Please explain ......what seal is leaking

[dthx]

When I drained the lower unit,the gearcase oil looked like it had water in it......

 

[oldboat1]

so drain it and pressure test it in a tub of water. Bubbles tell you where it's leaking, if it is.

 

[lindy46]

may be differing opinions, but I don't think it's gear oil. As I mentioned earlier, smell it. Gear oil will have a sulfur smell, not a gas smell

Agree - have you run this on the lake or just in a barrel?

 

[jimmbo]

Gear oil stinks to high heaven. The brown sludge, what does it smell like? Running an engine in a test tank, really doesn't warm it enough or fast enough to clean out the midsection and a buildup can occur. With fresh oil in the lower unit, run it at high speed on the water, then drop the gearcase and see if the sludge is still there. A vacuum test, as well as a pressure test should be done on the case anyway.

 

[dthx]

I took it to the Sabine River below Toledo Bend Damn....the tailrace that was cut to allow generator water to flow from the lake and connect with the river.
The water is quite cold....68 deg F.....at this time of the year.
I trolled some and ran some 3/4 speed...
Fished for an hour or so and then trailered the boat and came home....noticed oil coming out of the weep hole in the driveway at home...
I'll pressure test this weekend and will let the forum know .....
I hope it's something I've done or made a mistake on......
I just cant believe that what these pictures show is normal..
Thank you all for the time to reply and the help.

 

[Bosunsmate]

Just check the LU oil level if you arent sure if its gear oil.
If it is leaking id just replace all the topside seals if you dont have a pressure tester as they arent hard to do

 

[dthx]

Thanks to all the many folks that really know what they are doing with outboards....
I know that some of you that have helped me are working in the industry or you're retired and still have a lot of knowledge or you're just good at working on outboard and love it.......
I have a hunch that some of you have given up on me on this project...
I've been asking a lot of questions....
But I still havent found out what the problem is....
so I'm giving up on the forum....
Just Kidding....I'm messing with ya...!
Found it!
Some of you.....you know who you are have been trying to get me to pressure /vacuum test the LU.
I finally got a Bike pump and set up the LU and looked at it very closely.....
Here is what I told Joe Reeves at the Johnson parts forum....

"Pressure tested today with a Walmart bicycle pump and a makeshift connection.
The shift rod bushing is holding pressure well.
No bubbles out of the prop seal.
I took the water pump impeller housing off and the drive shaft seal is leaking....
Bubbles.....actually a small spray of water.....big leak.
I removed the seal and there is a gouge in the casting hole in which the seal sits.
It extends from the middle of the hole to top of the casting....
The casting hole is good the rest of the way down.
If I drive the seal all the way down into the hole...it will be below the gouge.
If you look closely, you can see a ring around the casting where the old seal was placed.......below the gouge.
It was driven down below the gouge.
The gouge is probably an old mistake.
So.....I'm going to put another drive shaft seal in and drive it down past the gouge.
That should do it.
I inherited this engine from my cousin.
It belonged to his Dad and there has been some maintenance done over the years....
I missed the gouge.
It's exactly the width of a seal puller....someone was not careful.
I didn't have to take the shift rod out (open the gearcase).....that's a pain.
I'll put all together and give it another pressure test and let you know..."
So again.....Thanks again everyone...!

 

[AlTn]

put some gasket sealing compound around the o/d of the seal to help seal any imperfections in the casting as well as hold the seal in place

 

[dthx]

Well, I tried that with some of the 3M # 847 that I have....I didnt put a lot because of the needle bearing down below....I was afraid of gumming that up if the 3M oozed down to it.
Put the drive shaft in and tried the water test again...
Still bubbles between the metal seal rim and casting.
So I used some aviation sealant that I got from NAPA...black stuff....but didnt use a lot for fear of the needle bearing...
Still leaked....

Should I just really put enough sealant material in there and not worry about the needle bearing?


I'm really in a pickle.

 

[oldboat1]

There doesn't seem to be much discussion over the driveshaft seal, and maybe you have it in upside down -- might be a possibility, anyway (long thread, so maybe you hashed that out earlier).

If you have the style with the brass flange, you should be looking down at the top of the flange. If you look down and see a spring, I think it's in upside down. [Like this, looking down at it: http://www.iboats.com/mall/partfind..._14162=&gd_search_14163=&session_id=324235709 ]

I think there's also an aftermarket seal that has the look of solid rubber with no metal housing (recall seeing that in a 9.9 seal kit). Not sure what to say about that one, but think it will look like a solid rubber gasket when looking down on it.

 

[dthx]

I like the way you're thinking....
The seal is spring down....Just like I took it out....
I'll investigate the seal with the "look of solid rubber"
If all fails, do you think that I could take the lower unit housing to a machine shop and have the drive shaft seal "hole" dressed up with dimensions that would accept a common store bought seal for the drive shaft?
I know a guy.

 

[oldboat1]

will defer to F_R in your new thread -- Loctite sounds like a good idea. Let it dry thoroughly. If you didn't try a fresh seal already, might do that -- might have buggered it up or just got a bad one. (No additional thoughts on that solid rubber one, but you might come across one.)