If pushing it in, and it touches on the bottom but not the top, and the gap on top is evenly tapered from top to bottom, the motor mounts need to go down evenly. Note if the motor is dropped down and not evenly, the twist will make it feel tighter.

Also good to pull the pin out of the steering arm, so you don't have to make sure the wheel is dead center.
Push in on the plate and use feeler gauges to measure the sides to determine a twist exist.

F2, yes very similar. Alldodge, its an even taper from the gap on top to slowly touching at bottom. After i get this cone clutch in im going to the shop wheee the boat is. Ill suspend the engine from the crane on my service truck and try to even out the weight on each mount to "reset"! So throw rear mount washer idea out? Do any of you ever use a protractor when aligning?

thanks again everyone!

I've never used a protractor. IMO the angle of the transom is irrelevant, the transom plate and front mounts are all that matter.

Would not do washers, installing washers would keep the bar from going in the coupler

Have you rotated the motor 90 degrees to see if the alignment changes

yes i have rotated it. Because i upgraded to a steel coupler last year and went through two new bad ones before going back to an aluminum! I verified this one was had only .005 runout installed. As far as angle i was just referencing some old posts that stated that all merc transom plates are designed for a 13 degree difference between the plate and engine. So i have just been checking it and keeping note. So if i put the engine all the way down on the mounts and the gap still doesn't change, then what? I'm puzzled of why there was the gap on the plate in the pictures and i could pull the alignment bar out with two fingers? I don't know the pitch of the mount stud but to close that 1/8" gap how many turns would you estimate?

If you can put the mounts all the way down and still get the alignment bar in, I think you have something else going on. Maybe the bar is not going into the coupler or something else

If you can put the bar full in, and can remove with 2 fingers, I think your good

As for my 90 degree comment, I wondered if the alignment bar resistance changes if the motor is rotated

Get a dowel rod, stiff piece of wire or other which is long enough to go to the rear of the coupler. Mark the rod at the face of the bell housing, now stick the alignment bar and mark it. Compare the two and the rod should be a bit deeper but not that much

Ok i have my porta power under crank pulley. Lower mount nuts fully lowered. Engine all the way down and align bar pulls out with 2 fingers and same gap on top with plate. I can move the engine up probably an inch and bar still pulls out with 2 fingers. Gap on plate never changes. Whats up with that?

Wrong size coupler, or alignment bar is not going in the coupler

x2 Words right out of my mouth.