i have lots of play in my outdrive (bravo 1) and have narrowed it down to somewhere in the transom assembly. when i wiggle the drive i can see that the steering lever isn't moving, but the drive is. i weighed my options and decided to use ron bender's kit. i'm going to cut the whole out tomorrow. once i get it open, is it going to be very obvious if the gimble is bad, or if its just a stripped steering lever or swivel shaft? i have owned and worked on boats my whole life, but i'm a novice when it comes to outdrives. i am very confident that i can do the repairs, its just that i dont really know what to look for once i get the whole thing open. i have read that if i have up and down play that the gimble is bad. how do i check that. i have"literally" hugged the drive and tried to move it vertically, but i get no movement. any input or even pictures would be great. thanks in advance.

A great web site for info ishttp://www.mercuiserparts.com
They have lots of pics too.
hope this helps.

Zane .. how about keeping us updated with your findings and progress....m

i'll keep you guys updated on my progress. regardless of what i learn tonite, i'm cutting into the housing tomorrow.

You need to look at the bottom of the swivel shaft ( the shaft the steering lever is hooked to ) where it fits into the gimble ring, then move the drive side to side, if the ring turns but the shaft doesn't its the gimble ring, ( i am allready assuming you have tried properly torqueing the ring to be sure it doesn't clamp down all the way ) The shaft is steel adn the ring aluminum the gimble ring will be the damaged part, however the shaft is almost always, rusted or pitted in some form and usually needs replaced as well, I do't know if your boat is single engine or twin and trs or bravo.? Good Luck, oh yeah vertical moevement is usually not an issue as the bottom of the ring is very close to the transom plates flange on the bottom where it pivots down there, ( .010 " on a bravo ) and will usually not exibit vertical moevement, most vertical moevement is usually found in the hinge pin area. Good Luck again. J

Bilgerat called it right, it will be the gimbal ring and the swivel shaft, you need to drill 2 holes, one on each side of the gimbal housing up top, I think they are 11/4 holes, merc sells a repair kit for that with new plugs and nut, and also has template for drilling the holes, I have done this repair on several boats, Bravo and alpha, get good with a punch and hammer, thats how you remove the old nut and install the new. good luck.

today i removed the outdrive and cut into the gimble housing. i used ron benders cover plate kit. it seemed easier than mercury's kit, and gives you more room to work. his directions are right on the money. unfortunately, we are moving so i have to put this project off for a few days. i hope to get the gimble out tomorrow, so if its shot i can send it out and have it back by the time i'm ready to start on this again.my wife only cares about using our other boat, so my time with this one is limited. thanks for eveyones assistance.

If you have this problem, and you switch to full hydraulic steering with an external ram, this item no longer needs to be addressed, correct? Reason I ask is that I just upgraded to full hydraulic on my boat due to the stock steering being very loose. With the hydraulic in place, I can't budge my drive in any direction.