at least I think that's what the thing is called. It's the phillips screw in front and a bit above the drain/fill screw on the LU. There's been a leak there for years... when it sits for a long time, gear oil weeps out from around the screw. It gets a small amount of water in the gear oil when being used, but it gets only a handful of hours on it per year, so we've just been changing the gear oil out instead of fixing the problem. No LU problems (so far).<br /><br />It's my father-in-law's boat and I think it could be one of those, "maybe it's better not to mess with it" situations. But is there an easy way to replace the gasket/seal behind that screw? I don't really wanna take the LU apart. I've read that if that screw is removed, you can't get it back in unless you've got the LU apart enough to align the something that that screw goes into (the end of the shift shaft?). I've thought about doing a really 1/2 a$$ed thing like just cleaning the outside with brake cleaner and putting a blob of sealant over it... It might not work, but it might be better than doing nothin'. Or maybe I could loosen that screw a turn or two to get some gasket maker behind it and then tighten it back down? Could be risky I guess.<br /><br />I'm just trying to not start a big project on a motor that still runs, but has more or less been neglected for ~35 years. I've got enough projects with my own stuff.<br /><br />Thanks for your $.02<br /><br />Brent
<br />You can probable remove the Pivot Screw with no worries, replace the sealing washer on the screw and reinstall it. As long as you dont move the throttle or jar the Unit, the shift coupler should stay in posstion in line with the Pivot Screw hole.<br /><br />heheh I just tore mine down last night and removed the pivot screw and the coupler stayed in postion.<br />you will see if it has slipped out of alignment