help with strut

I cant tell on the inside because it is covered with a beige colored silicone or something. I'll clean all of this off and dremel out the crack and do some repair work.

Nice job with your repair Baffalo, it looks really nice-I hope I don't have to get that crazy with mine.

Greg, Can you see any cracking on the inside? The small cracks in the gel on the ouside around the strut pocket may be just some stress cracking but you may want to take a closer look at the large one in the middle. I would take a Dremel and with a small burr route it out and see how deep it goes below the gel. If it only goes into the first layer of glass, get some epoxy resin in as a first coat and then some epoxy filler over the top. If deeper, then a larger patch would be needed.

Steve, After all you have read you don't want to do it yourself??
Try Northside Prop Shop They are in Okauchee and can be reached at 262 567 3337
I don't know if he would do it or not. I have heard that he is a good prop shop though.
All the rest (like Chelsea) are larger marinas and you may end up paying the "Eric rate"!! Just kidding Eric!

Pete, its a Gray marine v-drive, not a crusader

eric lavine wrote: Pete, you were a hippy in the 70"s?

I wouldn't go that far with the description! I just had a pony tail. It was in fashion back then!

Mark, Depending on the type of mounts, some can be a problem with the side to side due to corrosion. Sometimes they need to be removed and freed up on the bench otherwise it is a pry bar and blocks of wood between the engine and the stringer. Someone here just posted they were able to get a small "pancake" hydraulic cylinder with a "porta-power" in between.

Greg, the 5200 really isn't needed on the inside. If you do a good job of sealing the outside then the water won't get that far! If you haven't used the 5200 before, it is a moisture cure so you should know it can take 3 to 4 days to cure if it's real dry. I usually have a spray bottle of water and spray it after assembly to start the cure. The washers as shims will be fine. As long as you have the strut off,you may consider trying to twist it slightly for the side to side alignment with the log. Mounting bolt holes can be elongated slightly as well but twisting the strut back is prefered. It doesn't sound like it would need much.
Greg, Unless things have drastically changed in the over 30 years I've been in Montana, I'll back you up with the fact that the are no queers in the state!! There were even times I had problems walking into a bar back then - It wasn't fashionable to have long hair (pony tail) in the state in the early 70's!

need help!!!! how the hell can a guy move the motor right and left, I'm told a pry bar works but what do you pry against without wrecking something. I have every thing in line except the motor which needs to be moved a 1/4 inch to the right

steers or queers only works in texas!!!!

Pete, I follow you. I have a pretty good head for fixing this, but I'm not as good at explaining it as you. My first CC and the BFN both had been hit hard enough to need glass repair, so I assume that the log isn't in it's original position from the beginning. With that in mind, I dry fit the strut to be inline with the rudder and the log and hopefully the keel! From there it's been give a little, take a little. LOL

Greg, If the shaft isn't too far off the center of the log in the "relaxed" position then leave it there and move the engine to it. If it's almost touching the log, Then it's time to do a strut alignment. The whole idea is to have a common center line from the prop forward and through the engine crankshaft.

Hey Guys- I am still in this process also, today is 68, so I'm gonna go mess around more with it, but after reading this I had a question. When my shaft is in a relaxed position it is favoring the port side of the log, you can see in the pic I have to put my foot on it to hold it centered in the log. Is being centered in the log important or should I let it stay in a nuetral position and move the motor to it?   Thanks Greg B

P.S. Eric how would you like to come out to beautiful Whitefish Montana and hang out in my garage for a few days!

eric if thats aimed at me it came from ski dim earlier this week. I didn't bolt it up permanently yet. I just put it on temporarily to get a better idea of what everybody was talking about on this post.

8112 I just went out and bolted up the strut. now I see exactly what your saying. I was under the impression that there would't be any play in the shaft with the new cutlass bearing, therefore you would have to shim the cutlass to center of log before allighning. Ounce again a great question and great info by all. A guy like me learns something from every post on here.

8112 I guess I should explain what I was thinking more so than what I wrote. Until reading that post, I assumed when you bolt the strut back up it was centered in the log. So if I'm reading your post right I should shim the strut to the center of the log, then alighn the engine to the cutlass bearing. I have been reading all I've found here on allighnment, but could very well still be missing the boat. I don't remember reading anything until now that perfect alighnment between the engine and cutlass should also be centered in the log.

I'll soon be alighning mine when eric sends my tranny back. All I planned on doing was alighning at the coupler. Never even thought about centering in the log first. Great ? and great info.