bellhousing issue ?

okay let me try to explain my problem ,i do not know the correct names for the parts so here we go , its a 1978 merc 165 out drive on 1981 165 L6 250 chevy motor, the part im refering to is what the out drive bolts onto,it sticks out of the bellhousing and moves up and down and side to side. it has on each side of it two round caps about 3inches round that covers up a bearing ,one under each cap, is it normal to have a little bit of slop in that area? thanks for viewing,

Re: bellhousing issue ?

Rockyman; Download the manual from here...it will help you out a great deal; http://forums.iboats.com/showthread.php?p=1693398#post1693398

The outdrive bolts to the bell housing. The bell housing protrudes from the gimbal housing, eh? I think the the two 3" discs you refer to are your trim sender and trim limit switch which are fastened to the gimbal ring.

You can move the bell housing left and right because that's how you steer the boat. It should also move up & down because that's how you trim it and raise the drive for trailering.

Besides that movement, there should not be much play like in a bad u-joint. The manual at the above link will explain everything. If there is play, I believe there are spring spacer clips you can install to make up the play??