A bite out of my skeg!

[Cuddy]

I had a run in with an immovable object last night at the local lake. It took a jagged bite out of my skeg (Mercruiser Alpha 1 outdrive)but seemed to do nothing else. Any recommendations? What would it cost to replace the lower casing? The boat has less than 30 hours on it so I'm in distress!

 

[JB]

Re: A bite out of my skeg!

Ahoy, Cuddy. My Son will be relieved that he isn't the only one to whang his skeg in the first few hours of operation.<br /><br />Go to Cabelas.com and get a SKEGGARD for your unit. It is a stainless sleeve that fits over (the remains of?) your skeg. Costs about a hundred bux and you can install it yourself. Works good. We now have them on both of our boats.<br /><br />Red sky at night. . . <br />JB

 

[avidda]

Re: A bite out of my skeg!

cuddy:<br /><br />JB's advice is good, i have a skeggard on my duck boat because it makes the whole unit a little sturdier if you have a tendency to whack the bejeezus out of it from time to time. <br /><br />however, you can take your boat to a propellor shop or your dealer ($$$) and get a new piece welded on and painted for about $100 bucks. At least that is the going rate in Baton Rouge, LA. he only spayed the bottom part of the skeg, not the whole lower unit, but it looked great. <br /><br />$.02<br />dave

 

[Cuddy]

Re: A bite out of my skeg!

Thanks for the excellent advice. Is it neccessary to take it in to have it checked out? It ran fine with no vibrations afterward.

 

[fone_man]

Re: A bite out of my skeg!

The skeg is designed for taking the first hit & protecting your outdrive... cause it to jump over immovable object. Skeg Guard works fine... check prop for damage & repair.<br /><br />I have seen them ripped off & run for years with no problem...<br /><br /><br /><br /><br />------------------<br />"Keep It Between The Bouys" & "Good Luck"!!!<br /><br />fone_man

 

[Walter]

Re: A bite out of my skeg!

Lower units make for lousy depth finders, eh?<br />More like "debt" finder...<br /><br />Prop shop will have your lower unit looking like new again. <br /><br />Walt