Well just finished my first longtail last week and had it out 3 times already with no problems. I went with 3 bushings and no bearings which im regretting. Today i went out and the top of the shaft was smoking and real hot.(where the first bushing is) center bushing was warm to the touch outside the shaft and lower bearing was fine with being under cold water. But im going to have to ream out that first bushing. which i already did before installing them. It did get hot enough to bind up and stop the motor. I also keep it greased, fill it up after every outing. frustrating.. just bringing this up for tips. maybe starting over with the drive shaft with bearings will be my next move.

Before you ream out the top bushing make sure your shaft is aligned properly. Remove top collar and loosen engine mounting bolts. Fill shaft with grease and make sure it comes out of top bushing evenly around shaft. common problem if bushing is already reamed to spec.

Gravity works against keeping the top bushing lubricated, especially as the grease heats up and becomes less viscous. Remove the top bushing, and replace it with a 2 bolt flange bearing. All you would need to do is add a couple of tabs to your drive tube to attach the flange bearing to it. Then you have a sealed bearing on top.