Reuse gear lube and seals?

[SDSeville]

I split the drive, replaced a couple seals and put everything back together, including filling with new gear lube, a few weeks ago. It looks like the shift shaft coupler is off a tooth (or spline), so I have to take the drive back apart (drive has not been back on the boat). Would it be safe to reuse the gear oil, quad ring, and oil vent/fill screw washers?

 

[muskyfins]

An alpha holds like 2 quarts of gear oil. Me personally-I would just get new. Even royal purple is only $15/quart.

 

[alldodge]

I split the drive, replaced a couple seals and put everything back together, including filling with new gear lube, a few weeks ago. It looks like the shift shaft coupler is off a tooth (or spline), so I have to take the drive back apart (drive has not been back on the boat). Would it be safe to reuse the gear oil, quad ring, and oil vent/fill screw washers?

Agree with muskyfins, walmart has Merc HP for 11.88 Qt, that said, I would have no issue reusing the gear lube I just drained under your situation so long as everything was clean.

 

[SDSeville]

Thanks guys! The gear lube was clean, and I made sure nothing got into it. I made the 20 mile trip to the marina to get the quad ring and washers. Stopped by Walmart for a couple quarts for 11.88 each - much less than I have been paying. I will use the new oil then pour the old (unused) oil into the new containers for next time (can't use the pump with the gallon water jug I drained into).

 

[s.hadley81]

If your really set on using that oil again you can get really fine paint strainers at an automotive store and just strain into quart jugs so you can use your pump but it's only like $25 of oil in a $2000 drive

 

[muskyfins]

Re-use it for bar and chain oil in your chain saw

 

[philipp10]

I cannot understand why you would not reuse it unless you think you got it dirty or somehow contaminated. As far as the quad ring, that's reuseable too. Thats said, if you do want to use it, you do have to have some way to collect it in a clean fashion. Personally, I have an oil change container and its pretty easy to clean it so it is very easy to keep the fluid clean. Better yet, if you have the original containers, put a funnel under the drive and feed it right back in to those containers.

 

[SDSeville]

I cannot understand why you would not reuse it unless you think you got it dirty or somehow contaminated. As far as the quad ring, that's reuseable too. Thats said, if you do want to use it, you do have to have some way to collect it in a clean fashion. Personally, I have an oil change container and its pretty easy to clean it so it is very easy to keep the fluid clean. Better yet, if you have the original containers, put a funnel under the drive and feed it right back in to those containers.

Thanks Philipp. Definitely not contaminated. You could have eaten from the oil drain pan before I drained the gear lube into it. I then poured it into a very clean/dry water jug. Considering I have changed the gear lube about every 25 hours the past couple years, it looked the same as when I pumped it in.

I just asked because I have never reused it before, nor have I had the occasion to. ...and I am no mechanic, so I thought best to check in with the experts.