Found Something on Drive

[Thomv]

Today we decided to take a day off and go boating in Tampa Bay. We were blessed with no storms! So we are siting there anchored off of Beer Can Island and I am just laying on a tube alongside the boat. Every few minutes my two bilge pumps start cycling on and off. I get back in the boat and decide to investigate why they are coming on. While looking at the rear of my starboard engine where the outdrive bolts up to the transom I can see water slowly gurgling into the boat. The water was coming in right below the top lip of the housing. When I got home I was able to find a 3/8 inch hole in the top of the housing bolted to the transom. It was not there before but after closer inspection it looks like one of the previous owners must have tried to cover it up with some auto body putty and it finally came loose. I am not even sure this is my reason for the water coming into the boat because I am not sure if that hole is supposed to actually be there so that is why I am asking. Oh, the joys of buying someone used! Here is the picture I took of the housing.

 

[achris]

Re: Found Something on Drive

Errrr, yeah... That's not right. There shouldn't be any hole there. Looks like it's been shot or something. I think I'd drill it to a tappable size and install a plug. Or find someone good with a TIG and weld it up....

Chris.......

 

[alldodge]

Re: Found Something on Drive

There is good, bad and I hope not ugly news. The good - if the water coming in from this hole it should not be effecting your gimble area. The bad - The hole shouldn't be there and needs to be sealed up. The ugly - I hope this can be done with some other method of sealer, but the hole looks like the housing is being corroded away. Need a close inspection from the inside with a camera scope maybe.

 

[Bt Doctur]

Re: Found Something on Drive

somebody tried a sneaky repair, that part of the housing is not flat.

 

[dubs283]

Re: Found Something on Drive

if the water coming in from this hole it should not be effecting your gimble area.

oh yes it will

behind that hole is where the steering shaft connects to the tiller arm, there is a seal below and water on the inside is not good at all, also the water will run down the inside of the gimble housing/transom plate causing issues as well

it alomost looks like the whole area above the gimble ring on the housing has been ground and filled in - perhaps someone did a gimble ring job and instead of finishing it the right way they just did a crummy patch job??

 

[ricohman]

Re: Found Something on Drive

oh yes it will

behind that hole is where the steering shaft connects to the tiller arm, there is a seal below and water on the inside is not good at all, also the water will run down the inside of the gimble housing/transom plate causing issues as well

it alomost looks like the whole area above the gimble ring on the housing has been ground and filled in - perhaps someone did a gimble ring job and instead of finishing it the right way they just did a crummy patch job??[/QUOTE]

Definitely been previously "repaired". The question is why the damage in the first place?

 

[alldodge]

Re: Found Something on Drive

oh yes it will

behind that hole is where the steering shaft connects to the tiller arm, there is a seal below and water on the inside is not good at all, also the water will run down the inside of the gimble housing/transom plate causing issues as well

it alomost looks like the whole area above the gimble ring on the housing has been ground and filled in - perhaps someone did a gimble ring job and instead of finishing it the right way they just did a crummy patch job??

Mine was leaking there for a couple years and got bad enough to replace the pin and have the gimble ring reworked. Out side of the worn pin everything else was fine and still is today. I'm in fresh water which won't have the effect as salt but it didn't get to the bearing. Have a great Navy day

 

[Thomv]

Re: Found Something on Drive

oh yes it will

behind that hole is where the steering shaft connects to the tiller arm, there is a seal below and water on the inside is not good at all, also the water will run down the inside of the gimble housing/transom plate causing issues as well

it alomost looks like the whole area above the gimble ring on the housing has been ground and filled in - perhaps someone did a gimble ring job and instead of finishing it the right way they just did a crummy patch job??

I am not sure about the grinding down of this area to make it flat because my other drive looks the same way except no hole. Both of these areas originally had a Mercruiser label affixed to this portion of the gimbal housing That I removed because both of them were in bad shape. Over the weekend I plan do do a closer inspection. Both of my drives are tied in with a S/S tie bar between both drives. Pretty underhanded what some people will do to cover up a problem prior to selling the boat. This is the same drive that had the rudder fall off of the drive because someone decided to use epoxy filler and then fill it all in making it look very pretty!

 

[Thomv]

Re: Found Something on Drive

Tonight I had an opportunity to check further. On the other side of the hole there appears to be another cast piece that looks intact. To make sure this hole was the reason I am getting water into the boat I placed a hose up to the hole and ran water through it. It did find its way into boat. On the other side of my transom I found large chunks of rust where the steering arm rotates inside the gimbal housing. I was able to remove almost all of it. I was thinking of just filling the hole with some JB weld but I am not sure how that will affect the cast piece inside of this housing so my next thought is to place some aluminum foil inside the hole up against the other cast piece and then use the JD+B weld to fill the hole on the other housing. Once this is done then I would sand down the whole area and then, using some poly glue, I would then mount a flat piece of aluminum to this outside surface to completely seal off the filled in hole. I am trying to avoid having to replace the gimbal that would run around $1,500 just for the part! Definitely looks like corrosion took its toll on the housing and that is what caused the hole in the first place.

 

[Thomv]

Re: Found Something on Drive

somebody tried a sneaky repair, that part of the housing is not flat.

Would you or anyone esle have a picture of what it actually should look like?

 

[stonyloam]

Re: Found Something on Drive

Here is how JR Marine recommends the hole be repaired after a gimbal ring job: Instructions I would remove all of the paint and see what is there.

 

[Thomv]

Re: Found Something on Drive

Tonight I was able to grind out any rust from the hole. I then placed some metal duct tape over the swivel and then filled the hole with JB Weld stick epoxy. Tomorrow I will grind it down. I have some S/S 1/16 thick plate stock that I will fabricate to fit over my repair. I am planning to use a poly construction adhesive to glue the plate down. This stuff is amazing and is also waterproof. I don't see this plate coming off of the housing. I still would like to know how this hole got there in the first place. Thanks for the write up.

 

[alldodge]

Re: Found Something on Drive

I still would like to know how this hole got there in the first place.

I would think if its only a small hole then it was caused by corrision, but if it is alot bigger then it was someone doing a gimble repair.