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Thread: Volvo 270 drive & engine alignment

  1. #1
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    Volvo 270 drive & engine alignment

    I was wondering if any one has come up with a way to aligned the engine up to a Volvo 270 drive transom plate??? I have seen in one of the Volvo manuals that they use a stepped wedge blocks that I believe are inserted around the intermediate bearing housing & the Volvo transom plate?? There must be a better way. I am replacing the stock engine mounts with racing Merc one piece saddle mounts in my Magnum. After all these years working on offshores this is a first attempt to aligning a Volvo set up. Mark

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    The way the Volvos seal the connection with the two rubber gaskets makes for a close is good enough situation. When I switched from Ford to Chevy, I bolted up the bell housing to the transom shield and then hung a bare SBC block from my engine hoist until the dowel pins on the block met the bell housing and sat flush against it. Then I put the mounts on the block, bolted the angle plates the mounts sit on to the mounts and used the holes in the plate to guide the drill bit through the stringers.
    Maddy's Daddy
    L.I.,N.Y.

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    I always lined the 3 tabs up on the shield to the tabs on the bellhousing, take the weight off the front of the motor, bolt up the transom then set it down. Check the distance between the tabs which has always been right. With the double universal joint in the drive you could put the motor in sideways and the drive on crooked and it would still work fine though.
    A winner is just a loser that got up and did it one more time.
    1959 Biesemeyer - 4pt Hydro Drag - 2013 ACBS Winner - Best Race Boat
    1967 Nova Marine - SuperNova24 - ACBS Winner - 2012 Best Race Boat - 2016 Peoples Choice & Best Non Wood
    1972 John Allmand - Nova 19
    1972 John Allmand - Nova19 (#2)
    1982 PolarKraft -Jonboat - Crab Killer

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    Mark,
    I installed the engine mounts like Maddad on my 1971 Donzi when I had to change to a different length intermediate housing. I believe the system is fairly forgiving as long as you get it close. Bill

    1971 Donzi 18' 2+3
    1985 Eliminator 23' Daytona Offshore - Kevlar hull
    1988 23' Donzi CC F-23 with 250HP EFI Mercury OB
    1989 28' Team Warlock Offshore - single 548CID/600HP
    1990 23' Warlock Offshore - single 525HP
    Bill from Denison, TX - Lake Texoma

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    THANKS EVERYONE for all the info. Ironhead on OSO gave me a set of Merc race engine mounts, so now is a good time to change everything out. I have also found a few compleat fresh water Volvo drives for my Magnums restoration. I'm only going to use the lowers off the drives that came with this Mag as they have the Merc prop shafts. Hopefully in about 4 to 6 weeks winter here will be over and the fun can resume...

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    Smidgen too, don't throw out the lowers with the Volvo shafts to quickly. Me and everyone else who's tried the Merc shafts in a Volvo drive will tell you they won't last. They aren't hard/strong enough and will start to bend, causing everything to wobble and shake.
    I'd suggest using the Volvo shafts and Solas props.
    Maddy's Daddy
    L.I.,N.Y.

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    [Smidgen too, don't throw out the lowers with the Volvo shafts to quickly. Me and everyone else who's tried the Merc shafts in a Volvo drive will tell you they won't last]

    Thanks for the imput but these shafts were made by Hill Marine and have been on this Mag for around 10 + years & look perfect. ROGER MUN installed them and has used them many times.

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    Unfortunately the Solas props don't work very well on raised drives.

    Mark, You better lock up those prop shafts! They might turn up missing next time I'm in town.

    Ten years of offshore, '78 to '88. Awesome video footage

    Jeff
    " Just piercing the surface"

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    I have one of those shafts sitting on a shelf in the garage. Just don't have the heart to change it out after 40 years of hard, hard work by my Volvo. But I'm also lucky that Solas props work on my boat.
    A winner is just a loser that got up and did it one more time.
    1959 Biesemeyer - 4pt Hydro Drag - 2013 ACBS Winner - Best Race Boat
    1967 Nova Marine - SuperNova24 - ACBS Winner - 2012 Best Race Boat - 2016 Peoples Choice & Best Non Wood
    1972 John Allmand - Nova 19
    1972 John Allmand - Nova19 (#2)
    1982 PolarKraft -Jonboat - Crab Killer

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    Back in the day being from the Detroit area you could find a tool & die machine shop on almost any corner. Shops like Ken Blacks Muskie tool & die could broach a Merc prop to a Volvo shaft with no problem, and he did. However today you would be lucky to find a tool & die shop that is still open, sad but true.
    This is one on Ken's shop ad's from back in the day.
    Attached Images Attached Images

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    Yep. It is almost impossible to get custom work like that done now. One of the members here tried to find someone to custom make the gearsets for the e-drives (I still call them speedmasters). It was absolutely impossible to justify spending the amount he was quoted.
    I have one of those Merc shafts in a Volvo 280 lower that needs to be rebuilt. Can you recommend someone to rebuild a 280 lower? Thanks, Bill

    1971 Donzi 18' 2+3
    1985 Eliminator 23' Daytona Offshore - Kevlar hull
    1988 23' Donzi CC F-23 with 250HP EFI Mercury OB
    1989 28' Team Warlock Offshore - single 548CID/600HP
    1990 23' Warlock Offshore - single 525HP
    Bill from Denison, TX - Lake Texoma

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    You think that's bad. Try having a gear made for a Casale V drive. 5 grand to start.
    A winner is just a loser that got up and did it one more time.
    1959 Biesemeyer - 4pt Hydro Drag - 2013 ACBS Winner - Best Race Boat
    1967 Nova Marine - SuperNova24 - ACBS Winner - 2012 Best Race Boat - 2016 Peoples Choice & Best Non Wood
    1972 John Allmand - Nova 19
    1972 John Allmand - Nova19 (#2)
    1982 PolarKraft -Jonboat - Crab Killer

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    I just had my 2 Volvo 280 drives rebuilt by a machinist marine tech in southern NJ.

    Chet Purves
    Purves Marine Works
    609-296-1263

    He is also a Magnum 27 owner and a Donzi owner. Talented old school machinist tech. He set my drives up so that there is a starboard and a port drive , gear lasah is different depending on rotation as I'll be running close to 500 hp through each drive.

    I will have prop challenges with my drive ratios and the raised drives, and am in contact with Hale Propellors in CT. More on this as I learn more.

    Mario L.

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    All this talk about not being able to find a machinst to custom make parts - anybody ever try these guys?

    http://www.emachineshop.com/

    I haven't used them, but sounds like they are geared toward one-offs
    Don
    '01 22 Classic, 502/B1
    And a bunch of other stuff

    "If everything seems under control, you're just not going fast enough" - Mario Andretti

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    I just had my 2 Volvo 280 drives rebuilt by a machinist marine tech in southern NJ.

    Chet Purves
    Purves Marine Works
    609-296-1263

    Thank you, Mario. Bill

    1971 Donzi 18' 2+3
    1985 Eliminator 23' Daytona Offshore - Kevlar hull
    1988 23' Donzi CC F-23 with 250HP EFI Mercury OB
    1989 28' Team Warlock Offshore - single 548CID/600HP
    1990 23' Warlock Offshore - single 525HP
    Bill from Denison, TX - Lake Texoma

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