Anyone have any experience with one of these? Are they any good?

Is Hill Marine decent to deal with?

Scott

When they first came out it was hard getting things lined up. I think it was how they were machined but maybe they have closer tolerances now.

I was just reading about one of these being installed on another boating site yesterday. I can't remember which one though but this is what was said. (1)The Hill Stainless gimbal ring is 1/4 inch shorter than the stock merc so there is going to be a 1/4 inch gap at the top of the gimble ring where it should snug againt the transom housing. This could be a problem with the seal for the swivel pin dropping down. (2) The lower pin bushing does not fit correctly in the bottom hole of the gimbal ring. It's too tight. You will need to grind it out or have it machined to the correct size. (3) The lower ears where the drive wear plates slide into when trimming in are too tight. The wear plates bind in this area so it will need to be ground or machined out. (4) The holes for the trim sender and trim limit switch do not line up with the senders and will need to be re-drilled and tapped. This won't be fun as it is stainless steel. Two people on that site had experienced the exact same thing. For what it's worth, I believe if the standard HD gimbal is used and the transom assembly is maintained correctly i.e no slack at the swivel pins they will be just fine.

I will stay away from it.

Scott

I had the same exact issues listed above except the ears that supported the bottom of the drive were ground uneven and too loose,would have had to been welded up and re-machined somehow,Smitty