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Bravo1 Gimbal Upgrade

H8Plow

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Hello RDP,

I am in the process of upgrading from the stock gimbal ring to the SS Hill version. I have basically ordered everything new to fully rebuild this assembly. My main question is if it is possible to replace the raw water pickup (the one that causes Bravoitis) hose while the engine is still in the boat? Since I'm there and it is part of the kit I want to replace it if I can, I was told by Ron at JR Marine that it is damn near impossible with the engine in, but being an auto mechanic by trait I know nothing is impossible lol.

If anyone can chime in on this that owns one. I had a difficult time inserting the rod through the gimbal ring that secures the trim cylinders, the holes were off by a few thousandths. The rod will not freely move side to side like it did in the OEM version. Is this OK? Thanks
SS Gimbal.jpg
 

H8Plow

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Update - A pretty easy job to do yourself if you have the right tools. You will need a gimbal installation and removal tool, and you will also need the bellows expander ring installer. I would suggest to anyone that is just getting into boating (with a mercruiser outdrive) to make sure and just double check a few things during their boating season.

1 - Double check the torque of the U-bolt nuts. Factory U-bolt is 40 ft lbs and if using the HP version from JR Marine it is 50 ft lbs.
2 - Check your hinge pins (behind the trim senders) for a bravo or blackhawk it is 150 ft lbs.
3 - Change your drive oil after 20 hours (optimum time to basically check these two torque specs since you are there)

The SS gimbal ring was a great purchase, the fit and finish from a machining stand point could be better.

Pros - Strong, looks great

Cons - Too much polishing in the area where the thrust washer is (not enough of a flat spot to get a good reading for clearance) makes it difficult to measure for thrust clearance.

The trim sensor pad is off center in relation to the hinge pin area, really a cosmetic issue and the trim senders went on fine.

I did buy the Hill Marine SS steering pin and had issues trying to get the pin to engage the small upper bushing. The O.D. of the top machined area of the steering pin was to large and it would not go into the bushing without considerable force. Took the steering pin back and five other of their pins had the same issue. Only one of the steering pins they had there would the bushing just slide over, the steering pin I swapped out for did not look like their "other" ones because at the very top this had a 3/16 hole drilled into it. The steering pin looks like their competitors (JR Marine).

All in all I'm happy with the purchase and the sound mind of knowing that this will never happen again on my watch. The alternative was to buy a new gimbal ring at $1,300 from mercury. JR Marine can fix yours that is starting to wear out ($500 with a good core), however mine had also worn into the shoe area and rendered it useless.

All that is left is to install the cover plate and mount the drive after repaint
 

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