F150 balancer experiment ends

[pstephens46]

3 years with no balancer shafts. Not too bad. Tired of having to tighten screws inside the boat.

New part arrived and the composite gears are very dry. I think I will apply oil prior to installing. how to capture screencertificity.com

[99yam40]

I wonder if the bearings/bushings would need some early lube also

[boscoe99]

So, are you saying the vibration was noticeable/excessive?

Is it a metal boat?

[basenjib123]

Going to do mine soon..

... still running the original with no symptoms yet but I will change it this coming winter. What do you want for 12,000 bucks, right?

[pstephens46]

So, are you saying the vibration was noticeable/excessive?

Is it a metal boat?

Noticeable yes, at idle speed. I had a latch and one cleat that would rattle from time to time.

Fiberglass boat

[TownsendsFJR1300]

It'd be nice to pitch those composite gears and just put steel ones in there...

It'd cost more, might be noisier, but no more wondering.

[99yam40]

Yea the old cam gears/chains on automotive motors would start shelling the plastic off and jumping time about 70K miles. I always put metal gears back in. I never noticed the motor being noisier afterwards.
but an outboard motor is closer to the driver and not much between

[robert graham]

Yea the old cam gears/chains on automotive motors would start shelling the plastic off and jumping time about 70K miles. I always put metal gears back in. I never noticed the motor being noisier afterwards.
but an outboard motor is closer to the driver and not much between

Yep, those old plastic-tipped timing gears had to be a bad design/idea...plastic ended up in the oil screen....replace with all metal gears not very noisy anyway!...

[boscoe99]

One of the features touted by Mercury Marine when their new four stroke 150 was introduced was "all metal" balancer gears.

An "in your face Yamaha"? Perhaps.

[pstephens46]

You also don't hear of problems with Suzuki or Honda balancers.

[TownsendsFJR1300]

Probably to save 3 lbs....

I'll wait for the Gen 5 balancer to come out and replace my gen 3..

[pstephens46]

Probably to save 3 lbs....

I'll wait for the Gen 5 balancer to come out and replace my gen 3..

This is part version 5. Starting with 00, now 04.

[TownsendsFJR1300]

This is part version 5. Starting with 00, now 04.

Well then part 6!

Just say NO to composite crap!!

[panasonic]

How much are the replacement gears?

[TownsendsFJR1300]

How much are the replacement gears?

You can only buy the entire unit... NO steel gears available at all...

Mine was replaced under warranty with a 3rd gen, updated oiling, greater clearances, slightly different design.

There's NOW a 4th gen, basically the same as the 3 but slightly quieter.

Yamaha Tech (Ca), has advised me the 3rd version won't fail (like the early units), just noisier than the 4th version.

As pictured above, that unit is extremely heavy duty. Those shafts are easily as heavy as a crankshaft in a small engine... Composite gears with a unit that HD, dumb.....



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