that would have also helped that from happening as the spring sits on the bellhousing mount arm and up against the inner core of the mount bushings assy's. It would also seem that the fiberwasher and spring should still be used to establish the minimum height of the rear of the motor.
Does this sound correct?
