Howdy y'all. First post. Let me start by saying that I am a completely new boat owner. I'm pretty good with a wrench, but this boat stuff is not like anything I know.
I just bought a 1984 Cheetah ski/motor boat. It has the Mercruiser 170 engine (140HP). Engine and outdrive are as far as I can tell, the original parts on the boat. The only thing keeping this boat from being sea worthy, is the outdrive.
Unfortunately, the stamp on the upper unit that says what the ratio is, is pretty much unlegible. I would guess it is a 1.84:1 ratio. The previous owner said that the gears stripped and when I opened the top and looked in, I can see the gears missing metal, and metal shavings in the oil. I was also told that the reverse doesn't work well, thus, I have come to the conclusion that I need a whole new outdrive.
So ... here's what I'm wondering.
1) Is this outdrive most likely a mercruiser Alpha 1 Gen 1? The stickers look the same to me when I compare what I have to what I see on what people advertise as a alpha 1 gen 1. When looking for a replacement, I'm having a hard time with how people list them for sale.
2) What ratio can I entertain putting on this boat? The previous owner said that it has amazing low end torque and they had no problem pulling 2-3 skiers up at a time. He suggested I try to keep this the same. As I look around for a replacement, I'm finding a few 1.5:1 and was wondering if that would work for me? I'm still new at this, so I don't know what the difference in the ratio would do for the boat.
3) I'm going to try and do this myself. Is there a manual available anywhere for this engine/outdrive? Is there anything else I should replace/repair before I put a new outdrive on the boat (while I have it ripped apart)?
4) Is there anything else that a newbie should know before taking on this task?
Thanks so much for your help. This forum seems to be full of real smart people and hopefully I'll be in a position someday to chime in.
Thanks in advance!
I just bought a 1984 Cheetah ski/motor boat. It has the Mercruiser 170 engine (140HP). Engine and outdrive are as far as I can tell, the original parts on the boat. The only thing keeping this boat from being sea worthy, is the outdrive.
Unfortunately, the stamp on the upper unit that says what the ratio is, is pretty much unlegible. I would guess it is a 1.84:1 ratio. The previous owner said that the gears stripped and when I opened the top and looked in, I can see the gears missing metal, and metal shavings in the oil. I was also told that the reverse doesn't work well, thus, I have come to the conclusion that I need a whole new outdrive.
So ... here's what I'm wondering.
1) Is this outdrive most likely a mercruiser Alpha 1 Gen 1? The stickers look the same to me when I compare what I have to what I see on what people advertise as a alpha 1 gen 1. When looking for a replacement, I'm having a hard time with how people list them for sale.
2) What ratio can I entertain putting on this boat? The previous owner said that it has amazing low end torque and they had no problem pulling 2-3 skiers up at a time. He suggested I try to keep this the same. As I look around for a replacement, I'm finding a few 1.5:1 and was wondering if that would work for me? I'm still new at this, so I don't know what the difference in the ratio would do for the boat.
3) I'm going to try and do this myself. Is there a manual available anywhere for this engine/outdrive? Is there anything else I should replace/repair before I put a new outdrive on the boat (while I have it ripped apart)?
4) Is there anything else that a newbie should know before taking on this task?
Thanks so much for your help. This forum seems to be full of real smart people and hopefully I'll be in a position someday to chime in.
Thanks in advance!
