Its all gone wrong..bl*&dy Boats!!

Mr Googler

Mr Googler

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I reported in an earlier thread that I had UJ knocking so took the leg off, UJ fine but gimbal bearing came out with the shaft. Not good me thinks...oh well, ordered a new one and came to fit today but it just popped right in, no need to bang in or anything...really bad news!!!

This should be a super tight fit so obviously the bearing housing as become enlarged. Problem is its part of the transom housing so that means engine out and a new one :(

Before I part with literally £1000's has anyone had this problem and fixed it another way. I thought about adhesives or liquid metals but its a lot of force for that. Maybe be a custom made ring to take up the difference but its that small it would be difficult.

Are there any custom bearing people out there whole could modify the toleance ring so its bigger?

Its a Yamaha Hydradrive leg but this bit is the same as a mercruiser (same bearing and everything)

Any help would be greatly appreciated and I am off to cry in a dark corner.
 
Mmmm.

I would remove the housing an take it to a good machine shop (one that repairs aluminium cylinder heads)

I would have thought they could build it up with weld and then machine it back out.
 
The problem with just making a ring or similar is that you dont know if it has been enlarged uniformly or centrally around the axis. I'd def take it off the boat to a machine shop where it can be properley accessed for possible repair. You will of course need to know EXACTLY what diameter the hole should be for a correct interference fit. Hopefully it can be built up then machined back to correct size.

Ants
 
Are you 100% it is the correct bearing,no chance it is a for an earlier or later unit with different outer dimensions or just not the proper unit.?
If the bearing housing has enlarged through wear there will surely be signs of heat damage ?
If the new bearing is fitted with some sort of locktite or similar would that be enough to prevent the outer shell from moving.

While not exactly the same problem.the sterndrive output shaft on my Volvo leg had pitted through corrosion and my new transom bearings were not a tight fit on the shaft.
As a new shaft was outrageous and secondhand ones non exisitant,it was suggested by a well known south coast leg workshop that not a few centre punch impacts would raise the surface enough for the shaft and bearing to have a tight fit and along with a squirt of some locking goo,it has performed happly for around 500 hours so far.
Might be worth thinking out the box before ripping the whole thing to bits.
There are a couple of outfits down this way who specialise in what shall we say.... stuff that needs a little more than the usual attention to get going again or to be blunt .....well shagged,might just be worth a phone call.
Good Luck.
 
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>If the new bearing is fitted with some sort of locktite or similar would that be enough to prevent the outer shell from moving.

No! Don't go there. Welding/machining is the way to go.

dv.
 
Thanks

Defo the right bearing I'm afriad.

Its got to come out as you all say. I like the hole punch idea as it is such a tiny difference. I maybe be getting a transom shield for beer tokens so if thats the case I think I will just replace with good condition secondhand as most of the cost will then be in labour anyway.

If the chaps comes through with his offer I will be posting a long message about how great he is (commercial company who I've only talked to on the phone!).

I'll keep you posted...off to cry some more:(
 
Bearings

Take it was has happened is the bearing has jammed or worn and has then started running in the housing as well as the bearing its self . The last thing you want is a problem at sea . You could get the whole enlarged to take a larger bearing if enough metal left . Welding may work but you have to drill or cut it out afterwards . Can you get a bearing with a smaller od and then get a ring made up to go round it . Try a bearing company first . they may have something a mm more in dia .
 
If it's any consolation, many years ago, swmbo and her friends managed to cook my AD31. Cost £5k to rebuild.

I managed get thru most of a bottle of Jack Daniels in an evening when I found out what had happened.

Never before, and never again :o
(jd, or cooked engines)

Pour yourself a large one, and good luck. It could be worse :)
 
IAN13 said:
Take it was has happened is the bearing has jammed or worn and has then started running in the housing as well as the bearing its self . The last thing you want is a problem at sea . You could get the whole enlarged to take a larger bearing if enough metal left . Welding may work but you have to drill or cut it out afterwards . Can you get a bearing with a smaller od and then get a ring made up to go round it . Try a bearing company first . they may have something a mm more in dia .
Click to expand...

Thanks Ian. I am going to get the CAD drawing from SFK site and then speak to a few bearing companies. As a previous formite said, has the hole be made bigger uniformally?

Flowerpower, thats sounds really bad.......at least you could blame your SWIMBO.. mines blaming me:(

As you say its not the end of the world at if its was raining it would help.

Morgan's Spice is numbing things nicely at the mo ;)
 
Yamaha240 said:
I’m on this position now , 15 years later 🤣
Can you remember what you did to get sorted?
Click to expand...
Hi!

2 options…use flexible shim material to take up the tolerance and/or use a retaining lock tight style product. I’ll try to remember what I used as that’s what I did
 
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