Gear lube lower leg

[wgalmond]

Just needed to ask a question. I friend of mine helped me remove my lower leg and replace my water impeller. When we removed the leg, most of the gear lube drained out. We put it back together again, and I didn't fill the leg with gear lube. However, I added it in the reservoir on the engine block.

My understanding is that this flows to the leg and should feel to the it correct? I took the boat out for a quick cruise tonight (first of the season) and I was hearing an audible alarm, and realized it probably is from not filling the leg manually with a pump on a bottle of gear lube.

My question is this, by filling through the reservoir on the engine block will this suffice and will the lube makes is way fully to the leg? Or will I have to have the boat hauled out quick and add lube directly into the lower leg. I am hoping that there is a way to fill the leg fully without having to pull the boat, seeing how I just launched it and do not have a trailer. It will cost me standard marina charged to haul it out and relaunch.

Thanks!

Bill

[jrsick]

What model and year stern drive do you have? What kind of boat is this?
Best I can tell from your post, you dropped the lower unit without draining the gear lube first, am I correct? If so, the leaking would be normal. My guess is that you removed and replaced the stern drive without adding gear lube. As you are probably now aware, the proper method for replacing gear lube is to fill from the fill/drain plug near the bottom of the stern drive.
But to your question, I think you could fill the stern drive with fluid by continually filling the gear lube reservoir. The reservoir is there to keep your stern drive full of fluid.
Is your upper vent plug above the water line? if so, you can remove that and see if fluid leaks out.
I'm sure I'm missing something and other experienced boaters will chime in here. More info on your boat would be helpful.

[mmwjr]

jr sounds like you summarized what Bill explained correctly. Bill yes you can top off the drive by adding lube to the engine comparmrnt reservoir but this will take several times doing so as the fluid needs to displace the air in the drive and make it's way up into the reservoir. Since the lube is thick and the tube it is flowing through is small it will take about a day for each fill and I suspect around 10 fills to completely fill the unit. Question when you replaced the water pump why didn't you drain the lube then? This should be done yearly. Also when you installed the low half did you use a new O-ring for the lube jacket (tube cast into wall of lower unit for lube transfer from lower to upper)?

Don't use the boat until the outdrive is filled to the proper lever as the upper gears won't be getting lubed and you'll end up causing premature failure.

[wgalmond]

Thanks for the replies guys. I have a 2000 Alpha 1 Gen 2. And JRsick yes, I did exactly as you stated, I didn't drain the lower unit before separating it to change the impeller. This was my first time changing the impeller, and it was purely a rookie mistake, as well as not filling the leg properly. I understand that the lower leg showed be drained and filled yearly and inspecting the fluid for water, medal shavings etc as directed from several sources. Again, pretty much brain farts on not doing it, so it's totally my own fault.

I just wanted wanted to check to see if I was able to properly fill the leg without getting the boat hauled out. But at this point, I think I will rather spend that money, vice spending a ton more by operating it at a less than adequate level and causing failure.

Thanks for the quick response guys. One of the many reasons I love these type forums.

[mcoffey]

What you need is a gear lube pump. Wally World sells them for $7 or you can get at any Marina for twice that.
http://www.walmart.com/ip/Attwood-Ge...-Pump/16351021
The alarm is just for the reservoir but you likely are low in the outdrive as well as that tank does not hold much.
Just fill from the bottom with top plug out until it just starts to flow out top hole. Then put top plug in, remove pump and put bottom plug in.
Now top of reservoir and keep an eye on it for a few trips, it could drop a bit as air pockets get out.

[wgalmond]

Thanks. I just had the boat short hauled, and added lube through the leg. It seemed to only take about 1/3-1/2 quart before it started to spill out the top plug. I put the screws back on and double checked the reservoir and its just above the full line. I may take a turkey baster and take out some from there, unless this is fine. I am curious though with the alarm going off typically for the reservoir. Hopefully by me adding to the leg, will do the trick. I will take it out for a cruise later this evening when I get out of work and monitor accordingly.

[mcoffey]

Yeah, you were pretty low. It only holds just over 1 qt in the leg plus a bit extra in the reservoir. The reservoir has a float in it and when the float is low, closes a circuit to sound the alarm. The old outdrives (pre-Alpha 1 days) did not have the reservoir at all. It is just a bit of an extra safety measure to guard against slow leaks, nothing more. If you blow a seal and dump it all, it will only help for a few extra seconds
Now if the reservoir is full and you still have the alarm, pull the cap and look inside at the float. It could be stuck down, just lightly tap it or poke it with a screwdriver (lightly though) to get it to pop up.

[shrew]

My B3 takes like 3 quarts of lube, I'm sure the alpha is less I have nevever heard of being able to fill the drive lube through the drive lube resevoir. I've only ever done it through the lower drive lube drain on the gear case. It should be done by pumping lube up thorugh the lower lube drain with the screw for the drive lube inspection port removed. Once it start flowing out of the inspetion port, replace the inspection port screw and keep pumping until it starts to fill the bottom of the drive lube resevoir in the engine compartment. Once it starts filling that STOP. Go take a lunch and come back later. When you come back you'll see it continued filling the resevoir. NOW top off the resevoir.

[wgalmond]

So, I took the boat out for a test run last night. Unfortunately, the alarm was still sounding at around 2600RPM, so I backed it down. Cruising around slowly it was fine, but right around 2600 it Alarms. I do not know much on how the reservoir fully operates, but it appears that the hose runs from the bottom of the bottle, through hull (I believe) and connects to the lower leg. When I felt the hose, it appears to be rock solid, which I thought to be a big odd. I may be wrong. But other hoses on the engine, I can squeeze a bit regardless, but this seemed rock solid. Wondering it that is causing a problem? I am wondering as the RPM's increase does the lube flow more into the lower leg? I am thinking that if the flow in the hose, or the float in the reservoir is causing it to alarm. I will check the float today. Will I be able to see it through the lube? Any thoughts on if the hose is restricting flow of lube and causing the alarm? Temp was perfect at 175 and Oil press was 40-60 which both are normal from what I have seen in the past. Thanks for assistance. I appreciate it!

[mmwjr]

FYI, shrew has outlinethecorrect proceedure.

wgalmond the alarm can sound form low fluid in the reservoir, high water temp, or low oil pressure. Since the water temp and oil pressure warning buzzer user a seperate sending switch from the guage you may have normal reading at the helm but one of these senders can be bad. Yu can isolate it by removing the wire from each sendor one at a time until alarm no longer sounds, this includes the resersoir.

Idon't think a hard line is an issue as under normal conditions no fluid flows through the tube. I only flows if you are leaking fluid and even still only at the rate of the leak.

[shrew]

Originally Posted by wgalmond

Temp was perfect at 175........

Engine Water Temp.

Originally Posted by wgalmond

......Oil press was 40-60 which both are normal from what I have seen in the past.

Engine Oil Pressure.

Neither of these will influence nor be influenced by the gear lube in the outdrive.

Low drive lube alarm should be two short beeps. What is the alarm code you are getting? You haven't stated the type of drive. What type of drive is this? Alpha I, Bravo III? I'd start by confirming the drive type, then confirming the amount of lube the leg should take. Based on your description I would personally stop runing the boat, pull it and rechange the drive lube again, then fill it according to the manual. Then I'd see what shakes out from there.

[ss3964spd]

If the drive oil res is low then the alarm could be triggered depending on the running attitude of the hull. Think of it this way; fill a sauce pan half way with water and place it on a level surface. Place your finger on the inside of the pan near the handle so your finger tip is just touching the water. Then tilt up the side of the pan where your finger is. You're finger tip represents the float. So, depending on where the float is placed in the drive oil res, and how much oil is in the res, the alarm could be triggered by the attitude of the boat.

Fill the res to almost the full mark to eliminate that variable. The hard hose issue; I don't see how that can be since it is not pressurized. Perhaps Merc used a rigid hose for that application or perhaps you're squeezing the wrong one. That hose shouldn't be very large diameter and I do know that, for instance, a rubber fuel delivery hose will be pretty rigid due to it's thick walls and rubber compound. Regardless, since it isn't, and can't be (the fill cap is vented), under pressure I'd dismiss it as a symptom.

Dan

[mmwjr]

Shrew as you have stated the year and type of drive will help. If it is an older boat like my 1997 the alarm is a constant buzz when the lube is low, newer (not sure what year) systems give the two short beeps you mentioned.