Heres the deal. I bought a 1986'ish GD frame that was straight and solid and is rated for a 9hp. Got the new 72" shaft and seals installed (the shaft housing is 66"), rebuilt the motor mount and transom do'hicky cuz Im putting a 18hp on it. I still need to replace the cav plate and misc bracketry/supports. Due to the big motor swap I built a bigger motor mounting plate and now Im trying to get it lined up for final mounting. The Biggest worries that I have are...
-Distance between the motor and u-joint (2.5")
-Distance between u-joint and shaft housing (1.5")
-Distance between shaft housing and prop threads (1.5")
Do these measurements sound acceptable or do I need to shorten the distances buy cutting the drive or prop shaft down a bit?
Also for proper motor to shaft alignment can I eyeball the alignment, clamp the engine down, start the engine and slowly adjust as needed or will I lose an arm trying to do it this way?
Im brand new to this LT mud motor stuff and could use some solid advice. If anyone around SETX has some experiance with these things Im willing to supply some cold beer in exchange for hands on advice.
Thanks

Dad'gum guy's! Is this not interesting enough for you? I'm doubling the hp on a longtail that could easily end in disaster or bodily harm and no one is chimming in. I dont know anyone with a LT to look at so hopefully someone can help me with the measurement issue. Thats my main concern at this point.

What happened to the piece of flat bar down the top of your shaft housing?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I'm replacing the flat bar but need to get the motor positioned first so I can build to it. This is definatly a out of the box project for me but I figured what the hell. Ive worried about the balance of the whole thing and may have to move the transom mount or weld a 10lb dumb bell on the cav plate!

I have noticed that and plan on extending it all the way down. Thanks for mentioning that.

What is the white flaky stuff all over everything?

LOL... Saw dust, I have a multi purpose shop.