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Properly lubing a gimbal bearing

I

ibrakethings

Member
"i have 90 alpha 1, i would li

"i have 90 alpha 1, i would like to know if there is a proper way to lube the gimbal bearing and what type of lube is best? can you over grease this bearing and flood the bellow with grease? does mercruiser recommend 24C for this one too?
is there an equivilent non- merc grease available that is as good?
thanks for any advice!"
 
"I use Valvoline synthetic all

"I use Valvoline synthetic all purpose grease for all greasing of merc products. Available at most napa auto parts stores and many other locations.

The 2-4-c grease with TEFLON is not for high speed applications such as ujoints or gimbal bearings.

As far as application, I shoot around ten full pumps of grease into the gimbal. Any extra falls into the bellows and keeps things nice and greasy!"
 
Just so you know
my boat is

Just so you know
my boat is a 1987 and I purchased it in 1995 and I have not had to replace the gimbal bearing yet!
 
"Might make a difference if yo

"Might make a difference if you used the boat !!
lol.gif
"
 
"OH I used the boat a ton up t

"OH I used the boat a ton up to 2005 when I bought my motorcycle..........With the price of fuel over the last few years and the fact that we have only had 3-5 sunny days since May here this year, it may be a wash. (pun intended) it has rained almost every day since early june..................cloudy and overcast!"
 
"Where I am in Australia (

"Where I am in Australia (tropical) we get to go boating all year. Great climate ! So I run up about 800 / 900 miles a year, running up to the Great Barrier Reef, which starts about 60 miles to the north of here.
I get to replace the gimbal bearing about every 2 years or about every 1700 miles."
 
That probably has more to do w

That probably has more to do with salt air intrusion than use.

If the bearing is greased properly I see no reason it would not last for several seasons.

If you keep you boat in the water then it would be difficult to service it every ~ 50 hours.

I guess it would be about time that Merc put in a sealed bearing as they did to the ujoints........... I do not see the real need for a greasable bearing that fails so often any longer.
 
The boat is in the water all t

The boat is in the water all the time at the marina and I pull it out every 12 months for a service and a bottom paint. I change the gimbal bearing every second time she gets lifted weather the bearing needs replacing or not.
It would be a PITA to lift her a second time just to do the bearing !!
And a new bearing is not much cost compared to a lift and a day on the hard stand.
 
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