Pros and cons of OMC drives?

M

monkey-wrench

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Hello im looking into upsizing my fishing boat this spring. Most of the ones ive seen have Mercruisers, as my current boat has. but there are a couple of interesting boats with the OMC drives, which im not familiar with. Ive heard scuttlebutt that theyre not as good, hard to get parts for, etc. Im hoping to hear from someone with firsthand experience as to whether an OMC drive is worth owning or more trouble than its worth compared to a Mercruiser. Fwiw, the boat will probably be a 4 cyl used mainly for slow trolling in the great lakes.
 
tpenfield

tpenfield

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Re: Pros and cons of OMC drives?

They are easy to spell. . .

They have been out of business for over 10 years



Mercruiser or Volvo-Penta would be better choices.
 
Don S

Don S

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Re: Pros and cons of OMC drives?

OMC went out of business in 1998, so don't expect to find very many qualified techs or OMC shops around.

After that, it depends on which OMC drive you are talking about, they have changed over the years.
 
C

Capt. Hoss

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Re: Pros and cons of OMC drives?

Depending on what year the boat and outdrive is, theere are some OMc drives that share some parts with Volvo (I think) I know that someone else might chime in with more info than I have.
 
southkogs

southkogs

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Re: Pros and cons of OMC drives?

I own one - by most people's accounts, I own the worst of the worst.

Honestly, the older Stringers are kinda' neat. I think there are some real positives about the drives. They're a little finicky, but on the overall pretty robust. I don't have any experience with the Cobras but I don't think they posses the same characteristics that I have come to like about the Stringer (Cobras are more like Merc drives).

Parts can (but aren't necessarily) be a problem. There are some that are getting tough to find. It's also tough to find mechanics who a.) know 'em and b.) will work on 'em. Buy and OMC, and you're probably gonna' become your own mechanic. Later Cobras share some parts with Volvo, and the Cobra drives could be transitioned over to Merc (I mean replace engine all the way back to the propeller, not just the drive). A Stringer, you're stuck with for life ... or until you decide you want to rebuild the transom.

I like my boat, and I do actually like my OMC. BUT, I probably wouldn't buy another one.
 
airdvr1227

airdvr1227

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Re: Pros and cons of OMC drives?

A properly adjusted and well maintained Cobra outdrive can last a long time.
 
bruceb58

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Re: Pros and cons of OMC drives?

You have so many choices of boats without an OMC, there is absolutely zero reason to buy one with one. I am a former OMC owner of both a Cobra and Stringer. When I upgraded my boat 10 years ago, an OMC drive was not on the list of boats I was going to buy, no matter how inexpensive.
 
Don S

Don S

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Re: Pros and cons of OMC drives?

airdvr1227 said:
A properly adjusted and well maintained Cobra outdrive can last a long time.
Click to expand...

So will a properly adjusted and well maintained 1956 DeSoto, but that doesn't mean you should go out and buy one for a daily driver.

And how would you know if it was well maintained and adjusted? Sellers are liars, all they want to do is put your money in their pocket and will tell you anything it takes to get to that end.
 
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monkey-wrench

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Re: Pros and cons of OMC drives?

thanks to all for the input. great points all around, and it kinda reinforces most of what ive heard. it sounds like passing on the omc's is a good idea. plus, i like to show off by speling big words currecktly. thanks again and God bless.
 
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wcasey5

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Re: Pros and cons of OMC drives?

The biggest problem with OMC is that they went out of business in 1998. That means that any boat with an OMC is old, and possible rotten. Meaning that you are buying a bad hull. Technology wise, a merc isn;t much advanced as an OMC, the problem being that parts availability is difficult. A 20 year old merc/volvo is just as much a gamble as a 20 year old OMC, is it just the support for the OMC that is in question. I have an excellent OMC that works great and is well adjusted. But I would recommend a volvo or merc for someone who is buying an old boat/drive system. But remember hull rot is first priority, then drive condition, then serviceability, IMO.
 
Howard Sterndrive

Howard Sterndrive

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Re: Pros and cons of OMC drives?

taking the thread title literally, there were a couple of pros to the design of the later (trucourse steer) stringer. One was turn radius with the drive at a full 180 degrees. The non power steering on a small boat was very nice too. The other is sound. A stringer drive makes for very low noise and vibration at the helm as it is lagged to the "frame" of the boat and does not shake the transom. Another was not needing to fart around with an alignment bar and the engine could be removed without drive removal in some hulls.

However, none of that applies to Cobras, and none of that supports buying any OMC i/o in the year 2013. If sentimental about a family vessel or interested in technology as a curator of museum pieces, then fine - they can be made reliable and enjoyable but with much learning and expense and/or careful spelunking of the web or local yards. The pros never outweigh the cons.
 
M

monkey-wrench

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Re: Pros and cons of OMC drives?

wcasey5 said:
The biggest problem with OMC is that they went out of business in 1998. That means that any boat with an OMC is old, and possible rotten. Meaning that you are buying a bad hull. Technology wise, a merc isn;t much advanced as an OMC, the problem being that parts availability is difficult. A 20 year old merc/volvo is just as much a gamble as a 20 year old OMC, is it just the support for the OMC that is in question. I have an excellent OMC that works great and is well adjusted. But I would recommend a volvo or merc for someone who is buying an old boat/drive system. But remember hull rot is first priority, then drive condition, then serviceability, IMO.
Click to expand...

this hits it right on the head. so many of the older inexpensive boats are rotten. but not all, there are some that are still structurally sound. im able to perform just about any mechanical repair. i wrench on diesel engines for a living, and i can keep my old aristocraft running nicely but the prospect of transom and stringer repair scares me. i dont have any experience to do a very good job at that kind of work. ideally, i will find a boat with a solid hull and a non OMC drive. but i certainly may be tempted by a clean, solid hull with a well functioning cobra. i certainly dont WANT one, but if its the lesser of all evils i might sucker myself into one. maybe the only way i can get into a boat that will do what i want to do this year. but only as an absolute last option.
 
tpenfield

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Re: Pros and cons of OMC drives?

Did I come up with the best "Pro" so far :noidea:
 
southkogs

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Re: Pros and cons of OMC drives?

tpenfield said:
Did I come up with the best "Pro" so far :noidea:
Click to expand...
well ... the funniest.

Reality is that Howard really nails it:
Howard Sterndrive said:
...there were a couple of pros to the design of the later (trucourse steer) stringer. One was turn radius with the drive at a full 180 degrees. The non power steering on a small boat was very nice too. The other is sound. A stringer drive makes for very low noise and vibration at the helm as it is lagged to the "frame" of the boat and does not shake the transom. Another was not needing to fart around with an alignment bar and the engine could be removed without drive removal in some hulls.
Click to expand...
If you've not driven one, they really are kinda' nice in many ways. I actually prefer mine to my folks newer Mercruiser.

Unfortunately, when Howard's right ...
Howard Sterndrive said:
The pros never outweigh the cons.
Click to expand...
... Howard's right. The cons are just growing as the drives get older.
 
F14CRAZY

F14CRAZY

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Re: Pros and cons of OMC drives?

I went ahead and restored the Capri I bought with an OMC Series 400 drive...

Good:

-able to turn 90 degrees
-no U joints running in bellows to go bad from water intrusion
-very quickly raise/lower drive
-many parts are easy to get

Bad:

-cannot adjust trim while on plane (optional equipment)
-4 oil-containing compartments running under water
-they're old...I'm having problems with grooves in shafts tearing up brand new seals despite bearings and gears being ok
-should not operate with drive in anything other than full down position for more than short periods due to ball gear wear
-one big rubber bellows to possibly go bad on you
-complicated shift cable
-some parts are very expensive (like new shift cables)
 
bruceb58

bruceb58

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Re: Pros and cons of OMC drives?

F14CRAZY said:
Bad:

-4 oil-containing compartments running under water
Click to expand...
You should have said 4 oil containing compartments that often get water in them! :)

The stringer we had needed seals replaced from day one after we bought it new. Eventually, it got to the point after multiple reseal jobs that we just changed oil multiple times per year.
 
F14CRAZY

F14CRAZY

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Re: Pros and cons of OMC drives?

Being that I keep it in a slip now I've stopped worrying about it. The lower end actually seals now but the rest range from a chocolate shake to creamed coffee to H2O. I've had it apart and the gears and bearings don't seem to care. Long as the thing doesn't lockup on me I'm not really caring anymore. Hopefully by then I'll find a cheap Volvo Penta donor boat
 
Nivekt

Nivekt

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Re: Pros and cons of OMC drives?

I was chasing a milky drive oil situation in my upper gear housing a while ago and after resealing the unit and still having the same issue, I took it apart and looked at where the upper gear housing cover screws on to the housing. Come to find that after the gear housing was casted, and then machined, there was a little nub of aluminum that would prevent the cover from sealing properly to the housing. I took a fine file and gently fined down that nub then resealed the cover with a new O-ring and new gasket sealer. No more leaks.

I can imagine, that due to the age of manufacture, the technical capabilities back then with machining were not as good as they are now. I recommend to anyone experiencing leaks with these drives where they cannot find the source to take things apart and look for these machining defects.
 
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