I have plenty of wedges, sounds like a good idea, will pass it onI replaced an impellor on a 225 yammi after 8 years and it was a beast. After all the bolts were removed there was no movement-I got some Fallers wedges from Northern rope (hard plastic) cut them into
3/4 inch wide strips and proceded banging them in around the casing-after 2 days I got it to drop. Very heavy-have it secured---went back in easily
Sounds like a good idea too.Found this online. The part I highlighted seems like something that should be tried before cutting the shaft.
First , remove the propeller , no need to have an additional 20 pounds dangling out there . It is for sure your drive shaft stuck in the bottom of the crank . Get or fab some good pry bars to apply constant pressure and continue to pry and tap with a large shot filled dead blow hammer while a friend is cranking the engine over with the kill lanyard puled . sometimes this will help dislodge the stuck lower unit . This situation is a good example why to perform the redunant task of changing the water pump every year , keep the parts moving .
In extreme cases sometimes a hole is drilled in the midsection so the drive shaft can be cut to remove the stuck unit .
I was talking to him today. Told him about all the ideas on here. It seems we are going to try the polished wedge idea. He is away for a couple of weeks, but may bring the boat here. I have to make the wedges though. Were the wedges sharpened to a taper on both edges or did you leave one side flat and only sharpen one side? Any lubricant used?My Yamaha took the better part of a week of taping the wedges before I left for work, when I got home and before bed. I started with little steel wedges (1"x 3" x 0.25") that I sharpened to a razors edge and polished. Then once I had a gap started I used fallers wedges cut in half and steel angles to protect the surfaces. Usually I would go out and find the shaft had crept a little and the wedges on the ground. So back in they went with a light tap. No great force, no rush and no broken parts (don't hammer a wedge into things like the shift linkage). I blocked it up so it could only drop a couple of inches and drop it did.
We may end doing this if the polished wedge idea doesn't pan out Need to find out the location of the hole though. Weld a piece to the driveshaft and use a slide hammer after that ( of course use lots of lubricant)Not uncommon to for the driveshaft splines to seize in the crank if left too long without being greased. Drill a hole with a hole saw in the exhaust housing and cut the driveshaft, will need a new shaft and weld the cutout back in the housing but it won't be 4K! This procedure has been done countless times
Needless to say- I have purchased another 3 years extended warranty for the recent Merc I purchased
Well at leas5 we know he is not alone. Might be a tough lessonExactly the same problem I had with my Merc 115 4 stroke. Went in for a routine impeller and gearcase oil change.. and the shaft was seized in the block. No way was that leg going to drop. My Merc dealer called Mercury in Fond du Lac , Wi. and was told him they had never had this problem before The only way they could see to get the shaft to move , was to get at it by disassembling the block from the top. Total cost that Mercury marine paid my dealer was $3500.. very thankful for the Platinum extended warranty ...
Once you get the opening switch to fallers wedges- less chance of damageI only sharpened the sharp edge, and no lube, though I guess wax would have helped.
That's a lot more reasonable.
Glad it came apart for him.
Just curious. Who was it that gave the original quote to repair?