Alignment woes

[labzman3]

Trying to get my 1985 I-MR outdrive back together, replaced coupler,gimbal bearing,all bellows & hoses & switches & cables and bought all Merc. products !
When trying to align motor, bar never did slide in "easy" Obtained even grease marks on bar,but when turned motor 90 degree's,, bar started going in harder,, and at 180 degree's
bar would not go in at all !
I am assuming the engine coupler is not centered correctly,, or laying completely flat on the flywheel ?
I am in the process of pulling motor again to check my work !! Anyone have proir problems like this or any idea what might be wrong ? I have read on here that some people have gotten bad couplers that were brand new !! I am dealing with Merc. coupler # 76850A2


When does this become fun ??

 

[Alpheus]

Re: Alignment woes

Its not all about the grease marks. The alignment bar should slide in really easy. If its hard to slide in but the grease marks are even there is still something wrong...

http://forums.iboats.com/showthread.php?t=436175&highlight=proper+alignment

 

[fsamie1]

Re: Alignment woes

Sounds like exact same problem I am having with my 305 V8 alignment. Pull the engine out again and found .100 inch ranout on coupling spline. Also found one bad rear mount, rubber was cracked so one side was sitting 2 mm lower. Got another coupler and new rear mounts. Have not tried to put it in it yet. I read in one of these threads that you have to line up gimble bearing by pivoting it using alignment tool. I do not know what they are talking about. Mine does not pivot at all. I will try it again this week and let you know. You should check your rear mounts and measure runout on the coupler.

 

[Alpheus]

Re: Alignment woes

Mine does not pivot at all.

It better pivot. Its a GIMBAL bearing so it has to be able to gimbal. Put the alignment tool into the gimbal just so the second step of the bar is in it. Pull up on the bar and the gimbal bearing should pivot. push down on it then side to side. It should be able to move on all axis. Its like a ball and socket joint...

 

[labzman3]

Re: Alignment woes

I am in the process of pulling my motor back out,, To see if I did something wrong !!
Take Alpheus"s advice,, had it not been for one of his previous threads,, I would have never got my gimbal bearing centered !!
How did you find out the coupler was out of round ?? And did the place you bought it from take it back ? I think from now on,, I will buy directly from my local dealer,, as it will cost a small chunk of change to send my coupler back !!
Keep me posted,,, Maybe my next boat will have a outboard on it ??? !!!!

Later !!!!!!!!!!

 

[dingdongs]

Re: Alignment woes

before you pull have you tried pulling gimbal bearing and put alignment bar directly into coupler.remove lead from centre of coil and have someone turn over and see if shaft runs eccentric whilst in coupler.you obviously do not want engine to start whilst checking.may want to remove plugs too if easily accessible.

 

[labzman3]

Re: Alignment woes

No I am not going to pull gimbal bearing,, unless forced too !!! It is brand new,, and pulling will probably ruin it !! ??

Motor is hanging free once again,,, I am having my best friend stop by tomorrow and look over everything,,, he was a machinist all his life,, and very mechanically inclined,,, I hope it is something simple,, I took my time so as to try and not make any mistakes !! I want to get this done soon,,, it's getting cold out in the garage !!!!

Will it hurt anything if I insert alignment bar into coupler while I slowly tighten motor mounts ?

Also,, I read some post about when to tighten front mounts and aligning,, but might have been a V6 engine,,, mines a 120 hp. only one adjustment screw at center of motor,, when do I tighten the 2 mount bolts on my set up ? Before I start alignment procedure ? during ? after I get aligned ????


Thanks everyone !!

 

[Alpheus]

Re: Alignment woes

when do I tighten the 2 mount bolts on my set up ? Before I start alignment procedure ? during ? after I get aligned ????

Are you talking about the two rear motor mounts? They should have been tightened and torqued to spec before you started the alignment process. Only the front of the engine should move up and down...

 

[Alpheus]

Re: Alignment woes

Read this and watch the videos...

Your alignment tool is made up of three precisely sized shafts. The smallest fits exactly into your coupler. The next is sized small enough to pass through your bearing with room to spare, and is long enough to allow the first shaft to engage the coupler 1/2 inch before the larger shaft, sized to exactly fit the gimbal bearing contacts the bearing.

You should feel it bottom out when you slide the bar in. You want the alignment bar to slide in with very little effort and you want spiline marks to be equal all the way around the tip if the bar.

First thing you need to do is make sure your gimbal bearing is set.

Using your alignment bar insert it through the gimbal bearing and just so it starts to go into your coupler. (approx. 1/2 inch)

Using the palm of your hand, give the alignment bar a couple of "whacks" on the top,bottom and both sides of the bar. This will ensure that the gimbal bearing is at the correct angle to your coupler.

Coat the 1st 2 inches of your alignment bar evenly with grease.

Put a mark on your alignment bar near the handle so you can keep your bar in the same orientation when inputting and removing it from the coupler.

Slide the bar into the gimbal bearing and into the splines of the coupler and without twisting the bar pull it out.

You should see spline marks evenly around the end of the bar.

Are the even?

Yes.

Turn the engine over 90 degrees and check again.
Keep turning engine over in 90 deg. increments. This ensures that your coupler is centered and true.

No

Are the spline marks heavy on the top or the bottom?

If they are heavy on the top you need to Lower the front motor mounts half a turn and check again. Keep doing this step until you achieve the results listed above.

Put marks on the motor mount nuts to make sure you turn them both in the same increments.

If the heavy spline marks are on the bottom you need to Raise your front motor mounts half a turn and check again. Keep doing this step until you achieve the results listed above.

Here are some videos to help you along.

This one is showing you when its not aligned. Notice how he uses his hand to smack it in.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fA5ExlPVz2w

This one shows you when everything is just right. Notice how easily the bar slides through the gimbal bearing and into the coupler.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MYwnK8mjHdw

 

[fsamie1]

Re: Alignment woes

How did you find out the coupler was out of round ?? And did the place you bought it from take it back ? I think from now on,, I will buy directly from my local dealer,, as it will cost a small chunk of change to send my coupler back

I bought it from Discount Marine in Michigan and he was nice enough to exchange it with another new one. He said coupler must be good and he will sell it to one his mechanic buddies. I measured runout by machining a 1.015 inch shaft and with engine out and coupler installed inserted the shaft into the coupler spline. it was pretty snug fit. Then, turned the engine and measured runout on the shaft. It was 0.010 inches. I think this is pretty large for a good alignment. I guess I am going to find out soon.
Alpheus, how much the end of alignment tool should move up and down while gimble bearing is pivoting? How much dead weight do I need to put at free end to make it move up and down? Do you know if it is ball bearing or roller bearing? If it is roller bearing it will not pivot much. Thanks

 

[fsamie1]

Re: Alignment woes

Using your alignment bar insert it through the gimbal bearing and just so it starts to go into your coupler. (approx. 1/2 inch)

Using the palm of your hand, give the alignment bar a couple of "whacks" on the top,bottom and both sides of the bar. This will ensure that the gimbal bearing is at the correct angle to your coupler.

Do not mean to question the procedure, but, when the bearing is set with coupler not being aligned, when engine is moved up or down to line up the entire coupler. Seems to me that bearing should be set every time the engine is moved up or down. Sorry for too many question, i am try to learn the correct way. Thanks

 

[Alpheus]

Re: Alignment woes

It doesn't hurt if you align the gimbal every time its moved.

It takes some force to move the gimbal up,down,side to side.

Its not the roller bearing that is moving. Its the outside of the roller bearing. Like I said, think of it as a ball and socket joint.

You can pretty much eyeball the gimbal alignment to get it close. Then use the "whack" to get it perfect.

I don't know how much more I can explain it in words. If I were there I could get it for you in a minute.

I think I am going to make a video describing this the next time I have my drive off...

 

[labzman3]

Re: Alignment woes

LOL !! Alpheus,, if you were here,,, you'd be telling me to send that coupler back !! My friend stopped over last night to have a look see,, he said he can feel the tip of the bar hitting the coupler before it goes in,, and thats when we have even grease marks !!

So I think I will send it back,, I have e mailed the place and they send to send it in if it's causing problems !! I would have thought I would of had better luck when purchasing Merc. parts !!!

 

[Alpheus]

Re: Alignment woes

I bet if you gave the gimbal bearing a little nudge it would fall into place. Thats exactly how it feels when your gimbal is not lined up

Your coupler may be off center, but you should still be able to line it up. rotate the engine and have it be off again...

 

[labzman3]

Re: Alignment woes

Alpheus,, It was one of your previous post that helped me with getting the bearing lined up !!! THANKS !!!

I obtained some info today that MAY help with my problem,,, I was told that the motor can be moved not only up and down,,, BUT also side to side,, to get things to line up,,, which is logical !!! SO,, I am going back out and look and check things,,, That was what I was trying to ask in my previous post,, do I leave all the mounts slightly loose ??? And slowly tighten everything while continuously checking my alignment bar ?? Or maybe just leave the front mount loose and that would allow me some "wiggle" room. My front mount is bolted to a wooden cross member,, no lag bolts,,, and I have checked all my wood,, tight and right,,, of course I thought this was no big deal either so,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

Off to garage !!!

 

[labzman3]

Re: Alignment woes

Well,, found the problem !!! The coupler has a machined edge,,, and on a section of that edge was 2 clumps of aluminum ,,, there by not allowing the coupler to sit flat in the radius of the flywheel,,, and throwing it off kilter !!!

Sending it back,,, and guess from now on,,, all parts will be bought over the counter !!!

Thanks for the help !!!