Alpha or Bravo

[Erawk]

Hi, I'm wondering how I can tell if my boat has an alpha or bravo drive. It's a 1988 Sea Ray Sorrento 21' S-21 closed bow. Any help is appreciated. Thanks

 

[GoofyLeo3]

It doesn't say what it is on the upper half of the sterndrive?:smt017

 

[zippinbye]

Hi, I'm wondering how I can tell if my boat has an alpha or bravo drive. It's a 1988 Sea Ray Sorrento 21' S-21 closed bow. Any help is appreciated. Thanks

I have had both, but only Alpha's now, so I cannot look at each for a quick tip. I'm guessing the stickers are gone if you are asking the question. I would say it is highly unlikely that a 1988 260 could have been acquired with a Bravo. Once you compare both, you will from then on be able to recognize the difference based on the beefier appearance of the Bravo.

But to be sure ... Look for a raw water pump on the front of the engine. It's driven by a v-belt, which I expect you would have one of, running from a pully on the crankshaft to additional pullys on a power steering pump, the engine water pump, and a separate raw water pump. To be clear, Bravo or Alpha, you will have a automotive-style waterpump above the crankshaft. If you also have the raw water pump, it's a Bravo. On my 454 big block 330 H.P. Bravo One the raw water pump was on port side, low. If you ever had a mechanic drop your lower unit to change a raw water pump or just an impellor, it's an Alpha (or you were cheated). If it's an Alpha and you don't know the pump's history, it would be a good idea to inspect and/or replace (at least the impellor) pronto. It it's brittle, was previously run dry even for a moment, or pumped sandy water at all, it's efficiency is diminished and/or is a failure waiting to happen. While some will say to service the pump every season, such frequency is often unnecessary if operating conditions are favorable.

 

[Erawk]

Yeah, the stickers are gone. I'm fairly certain its an alpha I. Thank you for the responses.

 

[Erawk]

Is there any need to remove the entire outdrive to change the impeller & housing?

I've found two different tutorials online. One says to just pull the lower part of the drive off, while the other says to drain the oil, remove the entire outdrive and put it on a stand.

I would rather not pull the whole drive if it is not necessary.
It's an 88 5.7L Mercruiser Alpha outdrive Gen I.

Any links to good instructions would be appreciated.

Thanks in advance.

 

[Weave]

sterndrives.com
or do a search on here

 

[mwph]

http://www.outdriveshop.com/replace_alpha_one_waterpump.html

This may be one of the sited that tells you to remove the entire drive. A direct quote from the site is.......... "Trying to replace a water pump without the drive supported in a stand sucks."

 

[mikec12969]

Type what you need into a google video search (I.E. "How to replace a water pump on a Alpha 1 outdrive) and step by step vids will come up. They help alot.

 

[NorCal Boater]

You have an Alpha. Sea Ray did not use the early Bravos on the smaller boats. They were used for the heavier boats as they had much larger propes and lowere units. If your boat has a Bravo someone replaced the Alpha.

 

[zippinbye]

No, you do not need to remove the whole drive, although that is easy to do. I would say that if you do not have a stand or a good makeshift holding device (big-ass vice and lumber for instance), it would be more difficult to accomplish with the drive off the boat. But full drive removal should be done for lubrication of the shaft splines where they slide into the coupler (shift into forward ist, and work the prop until you achieve a solid lock-up). Both items, pump and lube, are within reach of most people who can change sparkplugs, oil and carbs, etc. But you really should get a service manual ... not the full shop Merc style, but an aftermarket such as Clymer or Sealoc. Tips, cautions and torque values will quickly pay for the book, which will set you back about 1/4 of the cost for one hour of shop time.

 

[Fordiesel69]

If this is your first time, remove the drive. It is very hard to get things lined up with the drive on the boat. Plus you need to lubricate and inspect the u-joints, splines, yoke, bellows, and gimbal bearing. It is somthing that is so painfully simple, you will laugh. With air tools, I can have a drive off in 2-3 minutes. This is no exageration. If you re-use your shaft o-rings where it slips thru the gimble bearing, it will slide right on effortlessly. If you use new ones, it will be harder.