omc/ cobra bellows question

[xtreme995]

i have an 1987 2.3 omc cobra. i pulled the sterndrive off today and there was water in the u-joint bellows is that supposed to be there? and there are also holes along the entire exhaust bellows on the bottom all of them are excactly alike on each rib of the bellows is that supposed to be like that? any help would be greatly appreciated thanks in advanced

 

[Don S]

Re: omc/ cobra bellows question

The ujoint bellows should be dry. If there is water, you need a new bellows, along with ujoints and gimbal bearing. Also check your drive for water intrusion. The ujoint yoke seal and yoke may be damaged from the rust.
The exhaust bellows do have holes in the bottom oif the bellows.

 

[xtreme995]

Re: omc/ cobra bellows question

hey man thanks again for the info i figured it probably wasn't supposed to have water in it but i wasn't sure. i guess if it was supposed to have water in it there would be no need for the bellows right. how difficult is it to pull the plate that mounts to the transom i think i might have a leak around that plate its either that or the water hose thats running through the transom plate

 

[bill j]

Re: omc/ cobra bellows question

you will have to pull the engine to reseal the transome plate. you might have water damaged wood. I had to replace the wood and fiberglass it in. you should buy a manual for the engine. you will need to realign the engine with the gimbal bearing I used a spare input shaft.

 

[Don S]

Re: omc/ cobra bellows question

It's not hard to pull the transom shield off the boat, once you get the outdrive off and the engine out of the boat.
If it's leaking around the gasket, then 9 chances out of 10 the transom is rotten and collpasing, causing the bolts to be loose. That requiers a new transom.
Just remember, water in the bellows will also leak into the boat.
Get some OEM service manuals and do some reading. You will then understand what I am saying.

 

[HT32BSX115]

Re: omc/ cobra bellows question

.........you will need to realign the engine with the gimbal bearing I used a spare input shaft.

Using a splined yoke is not a good replacement for the proper machined alignment tool.

You should use the correct tool.....They don't cost all that much. (A coupler replacement costs FAR more)


Cheers,


Rick

 

[xtreme995]

Re: omc/ cobra bellows question

ok i think im going to replace the bellows and gimble bearing first and give that a shot before i do something drastic like yank the motor out since the bellows does have water in it and it is possible for that to leak water into the boat i'll do that first. if that doesn't fix it then im not out anything on putting it together but a cheap gasket and an hour or two of my time. i don't think it been leaking long enogh to rot out the transom i could be wrong though. i'll check the bolts tommorrow. now that i got to thinking about the bellows being the source of my leak makes more sense because the leak is coming from the top of my outdrive inside and running down a water hose it seems the water is coming from above the water line but i can't pinpoint exactly where it had me puzzled something awful the last few times i took it out last year. as far as rust damage to the ujoints and yoke they look really good the only rust i could see was on the input shaft splines i don't think it has been greased in a while but its really just a little surface rust nothing a wire brush and a little grease can't take care of.