Dead in the water on our first boat trip

[bryceman2712]

My lower unit had two bolts and nuts on each side and one bolt in back and one bolt in the front side (towards boat) I will check that post on lunch to see. I was thinking I could flush and clean and flush that lower half bc there was very tiny metal pieces in it and not very much.

 

[Bt Doctur]

thats a Alpha GEN II. the problem with all that metal is should be disassembled for a through cleaning otherwise bearing and gear failure will happen. You can try using kerosene but keep flushing untill you dont see and metal particles

 

[bryceman2712]

When I put oil in that unit the top vent screw had 2 gaskets 1 yellow and one blue and the bottom one that I filled from had none. I thought that was odd biut didn't think anything of it bc it didn't leak setting in my garage but maybe that is why it leaked when under pressure?the top vent gaskets came out with the screw maybe I didn't set them in the right order bc they are different materials? It's hard to tell but I agree with Bt doc before I spend any money I'd like to know why this happened. Spending money on a new unit is one thing but buying a new unit just to trash it again is another.

 

[Bt Doctur]

never used the yellow metal ones, always a new fibre ones that come in the wp kits. one gasket per screw Did you use the pump that goes in a Qt bottle or the 5 gal pail pump

 

[bryceman2712]

It screwed on top of a normal quart bottle and took just a little bit more than one quart.

So it could have leaked from the lower filler screw with no gasket in place. Smh such a simple mistake

 

[JASinIL2006]

When I put oil in that unit the top vent screw had 2 gaskets 1 yellow and one blue and the bottom one that I filled from had none. I thought that was odd biut didn't think anything of it bc it didn't leak setting in my garage but maybe that is why it leaked when under pressure?the top vent gaskets came out with the screw maybe I didn't set them in the right order bc they are different materials? It's hard to tell but I agree with Bt doc before I spend any money I'd like to know why this happened. Spending money on a new unit is one thing but buying a new unit just to trash it again is another.

The bottom screw had NO gaskets at all? I don't know if it would leak more when running, but there definitely should be a gasket there. You might want to double-check... sometimes the gasket will stick in the drive housing and unless you prod it out, you can't tell it's there due to the gear lube.

 

[Bt Doctur]

using the qt bottles you need to go slow with the pumping so you dont pump air into the unit from the pump. on average I use about a qt and 1/2 of oil

 

[Bondo]

using the qt bottles you need to go slow with the pumping so you dont pump air into the unit from the pump. on average I use about a qt and 1/2 of oil

Ayuh,.... Back when I used qt. bottles, I'd pump 'bout 3/4ers, switch bottles, 'n fill it up,....

Then transfer the smaller amount into the fuller bottle, probably 'bout 1/2 qt,....

 

[bryceman2712]

using the qt bottles you need to go slow with the pumping so you dont pump air into the unit from the pump. on average I use about a qt and 1/2 of oil

Shouldn't the air escape the vent on top?

 

[bryceman2712]

Also I went to SEI website and found 2 units

1 : SE116, UPPER 1.81 (Replaces Mercruiser Gen II)

2 : SE116, UPPER 1.81 MODIFIED (Replaces Mercruiser Gen II)

Both only say replaces the 1.84 gear ratios what is the modified about??

 

[Bt Doctur]

the oil transfers from the lower to the upper thru a 3/16-1/4 hole. so if you create an air bubble you will see oil escape from the upper hole but it will have a bubble of air below it. once the oil drains down into the lower unit to replace the air bubble ,the upper is very low on oil.

 

[bryceman2712]

This has me second-guessing everything about this boat now. Is it normal for people to put caulking on the back of the boat like where the tie downs are for the straps on the back of the boat? the guy said every couple years or so he'll take everything off and re caulk it. He bought the boat new in 92 and has been maintaining it since. Made sense to me but now I feel like everything is wrong.

 

[bryceman2712]

the oil transfers from the lower to the upper thru a 3/16-1/4 hole. so if you create an air bubble you will see oil escape from the upper hole but it will have a bubble of air below it. once the oil drains down into the lower unit to replace the air bubble ,the upper is very low on oil.

So when I get my new one should I run it after I add the lube then recheck the level again after couple minutes to be sure? I see now that the bottom of that vent it just above the drive gear contact points which makes sense why even a little low is the death of fun and "the best summer ever" as my wife called it when I brought our boat home.

 

[Bt Doctur]

once the drive is assembled, get 2 qts of oil. Pump 3/4 of the first bottle and shift the pump to the second bottle to finish.Pump slowly ,you dont want to see any air bubbles in the hose. just oil. Continue pumping SLOWLY untill it comes out the top hole . Let stand over night.
Install and test on the boat.Check the oil level after the drive has cooled, preferably the next day.

 

[Rick Stephens]

I pumped a few bubbles of air in once. Stopped, let it sit for a bit so the air would rise up to the top of the lower, then pump more into the lower. Even if full, you want to pump that air into the upper, let it rise to the top again and then make sure the oil is topped. It added an hour to my fill time when I did that.

Rick

 

[redneck joe]

Also I went to SEI website and found 2 units

1 : SE116, UPPER 1.81 (Replaces Mercruiser Gen II)

2 : SE116, UPPER 1.81 MODIFIED (Replaces Mercruiser Gen II)

Both only say replaces the 1.84 gear ratios what is the modified about??

Call or email SEI. They are very helpful. They also used to have a forum area where they answews a few of my questions

 

[bryceman2712]

Ok guys it has been awhile and a very boring summer. But I have vacation planned every year and it is coming fast. I live in Indiana and there's not many outdrive with the proper gear ratio on Craigslist I've even checked surrounding states but I found one on eBay I can get it shipped to my house for $550 for just the upper portion. there's a boat junk yard local to me they want $650. I wish I had the money to just purchase the new sei unit but I dont. Do you think I should go with the eBay unit? Also is there a installation gasket kit for these or do I have to buy the gasket and o rings separate?

 

[2fishy4u]

I have the SEI upper with a OEM lower unit and I have had no issues beyond the paint does not hold well in excess marine use (I keep it in a marina). I would try to go this route before getting anything used. You just never know the history of the used one. It could last forever, or it could last half a trip.

 

[Rick Stephens]

A brand new SEI upper is $650 and comes with a 3 year warranty. No possible way I would spend over $200 for a used upper.

 

[bryceman2712]

I thought it was sketchy that the junk yard wanted so much for something laying out in the weather for who knows how long. However I found a rebuilt mercruiser with 70 hours on it for less than the SEI. With a guarantee to work and I was able to take off gear case cover and inspect gears so I went for it. What is the best kind of pump for me to use for filling my outdrive? My last one had a red hose and I couldn't see if there was bubbles. Thanks for input guys