Volvo Penta Aquamatic Outdrive Stand

When I bought my 40 year old boat, I was terrified because the outdrive was no longer supported by Volvo. Turns out my fears were unfounded because the Aquamatic drives are extremely sturdy, but in the meantime I bought a working spare drive on Ebay for $80.

The spare drive was shipped in 2 pieces and I've been kicking those pieces around the shop for 2 years. I finally decided to make a stand for the drive and put the two halves together so they didn't take up so much space. I marked the drive as a reminder that it would need to be resealed if/when it was put into service.

I Googled Aquamatic stands and found some pictures. I decided the easier/simpler the better and I had some plywood lying around so I decided to use wood. I didn't have specific dimensions in mind for the stand, rather they were dictated by scrap wood I had in the shop.

The initial effort was a simple 90° V of 2 X 4's with plywood ends. I then put the feet on the plywood to make it a little sturdier.

This worked well for totally static storing of the drive, but I knew it would get bumped occasionally, so I added another couple 2 X 4's to wedge the skeg so the drive was kept in an upright position.

She was still a little squirrely in the fore and aft orientation...wanting to lean away from the prop shaft,  so I made a collar for the shaft so it couldn't rock up.

Here's what I ended up with:a






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And for those of you who would like to do the same...here's some numbers: