Understanding the mounting of the Gimbal Bearing installer onto the Alignment Tool

[MiketheHat]

Hello all,

I promise I've read the sticky posts at the top, but couldn't track down the answers there.

The way most of the Alignment Tools on eBay look and work with the Gimbal bearing installer bit, require drilling of the alignment tool to secure the bearing installer.

What I'm wondering is why they cannot be pre-drilled. Everyone says that different engines may have the bearing seated at different points. Fine, I get that. But in that case, why couldn't a hole be pre-drilled at the closest possible point on the 1.375" Dia. to the front?

Is there any reason I can't just account for the bearing width + the bearing installer piece, and make the hole at the point where both are comfortably seated on that diameter? The goal is to not bottom out the alignment tool on the coupler when installing the bearing, correct?

Help a newbie out!

-Mike

P.S. Here's a picture of where I'm thinking would be a good place to make the bearing installer sit. Pretty much at the edge of the diameter, so my thinking is that it would work on any and all boats?

 

[Don S]

Re: Understanding the mounting of the Gimbal Bearing installer onto the Alignment Too

That type of gimbal bearing installer should never be used. If your engine is out of alignment, you will either bind the gimbal bearing, or damage the coupler, or both. Beating on the alignment bar is also not a good thing.
Sounds good for the aftermarket manufactures, but not a good idea in real life.

The installer should put pressure on the outer ring of the gimbal bearing only when installing, and the center of the G bearing is only used to keep the tool centered while hammering the bearing in. (Nothing should contact the coupler during this process)

 

[MiketheHat]

Re: Understanding the mounting of the Gimbal Bearing installer onto the Alignment Too

That type of gimbal bearing installer should never be used. If your engine is out of alignment, you will either bind the gimbal bearing, or damage the coupler, or both. Beating on the alignment bar is also not a good thing.
Sounds good for the aftermarket manufactures, but not a good idea in real life.

The installer should put pressure on the outer ring of the gimbal bearing only when installing, and the center of the G bearing is only used to keep the tool centered while hammering the bearing in. (Nothing should contact the coupler during this process)

Well,

In this case, the plan is to make sure the alignment is ok before the bearing gets swapped out (that's an old beater upper in the picture, not the one in, or the one getting put inside!).

The reason I'm asking however, is that the instructions I got with the tool basically tell me to insert the alignment tool + G bearing installer to the current bearing. Pull out, mark where the installer sits, and shift it another 1/4" towards the back of the alignment bar. I figure that's to give you a safety margin when pounding the back of the bar. That's where my "smart" idea came from. Why not just sit the tool at about the point where it is in the picture and run with it? I mean if it's towards the front end of the largest diameter, there's no way to hit the coupler, right? But then if it's that simple, why don't the manufacturers just drill the hole in that position and call it a day without saying stuff like "not all models will have the same depth, yadda yadda, we can't pre-drill because of it" bs?

 

[MiketheHat]

Re: Understanding the mounting of the Gimbal Bearing installer onto the Alignment Too

So I did mine the way the instructions told me to do it for the tools I bought. Drilling the bar was a B!

But the more I got to thinking about it, the more I'm wondering, How wide a range is there between where the Coupler sets and where the bearing sits on the boats? On this type of tool, do the smaller diameters near the coupler work as a kind of guide for the bar? Or could I still make it do with just the bearing and tool guiding it in to the hole and set it right, without having the damn bar end 1/4" before hitting the coupler?

Thoughts beyond "I wouldn't use this type of set up"? :embarassed:

 

[Bt Doctur]

Re: Understanding the mounting of the Gimbal Bearing installer onto the Alignment Too

Best to install the bearing by itself and NEVER hammer the inside race

 

[MiketheHat]

Re: Understanding the mounting of the Gimbal Bearing installer onto the Alignment Too

Thoughts beyond "I wouldn't use this type of set up"? :embarassed:

Like that says, I'm aware it's not the best solution, but it got the job done, so now I'm trying to satisfy some curiosity.

 

[mercs4mark]

Re: Understanding the mounting of the Gimbal Bearing installer onto the Alignment Too

Well here is my thought... That bar is so heavy that you would not be able to hold it straight while hammering the bearing in place....so they use the coupler to hold one end and straighter than if it was not in the coupler, as for where to drill the hole really doesn't matter as long as the bar doesn't bottom out in the coupler before the bearing is in all the way.