What do you know about OMC Outdrives?
- Thread starter Zack1978
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Thats a familar looking sterndrive there. OMC Cobra but the looks of it. My dad had a ski boat with a cobra sterndrive on it when i was a kid and it was pretty reliable, but whenever he needed stuff he found out that OMC Cobra outdrive stuff is hard to find. There area a lot of OMC dealers/shops but most dont want to mess with the Cobra stuff. Why? i have no idea.
The things that were recurring problems were the small water pump in the foot and the trim sensor.
i think 'regular' OMC stuff is not that hard to come by or find somebody who'll work on it.
The things that were recurring problems were the small water pump in the foot and the trim sensor.
i think 'regular' OMC stuff is not that hard to come by or find somebody who'll work on it.
They're not terribly tough to locate, from the crappy pics, that's gonna need some work and yer prop is done. You will have to calculate the cost of a possibly replacing the outdrive versus the value of the boat, old boats are a ton of work, worse than cruisers.
lol... nice prop. Were you mixing concrete with that thing?
Jesus.
Jesus.
- Thread starter
- #5
lol... nice prop. Were you mixing concrete with that thing?
Jesus.
I have no clue what they hit with the prop. It actually has large chunks missing!
Zack
lol... Were you mixing concrete with that thing?
Jesus.
Mulching bricks.....should'a backed the trailer in a little farther
Ed
I have a 1994 Four Winns with an OMC Cobra outdrive. It was practically new when I bought it four years ago and still looks new, unlike that one you posted a picture of. I've never done anything to it except change the gear oil and replace the impeller.
I have found Doug Russell Marine has a pretty comprehensive list of OMC parts. There are other online resources too, and my local boat store has been a Four Winns dealer forever so they have sources for OMC parts.
Doug Russell Marine - Parts Catalog
Iboats.com is a good source for props. Count the splines on your prop shaft before purchasing, or you'll end up buying the wrong one like I did. I've found that 1993 and 1994 were transition years for Four Winns, where they were abandoning OMC and going to Volvo Penta and so you have to double check the parts you're getting. There was some overlap - my 1994, according to most online part catalogs, should have a VP SX outdrive, but it is most definitely an OMC Cobra.
I'm guessing that was run in salt water to be in that condition. I wouldn't touch it unless it was cheap and I could do a thorough sea trial. Look for the following:
Does it shift firmly from neutral to forward and neutral to reverse? It's supposed to clunk into gear, but you don't want it to be very hard to move the lever forward and aft.
How often was the gear oil changed, especially if run in salt water? What's the current condition of the gear oil? There's a dipstick in the top of the drive, on the flat part (it has a flat head screwdriver fitting). You CAN and WILL destroy these drives if the oil isn't changed properly because if you don't get 2 quarts in there you will have air bubbles that will toast the upper gear assembly.
Are there any sacrificial anodes on the drive? Judging from the external condition, I'd say these weren't changed regularly.
Like I said, I haven't had any issues with my outdrive so I'm far from an expert. Run it in the water for a good half hour or so and make sure it doesn't make any wierd noises, etc. and make sure it runs cool. Outdrives can be hugely expensive to work on or replace. If I was doing it again I would probably get something with a Volvo Penta SX outdrive or Mercruiser, but if the price is right on that one . . .
I have found Doug Russell Marine has a pretty comprehensive list of OMC parts. There are other online resources too, and my local boat store has been a Four Winns dealer forever so they have sources for OMC parts.
Doug Russell Marine - Parts Catalog
Iboats.com is a good source for props. Count the splines on your prop shaft before purchasing, or you'll end up buying the wrong one like I did. I've found that 1993 and 1994 were transition years for Four Winns, where they were abandoning OMC and going to Volvo Penta and so you have to double check the parts you're getting. There was some overlap - my 1994, according to most online part catalogs, should have a VP SX outdrive, but it is most definitely an OMC Cobra.
I'm guessing that was run in salt water to be in that condition. I wouldn't touch it unless it was cheap and I could do a thorough sea trial. Look for the following:
Does it shift firmly from neutral to forward and neutral to reverse? It's supposed to clunk into gear, but you don't want it to be very hard to move the lever forward and aft.
How often was the gear oil changed, especially if run in salt water? What's the current condition of the gear oil? There's a dipstick in the top of the drive, on the flat part (it has a flat head screwdriver fitting). You CAN and WILL destroy these drives if the oil isn't changed properly because if you don't get 2 quarts in there you will have air bubbles that will toast the upper gear assembly.
Are there any sacrificial anodes on the drive? Judging from the external condition, I'd say these weren't changed regularly.
Like I said, I haven't had any issues with my outdrive so I'm far from an expert. Run it in the water for a good half hour or so and make sure it doesn't make any wierd noises, etc. and make sure it runs cool. Outdrives can be hugely expensive to work on or replace. If I was doing it again I would probably get something with a Volvo Penta SX outdrive or Mercruiser, but if the price is right on that one . . .
One more thing - most boat problems I hear about are due to poor or inadequate winterizing. When you do a sea trial, sit in the boat in the lake with the engine idling and do a very thorough inspection of the engine with a flashlight. Make sure that there is no water coming out ANYWHERE. Usually when blocks freeze and crack, they will gush water out the sides, but not always. My neighbor just bought a boat with a cracked intake manifold from poor winterizing.
Also, I'd do a compression check on the engine and while pulling plugs, look carefully for any signs of water in the oil.
Sorry if you already know all this - I've become the 'boat expert' to my friends and neighbors simply because I own one, but like I said I haven't had to do anything to mine so I really don't know much.
Allan
Also, I'd do a compression check on the engine and while pulling plugs, look carefully for any signs of water in the oil.
Sorry if you already know all this - I've become the 'boat expert' to my friends and neighbors simply because I own one, but like I said I haven't had to do anything to mine so I really don't know much.
Allan
- Thread starter
- #10
Thank you very much for the excellent info! The boat has always been a freshwater boat, but I will check everything that you mentioned.
Thanks again,
Zack
Are you sure??? I recently bought a 21' Chris Craft on Ebay and thought I was getting a great deal. Man I will never do that again. First thing I had to do was replace the coupler on the outdrive ($$$$$$$$$$). My boat was in salt water and the lower unit looks very similar in condition. My parents bought their boat brand new, and it has never been in salt water. It is a 1984 model and the lower unit looks 100000x better that that one. The folks have always took really good care though too...