www.iFourWinns.com :: View topic - 1994 OMC King Cobra lower drive bearing replacement ??

Lou ,

Thank you so much. I was just talking about you to my wife as we were hauling the boat up to St. Joe Michigan this morning. We bought the boat in the fall of 2013 and you were very helpful with information, and suggestions as we were fixing it up back then. I forgot my password so had to re-register so I have lost all that history.

In any case I'm not happy with the marina that put the new rear end on in the fall of 2015. I'd have to check hours but i'm guessing we have put only between 30-50 hours MAX on the boat since this was done. The marina's mechanic said the seals are bad and water got into the lower unit and there was no oil. Should this have happened that fast with so little use ? You have been a great source of info for many people here so your thought would be appreciated.

Thanks so much Mark

Author:	markt [ Sun Jul 23, 2017 2:50 pm ]
Post subject:	1994 OMC King Cobra lower drive bearing replacement ??
Have a 1994 235 sundowner with the the 5.7 liter engine and king cobra sterndrive. Northern Michigan Marina says it can't be fixed that the bearings got fried with no oil and they cant find parts. I see lots of parts online but wondered if there is a good shop or place to start asking questions. WHAT HAPPENED. We were out on Lake Charlevoix / Round Lake / Lake Michigan on the 3rd of July., Easily went 70 miles as we started in Boyne City and did a full loop of Charlevoix and out into Lake Michigan. When we came back, we stopped by to see some friends close to Boyne city, Did not turn boat off but had trouble getting it out of forward and into reverse. Went into neutral just fine. When it was time to leave it was very difficult to get to go into forward but finally did. Once we got back to Boyne City, I again had trouble getting into neutral reverse. This time once I got it into reverse, it would not come out of reverse. Engine would also start with it ALWAYS IN REVERSE. Tried adjusting throttle cables did not work. Took it to a Marina where we have a cottage by Torch lake who have worked on the unit before, replacing the entire stern drive at the end of 2015. Different mechanic now said that the lower end gaskets were shot and water got into the lower gear case buring up the bearings. MY QUESTION IS, DO I NEED A WHOLE NEW LOWER UNIT OR CAN THE GUTS BE REPAIRED ? I have outdrive off. can't budge the screws on the lower unit to get that off. Should I torch them ? It has a 4 1/4 hub. I can spin the prop with a little bit of effort in both directions but it sticks somewhat when going from reverse to forward and back again, just like when I was shifting. I definately can hear and feel some grinding but more squeaking like a squeaky office chair.

Author:	rpengr [ Mon Jul 24, 2017 9:02 am ]
Post subject:	Re: 1994 OMC King Cobra lower drive bearing replacement ??
I would keep pursuing a repair even if OMC does not sell the bearings anymore. OMC did not design custom bearings. If you can get it apart, then bearing should be available from a good bearing supply shop. If the gears are torn up, that may be harder to replace. My local bearing shop is Miller Bearings at 561-863-5111, but they would need all the measurements of the bearings in order to find a replacement. I would try Marine Parts Express for more info: 1-877-621-2628 They may be able to rebuild for you. (www.marinepartsexpress.com) Unfortunately, taking a lower unit apart is no easy task without a couple of special tools. If you take this on yourself, you may still need to have your local shop remove the retaining nut and bearing carrier for you. And probably the bearings too since they will be a press-fit. And of course, a shop manual is a must-have for this project. I have a very used shop manual for OMC Cobra/King Cobra drives which I no longer need. I could send it to you for the price of shipping. Send me a PM if interested Note: I'm not sure how the "bad bearings" could cause the difficulty in shifting on a King Cobra (cone clutch?). Isn't all the shifting and cone clutch in the upper unit of a King Cobra? Ray

Author:	markt [ Mon Jul 24, 2017 8:24 pm ]
Post subject:	Re: 1994 OMC King Cobra lower drive bearing replacement ??
Thanks Ray I am taking it to Brian's Marina on Lake Michigan, they said they work on OMC all the time and should be able to get parts. If they change their mind, I will take you up on the manual offer and toss in extra for a frosty one or two on your way back from post office . Thanks Mark 574-532-5566

Author:	markt [ Mon Jul 24, 2017 8:32 pm ]
Post subject:	Re: 1994 OMC King Cobra lower drive bearing replacement ??
I also forgot to mention that the squeaking noise is definately in the lower unit about in the middle section.

Author:	LouC [ Tue Jul 25, 2017 7:41 am ]
Post subject:	Re: 1994 OMC King Cobra lower drive bearing replacement ??
For hard to find or NLA parts try contacting Sea Way Marine in Washington state; they have a stockpile of hard to find OMC parts...

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Author:	markt [ Tue Jul 25, 2017 12:09 pm ]
Post subject:	Re: 1994 OMC King Cobra lower drive bearing replacement ??
Lou , Thank you so much. I was just talking about you to my wife as we were hauling the boat up to St. Joe Michigan this morning. We bought the boat in the fall of 2013 and you were very helpful with information, and suggestions as we were fixing it up back then. I forgot my password so had to re-register so I have lost all that history. In any case I'm not happy with the marina that put the new rear end on in the fall of 2015. I'd have to check hours but i'm guessing we have put only between 30-50 hours MAX on the boat since this was done. The marina's mechanic said the seals are bad and water got into the lower unit and there was no oil. Should this have happened that fast with so little use ? You have been a great source of info for many people here so your thought would be appreciated. Thanks so much Mark

Author:	rpengr [ Tue Jul 25, 2017 3:02 pm ]
Post subject:	Re: 1994 OMC King Cobra lower drive bearing replacement ??
markt wrote: ...In any case I'm not happy with the marina that put the new rear end on in the fall of 2015. I'd have to check hours but i'm guessing we have put only between 30-50 hours MAX on the boat since this was done. The marina's mechanic said the seals are bad and water got into the lower unit and there was no oil. Should this have happened that fast with so little use ? I have to say from experience with old junkyard outboards I had as a teenager... It's hard to lose that much oil without noticing. It only takes a few drops of oil to make a rainbow sheen on top of the water at the dock. Oil leaking out would also stain your garage/driveway or even your yard. It really wouldn't disappear very easily even if parked over dirt. Try examining the dirt where it was parked, and you would see oily soil if 2 quarts of oil leaked there. Makes me suspicious of whether the mechanic made a mistake?

Author:	LouC [ Wed Jul 26, 2017 5:42 am ]
Post subject:	Re: 1994 OMC King Cobra lower drive bearing replacement ??
markt wrote: Lou , Thank you so much. I was just talking about you to my wife as we were hauling the boat up to St. Joe Michigan this morning. We bought the boat in the fall of 2013 and you were very helpful with information, and suggestions as we were fixing it up back then. I forgot my password so had to re-register so I have lost all that history. In any case I'm not happy with the marina that put the new rear end on in the fall of 2015. I'd have to check hours but i'm guessing we have put only between 30-50 hours MAX on the boat since this was done. The marina's mechanic said the seals are bad and water got into the lower unit and there was no oil. Should this have happened that fast with so little use ? You have been a great source of info for many people here so your thought would be appreciated. Thanks so much Mark This really should not happen, I had my old '88 Cobra re-sealed back in 2004/2005 and it still is fine. I did an oil analysis a few years back (Blackstone) and there was zero water in the oil. And as Ray said, if seals were leaking usually you will see a sheen in the water, but not always. In some cases the seals leak under pressure (in this case you'd see a sheen) but in others, it is under vacuum, so when the drive is used in the water and then cools off, water can actually be drawn into the drive. That is why mechanics should test drive seals to make sure that they don't leak under pressure or vacuum. When doing the yearly drive oil change I'd take some of the oil I drained and put it in a clear container to see if a layer of water appeared on the bottom. I did have to split the upper and lower drive units because I was getting marine growth inside the water intake area (salt water boat, barnacles growing in there) and just put it together with new o ring seals, no leaks afterward. Sometimes a sealing surface may be eroded by corrosion and then it is difficult to get the gasket to seal, unless the surface can be re-surfaced carefully so the gasket will seal. Also using OMC gasket sealer where it is specified by the shop manual really helps. I also use it on all the bolt threads on the outdrive and this helps them to not seize up due to salt water use..... I hope you can easily find the parts and get it back on the water this season! look at this: http://www.crowleymarine.com/johnson-evinrude/1121.cfm http://www.crowleymarine.com/johnson-ev ... mdl=JAGGIC http://www.crowleymarine.com/johnson-ev ... mdl=JAGGIC PS I looked up your engine/drive on the Crowley Marine website, if it is really a '94 power package (keep in mind that a boat that is a '94 could have a '93 power package), it looks like the drive is the joint venture drive that OMC and Volvo produced together, which later became the SX Cobra. So you should be able to get Volvo parts to fit this drive. This would not be the case if it was the pure OMC design cone clutch drive which was also produced at the same time, which is why many people are confused about parts availability. If you can post up some pix of your drive I can tell for sure then. I looked back one year to '93 and it seems that OMC did not use the GM 5.7 in '93 (they used the GM 5.0 and the Ford 5. so it may be that your engine really is a '94. The best way to tell is to post up your OMC model #, it is usually on a sticker on the valve cover or thermostat housing and will start with a 57 (5.7 liter)... When people hear King Cobra, they assume its the 90-93 OMC Cone Clutch drive. but OMC called many things the KC example 5.7 engine with normal Cobra drive and thru the transom exhaust 7.5 engine with normal Cobra upper drive and larger V8 outboard lower unit 5.7 with Joint Venture drive (OMC/Volvo)

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