Alpha Drive Resto ?'s
 

I have a 92 powerquest viate with a 350 mag alpha. The boat is in great shape. New cover, vinyl, carpet... and some more... I just got done overhauling the traliler. New brakes bunks paint lights jack, the works. The only thing that doesn't look like new now is the outdrive. I definately need to paint it. I did a quick fix up a coulpe years ago, but it's time for the whole deal now. The only problem is, I have never really done much other than change outdrive oil, and grease. I'm not sure how it comes off, and what is really involved. The drive, upper and lower the gimbal ring, (I think that's what it's called) and the part that is bolted right to the transom all need some work. Normally The boat is stored somewhere else for the winter so I was hoping to remove all this so I can work on it in my garage. How does it come off? Should I take it off? Should I unbolt the big bracket from the boat or am I asking for trouble. What gaskets should I replace... I'm sure you get the idea. Basically what should I do. I'm pretty mechanically inclined, and have tons of tools. I'm sure I can do it, I just need to know how.

On your drive you have the Upper and Lower of the outdrive. Removing 6 nuts and placing the drive in forward and The upper and lower will slide right off provided it is not corroded, otherwise you'll have to work a bit to get it off. This will leave the Transom Assembly which is made up of 4 pieces. The inner transom plate, Outer transom plate, Gimbal Ring and Bell housing.. You can get the Bell housing off pretty easily if you can borrow the spline tool to undo the two bolts under the trim limit switch caps. To remove the Gimbal Ring without taking the Transome plates off will require drilling the outer transom plate to access the upper pivot pin of the Gimbal ring. Unless you've got someone to show you exactly how to do that I don't recomend it. The easier way is to remove the transom plates and do it on a bench. But in order to remove the transome plates your gonna have to pull the engine or at least lift it out of the way to get at the inner transome plate..

I just put a new motor in mine and while I was building up the motor, I pulled the transom assebly appart and did all this. I suffer from what a few others on here have called Minaswellanoma.. Seeing as to how I had the engine out I mine as well go over the out drive.... If you can get access to a few of the specialty tools you'll need to do some of this work, it is pretty straight forward and as long as your mechanical ability is as you describe the part that took me the longest was verifying torque specs and getting all the tools together. Replacing all the seals and bellows was pretty easy. I would recomend you look up the Merc manuals, and they have some great images on clamp locations and tips on getting it all back together. I took about 4 weekends to do this and I even repainted my bilge while I had everthing out.

If you don't want to pull the engine then look into the Merc Gimbal ring repair kit which gives you the plugs and locations for the holes you have to drill to remove the gimbal ring without taking the transom assembly apart. If you go that route you can clean up and service all the exterior drive parts pretty easily.

Good Luck

Eri c

I would also avoid the gimple ring. Not worth it in my opinion just to paint. The drive on the other hand is easy, just the 6 bolts mentioned above. You can get he gasket kit at the marina and will come with o-rings also. Pretty simple task.

Pulling the engine to paint the outdrive sounds a bit extreme. I myself can go a little ( read waaaaaayy ) overboard sometimes but I think I will just pull the drive off and fix her up over the winter. Come spring all I have left is what ever is left on the boat, gimball ring and bellhousing. What about the trim rams. Take them off or leave them on? I guess it's just hydroulic fluid in there. If I split the upper and lower are gears going to come falling out? I think the water pump is in there too. I should probably put a new one in. That one is at least 7 years old.

Here a few links that will help you out.....

http://www.mercstuff.com/alpharemoval.htm

http://www.mercstuff.com/waterpumpinst.htm

You can easily take the rams off and strip and paint them over the winter. You should not lose much fluid. In the spring bolt them back off and cycle the trim up and down to bleed the system of air. Don't forget to check the fluid level.
I always pull the lower off before pulling the top. It's easier and much lighter to lift both pieces one at a time. No gears will come out. You are simply pulling a splined shaft out of the upper stub driveshaft. Replace the water pump impeller at least once every year. 7 yrs is wayy tooo long!! Pick up a Merc #6 drive manual on Ebay for $20 and it explains alot and is worth it's weight in gold if you perform service yourself.

In my spare time my Father and I rebuild Alpha's. Feel free to shoot me an email with any questions you need. [email protected]

We turn this.....

http://img213.imageshack.us/img213/2...pha1aa9.th.jpg

Into this......

http://img209.imageshack.us/img209/3...lphagi6.th.jpg

You are correct the Water Pump is in between the upper and lower and no the gears won't come out. though it is a little more complicated than pulling the whole drive off, accessing and replacing your impeller or the whole pump housing is pretty straight forward and should be done while your getting ready to paint the drive.
The trim rams are no problem either. And it is just hydrolic fluid. You may find someone used power steering fluid as well. should be easy to see the difference if they did. you'll either want to make sure you use the same when filling it back up or just drain it all and start fresh, which is not a bad idea either.

Wow! Some pretty detailed info there. Thanks. I think I have that pretty well covered. I'm sure I will figure it out once I start ripping it open. I forgot to ask about the skeg. It is a little bent from the middle down about a half inch to port, and has a chip on the tip about half the size of a nickel. How do I fix that? I have seen people talking about welding on a new one. Where do I get a new skeg from, or is there something else that can be done? There are some corrosion spots. I plan on grinding them down and cleaning them out. What type of filler should I use? What type of primer and paint. I prefer not to use spray cans. I have a compressor and a gun.

A new skeg can be welded on but it takes an expert aluminum welder to keep the case from warping and also to get the skeg straight. If you go this route have a very experienced marine shop perform it or you might have a junk case afterwards. You could add the stainless SkegGaurds that Overtons and marine shops online sell. You could leave it as is and blend the small missing piece in so it's not as noticeable.

For filler I use AllMetal. It's very easy to work with and sands nicely and is very strong. It was recommended to me by Hydromotive for nosecone installations and I use it anywhere on the drives now. Use Zinc Chromate primer to prime the aluminum housing. BE CAREFUL and do not breathe it's vapors it's deadly but good stuff for primering aluminum. Paint use Merc Phantom Black, Tempo makes it along with Moeller. Usually comes in a spray can and is pretty strong for what it is. Not as good as factory Merc paint but acceptable. I've done a few drives with Dupont Imron but it does not sand well for any touchup work, it just melts. I prefer the Merc phantom black.

I finally started my project and have some more questions. I pulled the drive and split it in two. Removed water hose and bellows. Should the shift cable be replaced at this time? I am replacing the shift bellows and u-joint bellows and water hose and water impeller. Is there a gasket between the upper and lower halves? What should I use to fill some small pits in the case. I was thinking marine-tex. Basically I am giving it a good once over. What am I missing?

1 Yes if you are that far in replace everything. You can buy a complete kit.

2 There is an O-ring that seals the upper and lower.

3 Its sounds like you have a good grasp of whats going on.