gear oil?

markg · 09 July 2008, 16:04

i have a mariner 30, is the gearbox oil sae 90 or something else, also i am assuming the screw just above the skeg is the drain plug and the one just below the cavitation plate the filler hole, once drained do i fill up to the level of the filler plug?
thanks for any advice,

Pete7 · 09 July 2008, 16:12

Horrible job, so arm yourself with cloths, drip tray and some disposable gloves cos it's going to go everywhere.

Take the two screws out and drain the oil. Clean the magnet on the inside of the screws of any swarf. Dealers will use a pump but at home you will need probably 3 tubes of gear oil. Cut the tops off each tube ready for action. Squirt the first tube into the lower hole and then without it running out again

quickly put the next tube in and continue filling the box up from the lower drain hole. When oil runs out of the top hole its full and more importantly you have avoided trapping air pockets inside.

Pete

markg · 09 July 2008, 16:17

cheers pete is it standard sae 90 though? i have half a gallon in the shed and a tool for pushing oil in - like a grease gun but for oil,

ashbypower · 09 July 2008, 16:24

Yes but No But
Mmmm Just taken a tube off the shop shelf and it reads
"Contains Improved emulsifiers to help protect gears should water enter the Gear housing, Tackifiers to improve the oil film adhesion to gears and internal components, Extreme pressur additives to protect gears from metal to metal contact and excessive wear "

David G · 09 July 2008, 16:28

Hi,
I found this quite useful:
http://www.themarinedoctor.com/gearoilmovie.wmv

Orve.

Nos4r2 · 09 July 2008, 16:50

Quote:

Originally Posted by ashbypower

Yes but No But
Mmmm Just taken a tube off the shop shelf and it reads
"Contains Improved emulsifiers to help protect gears should water enter the Gear housing, Tackifiers to improve the oil film adhesion to gears and internal components, Extreme pressur additives to protect gears from metal to metal contact and excessive wear "

Exactly why you shouldn't use normal EP90. The proper stuff will protect your box even if you get a bit of water ingress.

markg · 09 July 2008, 18:07

what is the third drain plug for- slightly higher than the oil filler and to the left a bit?
the oil is draining, looks more like semi-fluid grease than oil though, no signs of swarf or water in it though,

captnjack · 09 July 2008, 18:35

The third hole is probably a fitting for a flushing attachment. The smaller mariners have in the past used a small brass fitting which a hose fits onto. I had one, it was silly. The ear muff style flusher is way easier.

codprawn · 09 July 2008, 20:08

Quote:

Originally Posted by ashbypower

Yes but No But
Mmmm Just taken a tube off the shop shelf and it reads
"Contains Improved emulsifiers to help protect gears should water enter the Gear housing, Tackifiers to improve the oil film adhesion to gears and internal components, Extreme pressur additives to protect gears from metal to metal contact and excessive wear "

They all do that!!!

Many racers use synthetic gear oil which is sold for car applications. Remember LR diffs and gearboxes get plenty of water in them as well..........

Morris lubricants sell some good gear oils - I asked their tech dept if they were suitable for outboards and was told "no problem"!!!

Nos4r2 · 09 July 2008, 21:03

Quote:

Originally Posted by codprawn

They all do that!!!

Many racers use synthetic gear oil which is sold for car applications. Remember LR diffs and gearboxes get plenty of water in them as well..........

Morris lubricants sell some good gear oils - I asked their tech dept if they were suitable for outboards and was told "no problem"!!!

How much do I have to bet that they haven't tested their gear oils for protection against damage due to standing for long periods with contamination with salt water?

Bigmuz7 · 09 July 2008, 21:27

Quote:

Originally Posted by markg

the oil is draining, looks more like semi-fluid grease than oil though, no signs of swarf or water in it though,

Hmm is it white, grey or yellow ?

Sounds like a bit of contamination but if its cold... gear oil is quite thick

As Nos said .. marine grade EPX 80/90's contains stuff to stop water affecting the gear surfaces even after slight ingress

edit .. do the change .. then check it after a month or so and see if its discoloured again, because you might have a failed seal on the output shaft thats letting water in, either that or you have impending gear failure

Poly · 09 July 2008, 21:59

Quote:

Originally Posted by markg

what is the third drain plug for- slightly higher than the oil filler and to the left a bit?
the oil is draining, looks more like semi-fluid grease than oil though, no signs of swarf or water in it though,

mark did you watch the video in the link above? that engine has 3 holes (drain, vent and fill) as opposed to filling through the drain hole. Is that what you are referring to?

markg · 09 July 2008, 22:23

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bigmuz7

Hmm is it white, grey or yellow ?

Sounds like a bit of contamination but if its cold... gear oil is quite thick

As Nos said .. marine grade EPX 80/90's contains stuff to stop water affecting the gear surfaces even after slight ingress

edit .. do the change .. then check it after a month or so and see if its discoloured again, because you might have a failed seal on the output shaft thats letting water in, either that or you have impending gear failure

its not white grey or yellow its quite black, looks like it aint been changed in ages, its a second hand engine so i thought a service might be in order before i used it on water, i did hear it running before i bought it, it started first pull ticked over evenly and pumped plenty of water, did not find any metallic grey trace in the oil or signs of water, just looks like it needed new oil, i am going to fill it with ordinary ep 90 , i am skint after building the trailer to take the boat and our local chandler does not keep marine ep90, but i will just run it for a few hours as a kind of flushing oil and then change it for proper stuff,
thanks for the help chaps.

markg · 09 July 2008, 22:39

Quote:

Originally Posted by Polwart

mark did you watch the video in the link above? that engine has 3 holes (drain, vent and fill) as opposed to filling through the drain hole. Is that what you are referring to?

i watched the video but i didnt get any sound, did you? the third plug i was referring to is directly above the water intake so i assumed the previous reply of it being a flushing point to be correct ? i have drained it from the drain plug and refilled through the fill plug? the mrs went in the shed to get the dogfood out tonight, smelled the ep90 which was all over the place and promptly accused me of leaving some eggy farts in the shed
its my shed and ill fart if i want to.

Poly · 09 July 2008, 22:49

Quote:

Originally Posted by markg

i watched the video but i didnt get any sound, did you?

yes

Quote:

the third plug i was referring to is directly above the water intake so i assumed the previous reply of it being a flushing point to be correct ?

that sounds right then - some engines (like the one in the video) have 2 plugs at the top of the gearbox to make life easier.

Quote:

i have drained it from the drain plug and refilled through the fill plug?

did you fill it from the top? you are supposed to fill from the bottom (unless like the video you have 3 screws in total). because its fairly "glupy" you may have air trapped at the bottom of the gearbox. I would be tempted to turnover the gearbox a bit (with kill cord removed and in neutral) and recheck level (and top up if necessary from bottom).

Bigmuz7 · 09 July 2008, 22:51

Quote:

Originally Posted by markg

its not white grey or yellow its quite black,

Goood .. no water contamination then .. black was the only colour I didnt mention .. what that means is the oil hasnt been changed in ages but your seals are good

the smell is a sulphide smell like gas.. which is the oil breaking down .. and you got it at a time before it becomes useless to lubricate the gears .. all good

Nos4r2 · 09 July 2008, 22:53

It's only an extra £5 to buy a litre of Quicksilver gear oil over the price of EP80/90.

Have a look on the tip of the drain plug-it's a magnet and any metallic particles will stick to it very well.

markg · 09 July 2008, 23:21

Quote:

Originally Posted by Polwart

yesthat sounds right then - some engines (like the one in the video) have 2 plugs at the top of the gearbox to make life easier. did you fill it from the top? you are supposed to fill from the bottom (unless like the video you have 3 screws in total). because its fairly "glupy" you may have air trapped at the bottom of the gearbox. I would be tempted to turnover the gearbox a bit (with kill cord removed and in neutral) and recheck level (and top up if necessary from bottom).

yes filled it from the top, i did note pete7 said fill from the bottom but i thought i would fill from the top leave overnight wobble the engine around a bit to move any air and then recheck the level, these marine engines are very different to anything else, i built this a couple of years ago http://img.villagephotos.com/p/2004-...8/P1010004.JPG
its a westfield with a 3.5 sd1 vitesse motor, sounds like gods personal tvr, 8-1-2 exhaust
holley carb, i am not a total mechanical numptie but marine engines are a different kettle of fish altogether and i am very grateful for all the advice i have had from you chaps

markg · 09 July 2008, 23:35

Quote:

Originally Posted by Nos4r2

It's only an extra £5 to buy a litre of Quicksilver gear oil over the price of EP80/90.

Have a look on the tip of the drain plug-it's a magnet and any metallic particles will stick to it very well.

i did look at the tip of the drain plug when i took it out i thought it might be magnetic and it was free of particles of any sort, i know marine ep90 aint all that expensive (but our local chandlers cater mostly for canal boats when i went to buy marine 2 stroke oil i looked for gear oil and could not find any so i thought i would use the ep90 i have as flushing oil and pick up some proper stuff when i can) surely a few hours on ordinary ep90 and then a drain and refill with marine grade cant do any harm can it?

Nos4r2 · 10 July 2008, 16:11

Quote:

Originally Posted by markg

i did look at the tip of the drain plug when i took it out i thought it might be magnetic and it was free of particles of any sort, i know marine ep90 aint all that expensive (but our local chandlers cater mostly for canal boats when i went to buy marine 2 stroke oil i looked for gear oil and could not find any so i thought i would use the ep90 i have as flushing oil and pick up some proper stuff when i can) surely a few hours on ordinary ep90 and then a drain and refill with marine grade cant do any harm can it?

Should be OK-I'd leave it for a while to drain though when you do the change just to get rid of all the EP90.