www.iFourWinns.com

We just sold our 1991 four winns freedom, looking to upgrade to the 220. I'm slightly concerned with previous maintenance the original owner had. Water pump, fuel filter, trim motor, raw impeller, and prop shaft have been replaced between 2009-2016. No record of gimbal or bellows being serviced. Also the original owner did not use proper anoids and the drive shows slight corrosion. Current owner has taken good care of everything. And hasn't had any major issues besides prop shaft. I'm wondering if the drive may have a lot if future problems caused by the neglect. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

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2003 Horizon 220 5.7

What incident caused the prop shaft replacement; and what other parts were replaced? Have you done a water test to check for vibrations noises and proper shifting?
When was tbe drive removed last?
The concern is that if the drive is not serviced regularly including drive removal for bellows, gimble and u joint inspection there could be hidden issues.

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88 Four Winns 200 Horizon
4.3 OMC Cobra-4bbl
2002 Walker Bay 10/2012 Suzuki 2.5
2008 Walker Bay 8

1998 Jeep Grand Cherokee 4.0/Selectrac
2007 Jeep Grand Cherokee 5.7 Hemi/Quadradrive II

Only the parts listed are what have been replaced. Marina records only go back to 2009. Current owner claims to be on the up and up with maintenance. Stated the marina checks bellows and gimbal bearing when winterizing every year. I have not taken for a test drive yet. Doesn't strike me as owner who does the work himself. I would think the drive was removed this year when prop shaft was replaced.

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2003 Horizon 220 5.7

If you can't get a straight and reliable answer on drive removal/maintenance, I'd move on. There are a bunch of boats about to hit the market.

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Mike
2005 Four Winns 230/240
VP 5.7GXi/DP
1998 F-150 XLT
Boat Pic

How many hours?

If you are serious have a survey done or at least have a mechanic give it a once over.

"slight corrosion" at 13 years old... that's no big deal. The rest is fine if the prop shaft repairs were done properly. Regarding Bellows: I just bought Bellows for my 2000 for less than $100. I have no idea if they were ever done before, but I can see slight cracking in the folds starting.

If you like the boat and the price, I would sign a purchase agreement conditioned on it passing a survey that you would pay for. To be reasonable, you could say it passes if less than $500 worth of repairs are recommended. (or whatever number you want).

Ray

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"Knot Easy" 2000 Horizon 240 Volvo 5.7GS /SX
tow: 2017 Honda PILOT EXL-AWD
prev. boats:
'87 Chaparral 198CXL 4.3 OMC Cobra
'69 Jetstar 16ft Ski Boat, 115hp Yamaha
'68 Aluminum Jon Boat, 3hp Sears
'64 Water Wings

Just make sure to pay close attention to noises and vibrations during your test drive. The reason why I asked which parts were replaced is that it's not unheard of to hear of a gear failure in a lower unit after a hard hit. This is because of the fact that a gear tooth can be fractured and then lets go later on jamming itself between the gears causing more damage. At least have someone pull the drain plug and look for particles. Little fuzz is OK big chunks & flakes no good.

Ray if you're doing the Volvo bellows, and have not done it before, I found it easier (Cobra and Volvo very similar, same part in fact) to remove the hinge pins for the pivot housing (bell housing in merc terminology) and pull it back a bit to make sure the driveshaft bellows gets seated on the flange properly. There are some on the 'net who say that you can do this job without removing the hinge pins and leaving the pivot housing in place, by removing the exhaust bellows first (there is a snap ring that retains the aft end of it, need the snap ring pliers for that) and then removing the d/s bellows. The trick with removing the hinge pins (hopefully they are not seized, mine came right out but I had tried loosening them and tightening them up a few times over the years in anticipation) is that there is a thin bushing on each side, between the pivot housing and transom mount, it can be a bit fiddly to get them lined up with the pins. On the Cobra I disconnected the shift cable on the engine end this gave me some room to pull the pivot housing back, on the Volvo you can do this on the drive end.

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88 Four Winns 200 Horizon
4.3 OMC Cobra-4bbl
2002 Walker Bay 10/2012 Suzuki 2.5
2008 Walker Bay 8

1998 Jeep Grand Cherokee 4.0/Selectrac
2007 Jeep Grand Cherokee 5.7 Hemi/Quadradrive II

Thanks Lou,
I remember doing it on my Cobra years ago without removing the hinge pins, but it was very tight working in there. Sounds like its worth removing them if they will come loose. Did you use any sealer? like aviation form-a-gasket or similar?

If I take that apart, I may consider replacing my trim sending unit, which has not worked for as long as I have owned the boat. My local shop could not look it up based on a 1999 SX-M drive. Was not sure if it was a 2 wire or 3 wire, and I have not looked yet. He said $230 and ebay lists about $145. That's a PITA job though and they often only last a few years. I could take somebody's idea that I saw where they run the wire up the outside of the transom (like a transducer wire), then drill through rather than replacing the wire through the transom bracket.

Ray

_________________

"Knot Easy" 2000 Horizon 240 Volvo 5.7GS /SX
tow: 2017 Honda PILOT EXL-AWD
prev. boats:
'87 Chaparral 198CXL 4.3 OMC Cobra
'69 Jetstar 16ft Ski Boat, 115hp Yamaha
'68 Aluminum Jon Boat, 3hp Sears
'64 Water Wings

Ray,
I used the OMC gasket sealer on both the flange for the d/s bellows and the threads for the hinge pins, it says to do so in the OMC shop manual.
As far as the wire for the trim sender, I posted that some years back but I can't take credit for it because it was my mechanic's great idea. Now I can change the trim sender in about 15 min, very easy, its run through a hole in the transom mount, up the transom just like a transducer cable. Inside I adapted a pair of male/female terminals so its just plug in and go.
BTW, I used to get about 1.5 seasons out of the original equipment OMC trim senders. The one that's lasted the longest (this is its 6th season!!) is an aftermarket Sierra one! While experienced boaters don't need it, it is nice to have it working when you're teaching others like your kids lol to use the trim properly.

https://www.dropbox.com/s/7ugdxo8n6dfab ... d.jpg?dl=0

This pic is from a LONG time ago, probably in '04/05 or so because that's when my mechanic got my Cobra in shape before I learned how to maintain it myself....

_________________
88 Four Winns 200 Horizon
4.3 OMC Cobra-4bbl
2002 Walker Bay 10/2012 Suzuki 2.5
2008 Walker Bay 8

1998 Jeep Grand Cherokee 4.0/Selectrac
2007 Jeep Grand Cherokee 5.7 Hemi/Quadradrive II

Lou: I thought that might have been your post. Sorry for not giving proper credit.

Connie Marie: Sorry for sidetracking your thread. Tell us more about the 220 you are looking at.

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"Knot Easy" 2000 Horizon 240 Volvo 5.7GS /SX
tow: 2017 Honda PILOT EXL-AWD
prev. boats:
'87 Chaparral 198CXL 4.3 OMC Cobra
'69 Jetstar 16ft Ski Boat, 115hp Yamaha
'68 Aluminum Jon Boat, 3hp Sears
'64 Water Wings