Information Needed

[VaGent]

I have a young man wanting to sell me (cheap) a 1979 Galaxie 19ft bow rider that is in need of some repair. It has a 120 Mecruiser I/O that he says it is leaking water thru the back of the boat where the drive exits. He says he has no idea what this is caused from. He was told(?) by a marine mechanic the gimble bearing needed repalced & that would take care of the water problem. He claims the engine runs great but he shut it down after he found the water leaking & has not run it since the summer of 2007. Anyone have any ideas as to what might be the problem & how expensive it is to repair & how dependable is a Mercruiser 120 I/O. I love my Johnson motors & know nothing much at all about a Mercruiser. Especially an I/O engine. It has a galvanized trailer that he claims is in near perfect condition & the only thing the boat needs inside is to repair/replace the seats. I LIKE projects but I need to learn more about the engine before I do any trading/buying. Thanks in advance.

 

[rogerwa]

Re: Information Needed

There is a rubber boot (the bellows) where the drive shaft exits the transom and then enters the outdrive. This boot is torn and leaking and needs to be replaced. The gimble bearing which the drive shaft passes through on the way out has been exposed to water and also would need to be repaced.

There are two bellows the upper driveshaft bellows and the exhaust bellows. The exhaust one is not that important if damaged, but the driveshaft bellows can sink you.

I owned an I/O and never had to do this as I sold it before it had to be done. I would not have looked forward to this job as it is tough to replace.

 

[Bondo]

Re: Information Needed

Ayuh,...

You're lookin at a Few Hundred in Parts,+ Labor....

 

[chiefalen]

Re: Information Needed

Sir: It is a bullet proof engine. There is no more reliable engine, in my own inexpert opinion.

That being said, if, and thats a big if, that is the only problem with the boat.

You take the time and go over everything, and get it going good you will have a good boat.

1979- could have bad stringers, bad transom, probably has a bad floor already.

Shift cables, starter, alternator, etc, etc, etc.

Only the almighty knows.

Good luck in your endeavor!

 

[MikDee]

Re: Information Needed

IMO, a Galaxy is a Sharp looking boat that's cheaply made, it's not up to par with the more well known better brands, and it is an old boat besides. If you can deal with that, and any other issues, thats fine, but it would have to be free, or very reasonable for me to be interested. By the way as others have mentioned, that 120 Merc is a great design, if it, and the drive, are in decent shape.

 

[VaGent]

Re: Information Needed

I'd like to say Thanks for all the information you guys have provided. At my age even though I love a good challange & restore things to perfection, I think I will leave this one to someone else. The "old back & tired legs" aren't quite up to taking on a project of this size. The boat isn't Free but close to it but money is money no matter how you look at it. I like the looks of the boat but I fear there is more work involved to restoring it then I am willing to undertake. Thanks again for all the helpful information.