help- big crack in outdrive... how much will this cost me

[MI_Boat]

So as I continue to clean my new/used boat (see other posts for pics), I came across this! Its the trim pivot point. Ugh!

Is it possible to buy and replace just this part- or do I need to be looking for a whole outdrive?

It's an Alpha1 3.0 LX.

 

[MI_Boat]

Re: help- big crack in outdrive... how much will this cost me

btw- what part is this? Based on pics I've looking at, it does not seem to be the upper drive - however I'm pretty new to boats.

 

[QC]

Re: help- big crack in outdrive... how much will this cost me

Welcome aboard! It's your Gimbal ring, and it's toast . . . Don't mean to be the bearer of bad news, but this is a serious repair and it is a safety issue. $1K in parts easy, and the right way to replace it requires pulling the engine . . .

Moving this thread to the I/O section. They'll fix you up over there. Good luck!!

 

[Don S]

Re: help- big crack in outdrive... how much will this cost me

It's an Alpha I Gen II drive. The Gimbal ring is not only for the pivot of the trim and tilt, it holds the drive for the steering.
It's a big, expensive job. Here ia the link to the OEM service manual. Look at section 4B if you want to see what it takes to replace it.
http://www.4shared.com/file/115650157/a164fcd6/Service_Manual_14.html

Don't even think about taking that out on the water that way.

 

[MI_Boat]

Re: help- big crack in outdrive... how much will this cost me

Thanks. so this is what I'm looking at- in terms of parts?

http://bpi.ebasicpower.com/mm5/merchant.mvc?Screen=PROD&Store_Code=eBasicPower&Product_Code=MER94993A7&Category_Code=MER2GIM

 

[Don S]

Re: help- big crack in outdrive... how much will this cost me

Nope, that's for an Alpha I, You have an Alpha I Gen II. Need serial number to get the right part.

 

[Fordiesel69]

Re: help- big crack in outdrive... how much will this cost me

$1600 out the door for my buddies boat. We just had it done and picked it up yesterday. If you get steering slop, its not as much of an emergency. You have an emergency. Your drive could fall off, and tear up even more parts.

Likely someone hit somthing and replaced the lower unit, or backed into somthing on the trailer.

 

[MI_Boat]

Re: help- big crack in outdrive... how much will this cost me

Nope, that's for an Alpha I, You have an Alpha I Gen II. Need serial number to get the right part.

Thanks. Is this something I could take on myself and save a bunch of cash? I've been working on cars for years (famous last words around here I'm sure) - and looking at the repair, it seems pretty straight forward- but a lot of work.

Is this something, if I got the parts, I could do myself over a weekend?

 

[MI_Boat]

Re: help- big crack in outdrive... how much will this cost me

$1600 out the door for my buddies boat. We just had it done and picked it up yesterday. If you get steering slop, its not as much of an emergency. You have an emergency. Your drive could fall off, and tear up even more parts.

Likely someone hit somthing and replaced the lower unit, or backed into somthing on the trailer.

$1600!!!! Looks like the part is about $500. is the rest mostly labor?

 

[stonyloam]

Re: help- big crack in outdrive... how much will this cost me

New parts, probably $700, and you will want to replace the bellows too, probably another $100. Here is another set of instructions to go along with the manual: http://www.mercstuff.com/gimbalringinst.htm I have done it, and it is a major pain, but not too difficult. I drilled the holes, but you need to pull the engine to avoid doing that. The hardest thing for me was getting the lower swivel pin out. If you are handy, you could probably do it in a weekend. If you decide to do it yourself, you can get plenty of help here. Good luck.

BTW there is a used gen II gimbal ring on e-bay for $150.

 

[MI_Boat]

Re: help- big crack in outdrive... how much will this cost me

I've been doing some searching (but only 30 mins so far) but I'm not clear on why the holes method enables you to skip the engine pulling step. is that you are able to access the top hinge point from the engine side - where as with the holes method, you access from the other side (the outside)?

 

[stonyloam]

Re: help- big crack in outdrive... how much will this cost me

I'm not clear on why the holes method enables you to skip the engine pulling step.

Here is a photo of the top swivel pin: http://www.jrmarine.com/products/2000.htm There are two bearing surfaces: on top and just above large square. The gimbal ring clamps onto the large square, and the steering arm clamps on to the smaller one. The steering arm is held in place by a large locknut on top that goes on the threaded part, and a bolt that goes through the arm that clamps it on the square. You have to remove both the nut on top and the clamping bolt (to let the steering arm slide up and off) to pull the swivel pin down to free the top of the ring. the only way that you can access the nut and bolt is through the holes, or by removing the engine and gimbal housing from the boat. You use a center punch and hammer to loosen the nut, and a wrenches to loosen the bolt. Take a look behind the engine to see the arm.

 

[cr2k]

Re: help- big crack in outdrive... how much will this cost me

You mean to tell me that the plastic trim sender won't hold that together?

 

[stonyloam]

Re: help- big crack in outdrive... how much will this cost me

You mean to tell me that the plastic trim sender won't hold that together?

Maybe with a little JB Weld?

 

[bruceb58]

Re: help- big crack in outdrive... how much will this cost me

Exactly..where are these JB weld guys at? They all seem to chime in for the cracked blocks!

 

[PS94]

Re: help- big crack in outdrive... how much will this cost me

UGH! If you're not going to pull the motor, don't drill the holes, they sicken me. I found a link on here, (after my boat surfed down the ditch) that you drill a template, and punch out a section on the rear of the housing, then they send you a nice stainless plate to fasten over it, so your motor doesn't look like frankenstein.

http://www.jrmarine.com/instructions.htm

 

[HT32BSX115]

Re: help- big crack in outdrive... how much will this cost me

A 3.0L engine is not all that hard to remove. I would pull the engine and transom to do the job. I would want to look closely at the transom and gimbal after an impact that caused that.

Here's the GEN II gimbal ring from Ebasic Power.

[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, Sans-serif]
Part Number: MER865328A01
Price: $499.00

[/FONT]

 

[atomb]

Re: help- big crack in outdrive... how much will this cost me

Do u guys think was caused by an impact or overtightening?

 

[MI_Boat]

Re: help- big crack in outdrive... how much will this cost me

A 3.0L engine is not all that hard to remove. I would pull the engine and transom to do the job. I would want to look closely at the transom and gimbal after an impact that caused that.

Here's the GEN II gimbal ring from Ebasic Power.

[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, Sans-serif]
Part Number: MER865328A01
Price: $499.00

[/FONT]

Thanks all.

So is this the some total of all the parts I would need to buy? I've read that it's a good time to replace the flextube (exhaust) while I have things apart. I hate to dig into it and find that I'm missing a required part - that's going to take another week to get here.

I'm leaving for a trip on July 7th- so I don't really have a ton of non-weekend/holiday time.

btw- I agree, after looking at the 3.0, it's pretty compact and appears to not be a big deal to remove. Frankly, my biggest problem with the motor is getting it out of the way. I don't have a hoist setup at present. I expect that it needs to be totally out to accees the top section?

For those that have done it - J&R method and motor removal - how much time should I set aside. My guess is that the motor removal method takes significantly longer - clearly the best approach.

 

[MI_Boat]

Re: help- big crack in outdrive... how much will this cost me

Okay- I may have found a used one locally. Hopefully I'm going to get a look at it this afternoon. What should I be looking for to ensure it's a good replacement. I assume the steering pin hole- making sure it's not worn badly. I assume the trim pivot point- although doesn't that have a bearing of sorts?

Thanks all. My expensive journey into boat ownership has officially begun.

btw- my local shop assumes 6hrs labor so the repair + new part would run about $1300. Problem is they couldn't even get to it for 2-3 weeks- which is way too far out for me unfortunalty. So it's looking like I am going to have to do the work myself if I want to use the boat anytime soon.