Think i have a bad gimbal bearing but could it be more???

[MarkNY]

im pretty sure my gimbal bearing is shot on my 4.3 mercruiser alpha one. i noticed it being kind of loud last season and my mechanic said it was loud when he winterized it last fall. took it out for the first time last weekend. motor ran great. got up on plane and cruised for maybe 45 seconds when i heard a loud winding sound. it almost sounded like static from the VHF coming on at high volume but it was at the back at the boat. also smelled burnt oil smell or something like that at same time which didnt linger. immediately powered down and crawled back to ramp. seemed like the grumble was extra loud at this point or maybe i was just more aware of it. does this sound like a bad gimbal bearing? any other issues i could have with these symptoms? bellows and bearing were replaced 3 yrs ago. mechanic also stated that the outdrive gear oil was a little milky and should be pressure tested. all seals and impeller were replaced 2 yrs ago. what could be causing that? appreciate any thoughts. thanks, mark

[BullGator]

Your gimbal bearing will make the most noise when turning the boat. Will be a low pitched growl. Noise will usually subside some after several shots of grease to the gimbal zerk on the starboard side of the transom housing.

A bad gimbal bearing will make noise anytime engine is running.

If you were experiencing noise all of the time, and its rather high pitched, getting worse by the minute, I would bet you have bad bearings in the lower unit.

When these are bad, they will make noise anytime you are in gear.

After seeing milky oil, it should have been torn down.

[ray koziatek]

muffler bearing,opps 2 on the 4.3

[ray koziatek]

probly gimble mines been talkin for a couple years been slappin grease in their more than usual gonna be a nice mess for the mech who changes it (sorry hank) just a tad noisy with no vibes tho.. hard to belive a total falure that fast unless its been neglected or yer grease tube thingy is gone too. shouldnt effect gear oil as its outside outdrive even if ya blew upper seal (viberation)it should be dry in the bellows (I think) whoever winterized it would of seen water intrusion signs if the bellows were shot notg to mention water in the bilge from "weep"hole ....ya been hittin bilge and gettin water? worse yet "oily water"?

[MarkNY]

thanks guys, its definitely a growl not high pitched. its noisy all the time, not just in gear. i do think i might have some water intrusion. noticed a little more water than normal coming out of bilge last fall. ordered parts last week and plan to tear it apart soon and see whats going on. hopefully ill see something obvious. best, mark

[MarkNY]

Stripped it down today. Gimbal is definitely shot, water and rust in there. But bellow is in good shape, no holes. Not sure how water is getting in. Maybe the seal? Appreciate any suggestions...

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[seasquirrel]

I have a siggestion, take it to Hank. Lol

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[Xxx]

There is a exhaust bellow which is the big one and then there is a smaller one on the shift cable,

this one is usually over looked and most of the time the problem, of you got it that far, I would replace the shift cable and both bellows plus all the seals that go in the lower end, not a bad time to replace lower water pump also, then your good to go for a couple of years.

[L&M]

Good advice on doing it complete, but the shift cable bellows would have no bearing on water in the u-joint bellow (gimbal bearing) area. Provided the u-joint bellows is in fact ok. I would guess the rubber sealing ring was hit or disrupted when the drive was put on.

[MarkNY]

thanks guys. the job is done. took the boat out and there is absolutely no noise now except for the engine which ran like a top. gonna watch carefully for water in the bilge now. replaced all bellows, gimbal bearing. had a mechanic friend do the job with me and the only thing we can think caused water intrusion is from the gasket for the outdrive. torqued all bolts to spec and will be watching carefully. u joints had some surface rust on them which i didnt like seeing but they seem to be in good shape. greased them properly. planning on replacing them in the fall which will give me a chance to check for any more water intrusion....

[Xxx]

L&M is correct on the shift bellow having no factor on the gimbel getting water in, just wanted to mention the shift bellow, cause that cost me a return trip to the dock early one day!