upper unit frozen to bell housing. HELP!

[wcsparky05]

trying to remove my upper gear housing with no such luck. the guy at the shop said they use a 2x4 to knock it loose by pulling up on the unit after the trim cylinders are removed. no dice. any tricks you guys have? torch? i'm outta ideas. thx.

 

[Bondo]

Re: upper unit frozen to bell housing. HELP!

Ayuh,.... What's ya workin' on Sparky,..??

 

[manofprawnz]

Re: upper unit frozen to bell housing. HELP!

Had a hell of a time with my Alpha Gen 1. Did the 2x4 trick as well. I hit the seam and studs with lots of WD 40, plenty of soaks, and finally got a bit of separation, then got a feeler gauge in the separation, worked around with it, more WD 40. Long slow process but finally "pop" and off it came.

 

[wcsparky05]

Re: upper unit frozen to bell housing. HELP!

BOND-O, '89 merc 4cyl,3litre,alpha1,140hp,400 hrs on it.thx.

thx. MANO. on my second day with wd-40 and penetrating grease. i cut the 2/4 about 2" shorter for a little "windup". is that similar to what you did? and when you put it back together did you put gasket seal on the new gasket? the guy at the shop says he wouldn't if i ever wanted to get it apart again. it doesn't seem right though. y'know its probably gonna get wet. if i ever get it back together.

 

[Fishermark]

Re: upper unit frozen to bell housing. HELP!

Does that mean you got it off? When you put it back on, do not use any sealer on the big gasket. You glue the large o-ring into the helmet area, but no sealer on the gasket itself.

 

[wcsparky05]

Re: upper unit frozen to bell housing. HELP!

thx fishermark and no, not yet.

 

[Fishermark]

Re: upper unit frozen to bell housing. HELP!

I seem to remember someone suggesting putting a 2x4 - or similar piece of lumber at the top of the unit, then use the rams to push the unit off. In other words, keep the rams attached, put the lumber at the top so it will be wedged in, then trim up. Be sure the unit is is forward of course. (And the nuts are off - I guess some things are obvious. )

 

[wcsparky05]

Re: upper unit frozen to bell housing. HELP!

thx. i don't think i'd have thought of that!

 

[bruceb58]

Re: upper unit frozen to bell housing. HELP!

When was the last time this drive was off? Could be that the input shaft is corroded into the coupler.

 

[wcsparky05]

Re: upper unit frozen to bell housing. HELP!

thanks everybody!!! got it apart first try! kind of. i had the 2x4 in the wrong spot. came right off and the u-joints look great and no water or rust. they look new. i was losing sleep over replacing them and getting this thing seperated.
the only way to describe what i found is ashes to the lower right of the bellows. what is this? and how much will it cost? haha.
alignment is next...any advice would be greatly appreciated! thx again. maybe i should put this in a new thread...

 

[Bondo]

Re: upper unit frozen to bell housing. HELP!

the only way to describe what i found is ashes to the lower right of the bellows. what is this? and how much will it cost?

Ayuh,..... Please Explain......

 

[Bt Doctur]

Re: upper unit frozen to bell housing. HELP!

he might be looking where the shift cable is. water might create a powerdy looking slag. light to dark grey.

 

[Don S]

Re: upper unit frozen to bell housing. HELP!

Pictures would be really helpful.
Somehow I think you aren't seeing all that may be wrong.

 

[wcsparky05]

Re: upper unit frozen to bell housing. HELP!

when i described it to my shop guy he said it was salt buildup (yes, near the shift cable) due to the last owner running the boat in saltwater and not cleaning out the engine long enough afterwards.