Recent content by babikov

  1. B

    What are these plugs (in U-joints)?

    Thanks to everyone!
  2. B

    How to make the two arms even?

    Thanks Ted, I will redo it!
  3. B

    How to make the two arms even?

    I removed the outdrive in the fall and stored it separately till spring, to finish some repairs (gimbal bearing remove/install). Now when I am putting it back I see that one of the arms is considerably longer (see image): The difference is three inches or so, quite significant. Not sure how...
  4. B

    What are these plugs (in U-joints)?

    GA_Boater, Thanks, yes, I understand the original intention. But, how permanent is permanent lube? If the boat is 1995 or so, and at some point there was water in the bellows, the best approach is not to touch it anyway ever, or to pull those plugs out and grease? And again, what grease? Keep...
  5. B

    What are these plugs (in U-joints)?

    Dear forum, I am replacing the gimbal bearing and thought to grease the U-joints too (Alpha 1 Gen II). There are no zerks, but these things instead (see the picture below): Are these some kind of plugs? Should I remove them (unscrew with pliers?), put zerks in (is thread locker required?)...
  6. B

    What is being aligned, the engine, or the bearing, or both? And why?

    Chris, thanks. I got it. Hope nothing of this concerns my case! Will get the alignment tool and check it. I never had issues inserting the outdrive into the transom, which probably means that it was not too much off. Also, I never noticed any twist of the bearing, which again means that it is...
  7. B

    What is being aligned, the engine, or the bearing, or both? And why?

    CaptRedBR, I think you misunderstood me. Please watch the last part of this video: It appears that for the gimbal bearing to be 100% flat, the probability is near zero. The outer case of it, yes, of course, if pressed far enough it will be perfectly flat (if not, it will not go into the bore...
  8. B

    What is being aligned, the engine, or the bearing, or both? And why?

    I am replacing the gimbal bearing on my Alpha 1 Gen 2 outdrive of the Mercruiser engine. The old bearing and the seal are out. I wiped off the old grease in the bore and I just looked into it, and I have impression that the engine may not be properly aligned relative to the bore axis. This may...
  9. B

    What is a preferred method for removal of the gimbal bearing (hummer vs puller)?

    Thanks to everyone who responded. My set up has grease fitting that perfectly works. Also, I got an OEM bearing, finding an inexpressive deal over the winter. I compared the new and old bearings for smoothness and I think that there is some difference. So, prefer to replace the old one. The...
  10. B

    What is a preferred method for removal of the gimbal bearing (hummer vs puller)?

    I am going to replace gimbal bearing in Mercruiser, and it looks like there are two alternative methods. I don't know which one to follow. First method involved a slash-hammer, which puts shock-loads on the transom in the backward direction; the second method involves a puller that puts stress...
  11. B

    Something is wrong with "Home made special tools"

    Hi achris, Thanks! Can you also fix the link for tool #7, please.
  12. B

    Something is wrong with "Home made special tools"

    Hi Rick, Thanks for your response. But, I knew the page. The problem is that those links are broken. They lead to a wrong place. Did you try to check them? Please, try to click on some of them (e.g., #3 and #7). Thanks.
  13. B

    Something is wrong with "Home made special tools"

    Hi forum, I could not find any way to contact moderators directly, so, I started this thread hoping that someone will respond. OK, I want to check what is available under the "Home made special tools" to remove the gimbal bearing (MerCruiser). There are two tools listed, #3 and #7, but those...
  14. B

    REV sound when coming off plane (Alpha 1 Gen 2, Mercruiser 4.3L 1993)

    Thanks! This is truly valuable!
  15. B

    REV sound when coming off plane (Alpha 1 Gen 2, Mercruiser 4.3L 1993)

    Alldodge, Thanks for your response. I tend to replace the gimbal bearing, because about 6 years ago the previous bellows cracked, and I did not immediately realized that. Fixed later, and there was a period of water passing through the bearing. When I repaired the bellows, I pushed the bad...
See more
Top