Evil sounds from outdrive-alpha 1 1990

1990 alpha 1 outdrive is making evil sounds when i turn right or left . something is wanting to tear up.pulled outdrive,(lot of slop in outdrive when I manually wiggle it-approx 3 in at prop) Oil in outdrive is real good. Drive shaft turns o.k. no visable dammage to u-joints.Water and sludge in bellows. What is causing these awful sounds and vibrations? Thanks John

Re: Evil sounds from outdrive-alpha 1

gimbal bearing ? Looks like what ?

How high you running the drive ?

Ok new rubber boots. The drive boot should be dry maybe a little grease.

Now you got it off, take a magnifying glass and look at all the pivot points. One or more cracked?

Holes worn out maybe ?

Look close. Gimbal ring is tight to the transom, turn the nuts they turn more then a half turn you may have transom rot and maybe the drive dropped a tad.

You got the zerk on the very top of the ring ? You got a alignment bar, your gonna need one cheap on ebay, 50 bucks or less delivered.

Post back after you do what i posted we will go from there.

john j. boes said:

1990 alpha 1 outdrive is making evil sounds when i turn right or left . something is wanting to tear up.pulled outdrive,(lot of slop in outdrive when I manually wiggle it-approx 3 in at prop) Oil in outdrive is real good. Drive shaft turns o.k. no visable dammage to u-joints.Water and sludge in bellows. What is causing these awful sounds and vibrations? Thanks John

Click to expand...

water in the drive shaft bellows means the gimble bearing is in need of replacement in most cases since the bearing rapidly gets pitted. with drive unit removed move the bearing with your fingers and check for play and roughness when rotating the gimble bearing.


open the top cap on the drive and inspect the drive top/upper bearing for damage. sometimes water from the bellows will get into this upper drive bearing area. the U joints must not have any joint play these also get damaged when the bellows leaks.

water will condensate under this upper cap of the drive.

pressure test the drive also before installing the drive with 10psi of air this is just to ensure the drive is with no leaks.


check the motor mounts for security , the alignment must be correct using the tool in the gimble housing..

I think i have a similar problem on my 1997 model. In a straight line, it runs fine, but when trying to turn it sounds like a jetplane trying to take off. Is this most likely the gimbal bearing?

Last season i noticed the exhaust seemed very loud so i replaced the manifold gaskets, but the noise is still there, any solutions guys??

Suggest that if it's not the U-joints, it's the gimbal bearing.

Bruce Clarkson

sounds like a gimble bearing due to water intrusion, like chief said, buy or borrow an alignment tool.

THANKS FOLKS FOR THE HELP ON THIS ISSUE I've orderd a new kit for the Gimble and bellows repair. Also bought a bellows expander and a allignment shaft all I need now is a seal installer. I also bought a manual. I hope its better than Sellok manuals . I'm not going any further until parts and manual get here. Althoe i would like to get the Gimble housing off but I dont know the procedure. Thanks again john

Don't need to remove the gimble housing to replace the bearing. Need a slide hammer to take out the bearing. I bought a low cost one at Harbor Freight to remove my bearing last boating season.

john j. boes said:

THANKS FOLKS FOR THE HELP ON THIS ISSUE I've orderd a new kit for the Gimble and bellows repair. Also bought a bellows expander and a allignment shaft all I need now is a seal installer. I also bought a manual. I hope its better than Sellok manuals . I'm not going any further until parts and manual get here. Althoe i would like to get the Gimble housing off but I dont know the procedure. Thanks again john

Click to expand...

don't forget to check those engine mounts as they do loosen , as the boat structure can decay.

I have replaced just the bearing and not the bearing race,which 99% of the time does not have to be replaced.You are opening up a can of worms buy trying to remove race which is corroded in place. This is the easiest way to do it.Grab a larger size brass/bronze or similiar tool to TAP the outside of the bearing while it is in the race so that the pivot point lines up with the two notches in the race.Look at new one that comes with race and it will make sense.When it is at 90 Degrees to the notch just pull it out with your hand. Reverse procedure to install new bearing, most of the time you can put it almost in place with your hand then use old bearing as a "bushing driver" or smaller wood dowel to gently tap back into race without damaging new bearing.Just be careful that you do not damage new bearing when removing from new race and then when you tap it flush into old race.

The bearing say is all rusted up and destroyed but the race is in perfect condition ?

Latter for a slide hammer get a puller, steady and powerful pressure is the ticket, a good pivot head one.

OTC 7494A Rear Axle Bearing Puller Set - 3 Pc.

The race is all aluminum and has no wear as the bearing made of steel,which rusts, takes the full load.So yes the race is in perfect condition.I have seen marine mechanics follow the same procedure as the one I described.I made a suggestion as to the easiest way and less costly as well. You may buy the bearing from NAPA instead of marine dealer to save more money.

A bad gimbal bearing will be noisy 100% of the time it is turning. Replacing it won't hurt. U-joints may be dry of lube. Other points mentioned can also be a problem.