Bellows and such
rasbury
Member Posts: 8,972 ✭✭✭✭✭
We bought our boat 12? years ago..I had a leak around the transom seal, I pulled the outdrive, motor and the merc transom asy. Boat was lift kept by the first owner.
The boat at this point was around 6 years old. I replaced the transom seal and all the rubber in tge transom asy. All the rubber looked fine, i pulled on them excessively and everything stayed intact. I did replace everything but had one heck of a time with the shift boot and you'd think there would be a better way...but to current times we've had a member lose their boat to a torn shift cable that was only 3 years old? I guess the suspect was a muskrat and not maintenance issue. People more knowledgeable than I chime in it should all be replaced at 3 years? It begs the question why would the rubber deteriorate so quickly and how the heck do you know how old the rubber is before you install the part? Especially when we go looking for oem parts sold at discounts online...might be buying parts several years old! Tires are coded so you can tell...
The boat at this point was around 6 years old. I replaced the transom seal and all the rubber in tge transom asy. All the rubber looked fine, i pulled on them excessively and everything stayed intact. I did replace everything but had one heck of a time with the shift boot and you'd think there would be a better way...but to current times we've had a member lose their boat to a torn shift cable that was only 3 years old? I guess the suspect was a muskrat and not maintenance issue. People more knowledgeable than I chime in it should all be replaced at 3 years? It begs the question why would the rubber deteriorate so quickly and how the heck do you know how old the rubber is before you install the part? Especially when we go looking for oem parts sold at discounts online...might be buying parts several years old! Tires are coded so you can tell...
Comments
About every 2 to 3 years its recommended to do the bellows and gimbal.
Every 3 to 5 for the shifter boot.
Pulling the drive at the end of every season to inspect for water intuition is an excellent idea. At this point its nice to examine all the rubber for any cracks. Grease the u joints and reisntall with new o rings that are cheap. Assuming its all dry and looks ok. Once i reinstall i do a yearly drive oil change regardless of hours, just to be sure its water free... a bravo 2 x is 11 to 12k...i need her to last.
I use out boat often but we don't put a ton of run time on her, use it as a floating condo mostly. Launch as close as possible to our intended destination.
I go every 5 years on bellows and gimbal if everything looks good. Replace at any sight of water intrusion or cracking.
Ill use sierra or quicksilver/mercruser. Sierra sealed gimbal bearing is an SKF, not a cheap Chinese knock off. The OEM bellow seems a little more pliable but if installing it when its warm this is of no issue.
The shift cable doesn't have a change interval. Im assuming the last time the po had the shift boot replaced they didnt pull enough cable put of the boot so she bound when operated in forward trimmed up. I had the cabe pull loose once and a few seasons later snap where it was crimped in place.
I installed a sierra kit. If i put long hours on her or used in salt water id have gone heavy duty. I didn't need to fish my cable in as i have an inline 6 cylinder. It was an easy solo job. With a v8 youll want a helper and some plastic line...like heavy fishing string or small string trimmer sting to use as a guide.
Since you must pull the cable to replace the cable bellow i consider it a no brainer to install a new cable. Just measure how much cable extends out of the outdrive side bellow before removing the old one.
I replace the water pump impeller every 2 years.
We live in a hot and humid environment. The heat is **** rubber and plastic components. The humidity is **** bearings when things sit for long periods of time
I run an exhaust bellow that is open on the end, it should last decades.
You're likely due for a new oil line and water connector line. These are attached to brittle and hard to reach components. Have the fittings on hand before attempting to replace...i replaced the oil line without removing the helmet but it wasn't fun or easy. I don't have a water pickup in my drive but i did snap the oil fitting and i was barely pulling on it.
There's a line from the outdrive helmet assembly leading back to the transom assembly.
It can get hard/brittle/crack.
Theres also one inside going from the transom up to the bottle.
Its likely good too but not a bad idea to check. If you replace it use something oil and heat resistant from a local hose or hydraulic shop or OEM. The chinese ebay or Amazon fuel lines are terrible in terms of quality, i wouldn't trust them for an oil line
Make sure its oil designated line if not oem, oil can break down some fuel hoses.
Ebay/Amazon have pretty good prices on all the gimbal alignment, removal and install tools. Same with bravo shift adjustment tool.
The little disk for the bellow ring install tool is also nice. A little soapy water on the ring and goes in without a fuss. The warmer the better.
If you get the alignment bar and gimbal install adapter make sure its pre drilled. It can be hard to drill a straight hole for the adapter in the round bar without a good drill press.
The sealed gimbal bearing that mercruiser and sierra sell now will come with a set screw which goes in place of the grease fitting. Some like greasable. Im not sure if its still available through mercruiser but i think sierra still sells both.
I keep an eye on ebay for all these parts in both brands. I look for new old stock inventory in OEM packaging. You can find good deals if not in a rush