On Tue, 27 Jul 2004 10:31:27 -0700, "JD"
wrote:

My lauch site is very shallow. It would be helpful if I ran the last 20 ft
or so at idle but with the I/O tilted "up" at a position that it is slightly
out of the side constraint cradle. Is that safe to do?

This is an issue that was near and dear to me some time back. The Merc
manual at the time cautioned that while operation with the drive
tilted up was permissible, they advised to keep RPM below 1200. I had
a problem with excessive drive noise with the drive tilted up, which
they were never able to resolve. Their final answer was to tell me not
to run it with the drive up (gee thanks!).

Running it in the up position exposes the drive to potential damage if
it strikes an object since it no longer has the support of the gimbal
ring. It also runs the universal joints in an angled position (Which
was mostly the cause of my noise), which could wear them faster.

On the other hand, running the drive down in shallow areas, exposes
your prop (and/or shaft) as well as the drive skeg to damage.

Many of my boating friends over the years have run their drives up in
shallow areas, when we beach the boats on sand bars, and none have had
any direct issues from doing so.

Dave