Loyd Dinneen
Active Member
- Jul 29, 2017
- 484
- Boat Info
- 1977 Sea ray 240 SDA cruiser w/ twin 470 mercs.
- Engines
- Twin 470 Mercruisers
I have a 1977 240 SDA Weekender that was previously owned by people who what ever they fixed it was all a s s backwards thus I come to the subject of the two pre alpha outdrives that is on this boat. The port outdrive I decided to install a new waterpump because I didn't like the water flow So I did that and then had trouble getting the lower in back in so with advice from my Merc Mechanic I removed the upper to make mounting the lower easier. Took off the upper and it had water in the u-joint bellows and the gimbel bearing was shot. The reason was they didn't replace the housing gasket with a new one and the center portion was broken and allowed water to go into the u-joint bellows, killing the gimbel bearing ,and making a mess of all the openings. Not only did they not replace a $5.00 gasket but also the o-ring for the water passage and the large square o-ring in the housing( thus all the water perhaps). So I installed new seals in the upper half(had already done the lower when I did the waterpump), new gimbel bearing and o-rings and fought it back on. Had a problem with trim lowering but that is air in the lines, and fixed the shift adjustment so it would go into gear. after all that comes the starboard side.
Couldn't get it to go into reverse and adjust properly and someone on another blog said that perhaps the washer on the shift was probaly left out. I drained the oil and it was full of water and this was after I had replaced the waterpump and seals on the lower half a few months back. This boat hasn't made it in the water yet only run on muffs. So I pulled the outdrive and found that They had siliconed what was left of the housing gasket to the housing ,very badly, and there was oilly grease in the u-joint bellows and exhaust stains in the waterpump area. The shift cable area was badly corroded with salt and in other areas. So I have ordered all the needed parts, seals and gaskets to rebuild this out drive. Oh also the washer and gasket was missing from the shift shaft thus the reason for no reverse. So tomorrow I tackle the bellows and get it ready to be replaced even though they look like new( just like the other side was). Have already pulled the gimbel bearing.
What have I all learned from this experience? First off not to buy anything from south of the border people ( trying not to be racist),he lied out his teeth about the condition of the boat. Next is get the boat surveyed no matter what it may cost ,it has cost me at least 800.00 in parts and labor so far and I am still not in the water and fishing. Thats not counting the man hours I have put into it. I have brought it back to its original look with what it came with in 1977. Looks great on the trailer(also rebuilt) in front of my house and making the neighbors upset over the Parking spaces I'm taking up LOL.
Well enough bellyaching thanks for looking and I hope someone has got a laugh out of this and perhaps a lesson learned, I sure have.
Couldn't get it to go into reverse and adjust properly and someone on another blog said that perhaps the washer on the shift was probaly left out. I drained the oil and it was full of water and this was after I had replaced the waterpump and seals on the lower half a few months back. This boat hasn't made it in the water yet only run on muffs. So I pulled the outdrive and found that They had siliconed what was left of the housing gasket to the housing ,very badly, and there was oilly grease in the u-joint bellows and exhaust stains in the waterpump area. The shift cable area was badly corroded with salt and in other areas. So I have ordered all the needed parts, seals and gaskets to rebuild this out drive. Oh also the washer and gasket was missing from the shift shaft thus the reason for no reverse. So tomorrow I tackle the bellows and get it ready to be replaced even though they look like new( just like the other side was). Have already pulled the gimbel bearing.
What have I all learned from this experience? First off not to buy anything from south of the border people ( trying not to be racist),he lied out his teeth about the condition of the boat. Next is get the boat surveyed no matter what it may cost ,it has cost me at least 800.00 in parts and labor so far and I am still not in the water and fishing. Thats not counting the man hours I have put into it. I have brought it back to its original look with what it came with in 1977. Looks great on the trailer(also rebuilt) in front of my house and making the neighbors upset over the Parking spaces I'm taking up LOL.
Well enough bellyaching thanks for looking and I hope someone has got a laugh out of this and perhaps a lesson learned, I sure have.