[rareman]

1988 Yamaha 2 stroke 70HPAm doing winter maintenance and have discovered a crack in the propellor housing part of the lower gearbox. It extends from the edge about 2 inches past the two locating spacers. Everything seems solid - can I survive with this or does it need a weld or other repair?All advice appreciated.

[CaptSteve]

MikeIf you are running this motor in saltwater salt has built up between the propeller shaft bearing which is directly behind the prop. This salt residue has expanded and cracked the lower case bell. It will continue to crack unless you have it welded. The cost to do this is about $150 if you remove the lower unit yourself. To prevent this always flush motor well after use and lower motor so water drains. Once a year remove the bearing and clean the salt deposits from area. If bearing is froze I have used household lime and calcium remover with good sucess to keep it from happening again. DO NOT TREAT AREA WITH ANY OIL TO LOOSEN BEARING UNTIL THE CRACK HAS BEEN WELDED. The oil residue makes it very difficult and more expensive to weld.IF you have not run this in salt water it was possible that this area contained some water and froze and cracked in storage. It is a weak area on yamahas I have twins on my boat and they both had identical cracks from the salt corrosion. However if you look at other manufacturer posts on this web site you will see many more problems for J/E than yamaha. Sad but true.Good LuckSteve