what kind of sterndrives are these

[tgilmore99]

can somebody verify what kind of drives these are
1985 270 at sundancer twin 5.7L OMC
How do I tell what kind of drives they are?

 

[ghuskin]

well, by your description, I'd say they are "OMC" sterndrives.

 

[tgilmore99]

are they called something? Stinger or Stringer?
Looking for specs. I am having some issues. And need to look some things up. But not sure which manual to get

 

[ghuskin]

Stringer.

Apparently OMC only made the one drive from '78 to '85.

Good luck!

 

[KayKook]

Yes..... good luck. Parts are still around, but getting harder to find, as well as someone to work on them.

 

[fc3]

I doubt it's the stringer drive. Around the mid-80 OMC introduced a "Cobra" drive that would fit the Mercruiser cutout and installation points. At the time a boat builder could make one style of hull and sterndrive cutout. He could then install either a Mercruiser, OMC, Yamaha, or Volvo sterndrive.

You probably have a Cobra. The bigger Cobra coupled with higher horsepower engines were King Cobras.

Stringer drives used a huge nearly round transom cutout. The drive had a huge rubber ring for sealing. The drive torque was not transmitted to the transom, but to the engine and power coupling mounts which were attached to the stringer. Hence the name. If your boat does not have a great big cutout with a big exposed rubber gasket, it's not a stringer drive.

Best regards,
Frank C

 

[tgilmore99]

fc3 you just explained alot to me. Mine drives do have the large almost circular cutout and a huge rubber gasket. At least now I can order a manual to help me. Thanks

 

[Cap10Pat]

Frank,
Amazing knowledge!

 

[keokie]

They are OMC 800's. 1985 was the last year they were made. They run smoother and quieter than Mercs. They tilt higher, and turn much sharper. And they are way less reliable. It is very difficult to keep water out of the gear cases, they ran very hot which made wapring of the housing relatively common (which leads to broken shafts). They had other issues as well. The biggest challenge now is parts are getting more scarce.

 

[tgilmore99]

Is there a way to retrofit to a more popular unit ( common Parts)

 

[keokie]

There really isn't a cost effective way to change drives. Changing the gear case oil about every 20 hours of operation will help. Run them easy when you can as well. They don't like extended periods at high RPM.

 

[Dirtguy]

There really isn't a cost effective way to change drives. Changing the gear case oil about every 20 hours of operation will help. Run them easy when you can as well. They don't like extended periods at high RPM.

Would a drive shower be effective with controlling the higher temp?

They work well on Mercs.

DG

 

[SCORPIO]

What issues are you having? I just sold my '82 260 SXL that had a 260 OMC with 800 Stringer drive. I have some brand new parts as well as some good used parts. I also have a parts diagram book from '81 of '82 they didn't change much. I also have some tools I may want to part with. I've rebuilt my outdrive from the bottom up. They are relatively simple units and easy to work on if you are handy with tools and have some of the special tools like shim tools. Ebay has many parts/tools for sale many new old stock. A guy in Calif. named Werner Wessler is a retired service man with a large inventory of NEW parts and tools.