85 S&S transmission click

[xtnkshun]

I think I am just going to remove the bell housing and the tranny in one piece. That way I can inspect the damper plate first. If that isn't the issue then I'll move down the tranny. This is WAY beyond any engine work I have ever done, but supporting the motor with jacks and removing the whole housing doesn't seem that terrible.

[tockit]

Originally Posted by xtnkshun

I think I am just going to remove the bell housing and the tranny in one piece. That way I can inspect the damper plate first. If that isn't the issue then I'll move down the tranny. This is WAY beyond any engine work I have ever done, but supporting the motor with jacks and removing the whole housing doesn't seem that terrible.

Pulling the tranny isn't bad at all on these boats. I just did mine a couple of weeks ago with a bottle jack.

I just removed the four 3/8" transmission crossmember bolts and jacked up the engine under the left riser, then slide a couple of small 2X4's under the oil pan to support the engine while I pulled the tranny.

The transmission only wieghs about 100 pounds.

Up and down alignment is easy too. The 2 forward engine mounts have 7/16" adjusters on them.

Loosen the jam nuts under those adjusters and turn them up or down to get your vertical alignment, then tighten the jam nuts back up.

Its really not as bad as it sounds.

[petermegan]

Originally Posted by xtnkshun

Peter...the damper plate has been a suggestion by a few others as well. The amplifying of the noise down the shaft is an interesting point. Last night I measured the coupler gaps (alignment) and all seems to be well...although it was a little difficult because of the coupler edges. They aren't exactly square after being painted and years of use. So getting the feeler gauges in for an accurate measurement was difficult.

I cranked her up to measure idle RPM (suggested by Skidim) and shes idling around 800-900 RPM. Guage is bouncing all over the place so not very accurate. Then I put it in gear and NO CLICKING!! Then i realized that I hadn't tightened the coupler bolts fully. Once I did...clicking noise came back.

Now i'm even more lost, but leaning to having to take out the tranny. Could the strut angle be the cause? Or would that just cause the alignment to be whacked out?

Geez, I am way out of my league here, but I would expect not. It won't hurt to get it right first though to eliminate it. Having the bolts loose may have just stopped the noise transferring down the shaft. Glad I haven't got your problem. I don't want to be abused when you pull your transmission strip it down and find nothing wrong. One more thing you could try is a stethoscope or large screwdriver to your ear may help as to exactly where the noise is coming from.

[xtnkshun]

Thanks Tockit for the info, I'm going to give it a whirl.

No worries Peter, I certainly wouldn't give you any crap if there's nothing wrong. I know that there is, just not sure where. I found the Borg-Warner manual to my tranny last night and there really isn't much in the way of gears inside the powerslot portions. After seeing that, the damper plate is making more sense. Either way, tranny is coming off to find out.

It's good that I am getting a 'mastercraft' maintenance education, but bad that I am losing summer lake days. I am going to try to take her apart this weekend. Will keep you all up to speed on my findings.

[petermegan]

Well, How did you go?

[xtnkshun]

Not much progress unfortunately. Florida summer rain is like clock-work.

Was able to get some dash wiring sorted out. Proper ignition and stereo wired properly. And I got the drivers seat put back on the adjustable slide rails (Thanks to Rambo Marine).

Transmission is hopefully this week!!

[xtnkshun]

Alright guys...got the tranny off today. Here are some pics. I can't tell from just looking at the damper plate that there is anything wrong, but it's getting replaced anyway. It is quite rusty. I have read a few people on here painting the new dampers with rustoleum...any thoughts??

[xtnkshun]

Here's the tranny side. Again, pretty rusted...although there is no structural damage. Should I grease the spline portion when putting her back in? Also considering a tranny rebuild from a local shop while it's out. Figure it couldn't hurt since I am still not totally sure where the clicking is coming from.

[xtnkshun]

The flywheel looked the most rusted. And there are quite a few teeth that are chipped off. Hard to tell from the pic, but about half of the tooth is broke off on about 15 or so teeth. I can't see how this is the source of my problem since the teeth only touch the starter, but I could be wrong. And the started has some obvious corrosion, but I haven't experienced any trouble with it. I think these are all unrelated, but I might just go ahead and replace while it's apart.

[xtnkshun]

Take a look at the engine mount in this pic. The rears on my boat have definitely been around a while...the fronts look pretty new. Notice how far right it is sitting in the bushing. Is this normal?

And yes...the PO disconnected neutral safety. Going to re-connect. Looks like I could easily split the yellow/red wire and wire it in, but I have seen some people that have the white wire coming from the breaker going to it. Any thoughts from the gurus?