Questions about lubing bellcrank before reassembly.

projo198 · Aug 13, 2012

The book calls for triple guard for the bellcrank and shift cable. I plan on filling the cavity completely with grease. Will regular marine grease do the job?

Also when filling this cavity, am I supposed to fill both sides (pivot and upper gear housing) and them just put it back together?

Sorry for constant questions but this is the second time I am doing this and I want it to be right.

Boats-A-lots · Aug 13, 2012

Re: Questions about lubing bellcrank before reassembly.

That's what I'm planing on doing unless you get a reply reading don't.

Reinell-BRXL-191 · Aug 13, 2012

Re: Questions about lubing bellcrank before reassembly.

I wouldn't go ape crazy with the grease... I would be afraid some of it will squeeze out in to the gasket area and render any petroleum based gasket sealer inert - then you got water in there... and corrosion will soon take its toll on that space... I put a good amount of marine grease in mine, but, since there is nothing really spinning or going crazy in there.. most any grease in that area is going to stay on what you put it on... I went 6 months and pulled my drive when I made the tools for the shift cable.. and all the grease was still where I put it... I actually had to remove it to take the ebay pics...

bruceb58 · Aug 13, 2012

Re: Questions about lubing bellcrank before reassembly.

In OMC's later years they came out with a bushing/cap assembly that the bellcrank pivots on that has a zerk fitting on it. It is probably still available. After you replace the drive, this allows you to fill that entire cavity with grease so as not to let water, especially salt water to get in there and leave deposits.

I had that on my OMC. If you don't want to replace the bushing, fill that cavity with as much grease as you can. i woukldn't worry too much about it affecting the sealant in that area. Water gets in anyway past the shift cable.

Item #79
http://www.marineengine.com/parts/o...acturer=OMC+Stern+Drive&section=Transom+Mount

Not sure but it may use a different bellcrank when you use the updated plug and bushing.

Reinell-BRXL-191 · Aug 13, 2012

Re: Questions about lubing bellcrank before reassembly.

I think that maybe that was an after thought to console owners.. but logically think about it.. if that space is properly sealed ( my shift cable has an o-ring and is water tight) there is no way to put grease in to that space with a zerk fitting.. the bellcrank is sealed with an o-ring to the exhaust area, the entire face surface should be sealed with gasket and sealant, it would seem, there would be no way for the air to get out, and therefor, no way for the grease to get in... Could you get grease in to yours Bruce? I am assuming so based on the message.. but my logical mind thinks the grease needs an escape point in order to fill that void... ???????? When I took my drive off, the grease I had applied was still there.. and no water was present, this was 2 days after being in the lake all day...

The part number for the bellcrank plug drilled for a zerk fitting is 0987552
The bellcrank has a different number, but the bushing is the same, so I would think the plug with the zerk fitting would fit the same

Couldn't you just drill and tap the current plug and add the zerk?

bruceb58 · Aug 13, 2012

Re: Questions about lubing bellcrank before reassembly.

I was able to fill the void with grease using the grease fitting on the OMC bushing cap. This was installed on the advice of an OMC engineer who stated to me that the deposits I was getting inside that area is indeed casued by the area not beeing waterproof.

I do not recall if the bellcrank has a hollow passage for the grease or not so not sure if just tapping the bushing cap would work or not.

I used my boat a lot in salt water so every year I would have this gooey mess of deposits in that area. I am sure fresh water usage would not require this like salt water use would.

Reinell-BRXL-191 · Aug 14, 2012

Re: Questions about lubing bellcrank before reassembly.

I would bet that is the difference in part number for the bellcrank... the newer bellcrank has to have a hole down the shaft that exits in the cavity area... so, the same bushing would work but need to upgrade to the following part numbers to get the grease to go in..

Zerk Fitting - 0313607
Plug Drilled for Zerk - 0987552
New Bellcrank Design - 0915796

Bushing and shift lever did not change - so no upgrade needed - I have been looking at the pictures of the bellcranks, and it seems the newer part number has an extra groove right before the normal o-ring groove - but I don't see any holes drilled in it for grease to get by - and that would be the only way to fill that area with grease - otherwise you would just be pressing grease in to the bushing and end of the bellcrank shaft...

Maybe someone who has a 93 or later drive can show us what it does the next time they have the drive off...

bruceb58 · Aug 14, 2012

Re: Questions about lubing bellcrank before reassembly.

Reinell-BRXL-191 said:
Maybe someone who has a 93 or later drive can show us what it does the next time they have the drive off...

92 or 93 had these. 94 was the SX drive.

Lou C · Aug 14, 2012

Re: Questions about lubing bellcrank before reassembly.

I don't have the grease-able bell crank but every year what I have done is pack that area around it with OMC/Bombardier Triple Guard Grease. This stuff is the best water proof grease I have use and after the boat sits in salt water for 6 months, when I remove the drive there is a little bit of build up of deposits but not much. I just clean that out with a thin screwdriver and add more grease. Basically I just fill the cavity around the bell crank. My Cobra shifts very easily and it has the same cable over 10 years old and sits in salt water like I said. One more thing I do is really coat that pivot housing gasket with OMC gasket sealer. In salt water esp if slipped or moored in salt it is best if you take the drive off each year, to check for water in the bellows and in the case of the Cobra, to clean out the area right behind the bell crank lever because if enough deposits build up there it can restrict its movement.

projo198 · Aug 15, 2012

Re: Questions about lubing bellcrank before reassembly.

Wouldn't a simple solution be to just drill and tap the side of the povit housing and screw in a grease fitting? Then you could just top off the cavity every once in awhile.

Lou C · Aug 15, 2012

Re: Questions about lubing bellcrank before reassembly.

Yep you could do that but it also creates another way water might get in. To insure that the bellcrank moves freely you have to clean out the deposits that get behind it, there is no way around that. Clean em out with a thin screwdriver and just pack the area around it with good old blue triple-guard...doing that, lubing the shift linkage on the engine bracket and keeping my engine in good enough tune to idle at 600 smoothly in gear has kept my Cobra shifting great....

Reinell-BRXL-191 · Aug 15, 2012

Re: Questions about lubing bellcrank before reassembly.

That sounds like a good solution too - like I said, the only problem I see, is if the unit is sealed properly ( Bell crank o-ring, Shift cable o-ring, and sealed gasket) where is the air going to go? you can only compress the air so much..

Now I want to go out and drill a hole in my pivot housing ( assuming you can find an area that won't hit during movement) and try and see how much grease can actually be put in there... but, that would require me to remove the drive to find out... and I have had the drive off several times in the last few months.. and I am tired of doing it... hahahaha

projo198 · Aug 15, 2012

Re: Questions about lubing bellcrank before reassembly.

Reinell-BRXL-191 said:
That sounds like a good solution too - like I said, the only problem I see, is if the unit is sealed properly ( Bell crank o-ring, Shift cable o-ring, and sealed gasket) where is the air going to go? you can only compress the air so much..

Now I want to go out and drill a hole in my pivot housing ( assuming you can find an area that won't hit during movement) and try and see how much grease can actually be put in there... but, that would require me to remove the drive to find out... and I have had the drive off several times in the last few months.. and I am tired of doing it... hahahaha

Come on guy.. I came up with the idea.. SOMEONE has to be the guinea pig!

BTW got delivery confirmation today on those plates, thanks! Now if I didn't have this whole damn "job" thing stopping me from going home...

bruceb58 · Aug 15, 2012

Re: Questions about lubing bellcrank before reassembly.

Reinell-BRXL-191 said:
That sounds like a good solution too - like I said, the only problem I see, is if the unit is sealed properly ( Bell crank o-ring, Shift cable o-ring, and sealed gasket) where is the air going to go? you can only compress the air so much..

In theory it is sealed...it isn't sealed in real life of course. OMC engineers admitted to me that much.

Lou C · Aug 17, 2012

Re: Questions about lubing bellcrank before reassembly.

well I have found I only have to do this once a season, and if I were a lazy guy, I could probably go 2 seasons without pulling the drive, but I have noticed that even though I lube up the drivehshaft splines well with triple guard when I reinstall the drive, when I take it off in Oct/Nov there is not that much left on them, I would not want to go a whole nother season without fresh grease on the splines...so doint all the work when its off once is not so bad......

projo198 · Aug 17, 2012

Re: Questions about lubing bellcrank before reassembly.

Yep, and to be honest pulling the drive really isn't that hard. I'm considering just pulling mine at the end of this season and storing in the garage this winter.

Questions about lubing bellcrank before reassembly.

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