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AQ280 Refresh and Replacement

Cazador

New member
Last year I purchased a new to me 1985 Trophy 2460 with a bad engine. The boat otherwise was in good condition and had been kept up and run regularly before before the engine went out (found some rusted cylinders and bent valves). My first priority was getting the boat running with a new engine. I built a new marine 350 with my dad and installed it using the drive components that came on the boat. We got the engine broken in and everything was running great. I was getting the boat dialed in and after about 100hrs in the last couple of months disaster struck the outdrive.

Coming home from a day of fishing at around 26kts the drive shaft busted at the u-joint and created some havoc in the drive area. The spinning shafts shredded the bellow, cracked the casing of the transmission, destroyed the flywheel cover from the clamp ring back, and when we began disassembly the oil was contaminated. Here are some pictures of the carnage
IMG_8023.JPGIMG_8025.JPGIMG_8022.JPGIMG_8021.JPG



I found a new drive for sale locally at a great price and picked it up. It seems to be in good condition and I plan to give it a good refresh before putting it back behind the fresh V8.


My first question is in regards to the flywheel cover. The boat originally came with a 2-piece cover and Borg-warner (I think) intermediary. I have not had much luck finding a replacement intermediary online and the new drive came with a 1 piece. Are these interchangeable?

IMG_8019.JPG IMG_7976.jpg

My general plan is to rebuild the new shaft with u-joint and fresh PDS bearings. What else should I plan while I have this all apart?
 
This will be a long one, and I’ve already had a long day.
I would be glad to respond in the morning.

I’m looking forward to it.

Just to add some more detail the new lower is 16.1:1. It was an incredible deal so I picked it up just to have a group of spare parts. It did also come with a brand new never installed transom shield which is nice.

I drained and oil flushed the original lower before refilling with fresh oil. Not sure how much damage was done but I don’t mind having some spares with these older drives that are becoming more rare every day.

now that I know the boat floats and fishes well I’m game for getting the drive put together right.
 
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Coming home from a day of fishing at around 26kts the drive shaft busted at the u-joint and created some havoc in the drive area. The spinning shafts shredded the bellow, cracked the casing of the transmission, destroyed the flywheel cover from the clamp ring back, and when we began disassembly the oil was contaminated. Here are some pictures of the carnage

The initial problem was that you did not replace the PDS bearings while the old engine was removed.
Unfortunately, the AFT bearing came apart and caused all of that damage!
I wish that you would have joined this forum earlier and had searched the Volvo Penta forums.
I have posted to this subject many times!

By the way, the original system is a Volvo Penta Borg Warner flywheel cover with the Borg Warner -slash- PDS adapter housing.
The snout that broke off is part of the BW/PDS adapter housing.



I found a new drive for sale locally at a great price and picked it up. It seems to be in good condition and I plan to give it a good refresh before putting it back behind the fresh V-8.
The lower unit must be the 1.61:1 reduction.
Remove the prop shaft bearing carrier "ring anode" and look for the stamped numbers. You should see 1.61 stamped into the carrier.



My first question is in regards to the flywheel cover. The boat originally came with a 2-piece cover and Borg-warner (I think) intermediary.
Yes.... that would be a Volvo Penta Borg Warner flywheel cover with the Borg Warner -slash- PDS adapter housing.

I have not had much luck finding a replacement intermediary online and the new drive came with a 1 piece.
Are these interchangeable?
Yes!


View attachment 22655 View attachment 22656

My general plan is to rebuild the new shaft with u-joint and fresh PDS bearings. What else should I plan while I have this all apart?

This would be an excellent time to install a good quality HTGR/PMGR starter motor.

DO NOT re-use any O-rings. Replace all with new OEM.


You will need to replace the two rubber cushion rings that support the flywheel cover and serve as the rear engine isolation.
The inner cushion provides the water seal.
You could replace just the inner cushion ring only, and re-use the best of the two old ones.

You will need six nice condition galvanized Tap Bolts for the clamping ring.

Do a search for AQ series Volvo Penta initial engine alignment using the triangulation procedure.
You will want to do this when going back in with the new engine.

As for PDS bearings, you will need a 6206 and a 6007 industry standard bearings in a good US, Japanese or German brand.....
NO Chinese bearings.
These are OPEN bearings, not sealed bearings.

Great time to install an 18" grease gun extension hose into the flywheel cover grease port.
Fasten the loose end to an area on the engine where it is easily visible.

You will install the PDS w/ the AFT bearing and small snap ring installed.
The two large snap rings follow!

You will install the FWD bearing last.

You will then pump the cavity full of high pressure grease (not Marine wheel bearing grease) as you spin the PDS.
You will install the seals ONLY after you see new grease exit the ball cages.

These are also industry standard single lip seals in a 35x62x7mm in a TCM or Timken brand.

FWD seal installs in the conventional fashion, and should be glued and staked as to prevent it from coming loose.


The AFT seal installs in the Non-Conventional direction (lip and tension spring facing AFT) so that it will breach any excessive grease.

Just to add some more detail the new lower is 16.1:1. It was an incredible deal so I picked it up just to have a group of spare parts. It did also come with a brand new never installed transom shield which is nice.
Your year model and engine require the double exhaust relief transom shield and the 95mm double exhaust relief exhaust Y pipe.
Make sure that the two rubber hooks are in good condition. The FWD ends of these make a water tight seal!
Replace them if questionable!

I drained and oil flushed the original lower before refilling with fresh oil.
The s/p drive requires 30W engine oil..... not heavy gear oil.
Heavy gear oil may damage the die-cast slinger pump impeller drive pins.


I see that the new transmission is removed from it's Intermediate housing.
Please note that the proper shimming procedure must be followed when re-installing it.
DO NOT use the OEM procedure. I can explain if need be.



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I'm still here. Work and life have been hectic and I haven't had much time for the fun stuff.



So it looks like I am set with all the major pieces needed to get back on the water:

Flywheel cover - I will be using the new-to-me one piece cover with new PDS bearings
Transom shield - The original on the boat is fine but might replace with the brand new one for aesthetics.
Upper - The new-to-me upper with new u-joints, PDS bearing and a proper shimming (I will have to research that)
Lower - The new-to-me lower is a 1.61 ratio. I just have to extract a broken bolt on the carrier that came that way and reinstall my prop.



Things to buy:

PDS Bearings - US made 6206 and 6007 open bearings with 35x62x7mm Timken seals
18" grease gun extension
New O rings - I will search for these
Clamp ring cushion rings - I replaced both of these a few months ago with the new engine, still need a new inner?
U-joints
Bellows
Annodes

I will start shopping this week.
 
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Flywheel cover - I will be using the new-to-me one piece cover with new PDS bearings
See my notes on installing and adding the right grease.

Transom shield - The original on the boat is fine but might replace with the brand new one for aesthetics.
You will need 6 new OEM carriage bolt shank seals.

Upper - The new-to-me upper with new u-joints, PDS bearing and a proper shimming (I will have to research that)
The shimming is a process of "over-shimming", gap measurements, then reducing the shim pack as to achieve a .003" bearing squeeze when fully tightened down.

Lower - The new-to-me lower is a 1.61 ratio. I just have to extract a broken bolt on the carrier that came that way and reinstall my prop.
This also requires a critical shimming procedure that must be followed.

Both of the above apply if each component is being used on a different Intermediate housing.

Things to buy:

PDS Bearings - US made 6206 and 6007 open bearings with 35x62x7mm Timken seals
Yes, that is correct. I use the Timken or TCM seals because they are available in the single lip style.
Be sure to glue and gently stake the FWD seal in place!


18" grease gun extension hose.
That is optional but I strongly suggest doing it.
Do this first in case you need to chase the threads, or change the threads to 1/8" TPT. That way you can clean out the debris.


New O rings - I will search for these

Clamp ring cushion rings - I replaced both of these a few months ago with the new engine, still need a new inner?
If these are only a few months old, they should go second time around. Put the best one on the inner side.
Don't forget to perform the triangulation procedure when re-installing the engine.


U-joints
The Spice 5-1306X (internally clipped) is a great replacement for the early universal drive shaft.

Bellows
Exhaust bellows rarely go bad. Drive shaft bellows are best if OEM.

Annodes
Replacing the Sacrificial Anodes would be a good idea.
Be careful removing the fasteners..... they can be stubborn. Heat is your friend.


I will start shopping this week.
 
I am finally making some progress on getting everything back together and I ran into an issue when test fitting the upper drive unit.

The new upper drive unit mounts to the steering yoke with an insert and two bolts. The original upper unit mounted with 1 large bolt. The round sleeve with the new upper does not fit into the existing steering yoke.

It was getting late in the day, but from the initial look I would need to remove the lower unit to pull the yoke out. Is this correct? I do have the yoke with the bigger hole for the two bolt connection.

What is the best path here?
 
I am finally making some progress on getting everything back together and I ran into an issue when test fitting the upper drive unit.

The new upper drive unit mounts to the steering yoke with an insert and two bolts. The original upper unit mounted with 1 large bolt. The round sleeve with the new upper does not fit into the existing steering yoke.

It was getting late in the day, but from the initial look I would need to remove the lower unit to pull the yoke out. Is this correct? I do have the yoke with the bigger hole for the two bolt connection.

What is the best path here?


Nevermind, I took a again today with fresh eyes and realized I should be able to just swap out the steering helmet. I'm going to try and make it by the storage yard tomorrow and swap them out.
 
A few things to note:

When you installed this transmission onto your Intermediate housing, did you go through the proper shimming procedure?
This is critical!

The two cap screws that secure the helmet pin must be of the correct length.
If too long, they will break through the thread bore, and will open the area up to water intrusion. I've seen this many times!

Yes.... the helmets can be interchanged on the early systems.

Watch for the 2 thin SS washers, and make sure that they go back in as they were.
The jam nuts are directional.
Use a thread locking product on the threads!
 
Thanks for the additional information.

We did go through the shimming procedure on the upper since it is a new upper/intermediate combination.

I will check the upper to ensure there is no pre-existing damage under the two cap screws and ensure we do not create any. I would assume if there is intrusion I can seal it up with a small layer of 5200 then install the cap screws with a sealant and be good.
 
Thanks for the additional information.

We did go through the shimming procedure on the upper since it is a new upper/intermediate combination.

I will check the upper to ensure there is no pre-existing damage under the two cap screws and ensure we do not create any. I would assume if there is intrusion I can seal it up with a small layer of 5200 then install the cap screws with a sealant and be good.

That may work.
However, if the threaded hole have been broken through, I would pull the clamping collar and have the broken areas TIG welded closed.

Reason: the next owner may not realize that something like 5200 is needed to seal the threaded holes.



My grandfather used a wise phrase for things like this:

"If you do not have the time to make a proper repair now, when will you find time to do it again later?"
 
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