1957 Viking (Gale) 12 HP Lower Unit

[jwh114]

Hi,

Wondering if anyone can help me with this. I'm in the process of rebuilding a old 1957 Eatons Viking (made by Gale) 12 HP outboard. It is the model with a full R - N - F gearshift. I pulled the lower unit to inspect the impeller. Once that was finished, I went to drain the gearcase oil to replace it and noticed through the drain hole that it was filled with grease instead of oil.

I assume that at some point someone did this either because they didn't know any better or oil was leaking out. I also assumed this is a bad thing so I decided to open the gear case and clean out all of the grease. I removed the prop and unscrewed the 6 screws holding the top and bottom half of the gearcase together, opened it up and spent the afternoon cleaning out the old grease. In the process, it became completely disassembled.

I'm now finished and preparing to reassemble everything but the process seemed easier than some of the descriptions I've been reading for other motors so I'm second guessing myself. Is this just an easy gearcase to disassemble and reassemble? Do I need to replace anything? Are there seals that need to be refitted? If so does anyone have a part number for a seal kit?

I don't have any experience doing this so any help, thoughts or suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

Also, does anyone know where I can obtain an owners/parts or repair manual for this motor?

Thanks much

 

[F_R]

Re: 1957 Viking (Gale) 12 HP Lower Unit

www.outboardbooks.com has the books.

As you guessed, it probably has grease in it because it leaks. As long as you have it apart, you might as well go the rest of the way and replace all the seals. Don't forget the shift rod seal.

They probably have seal kits here at iboats. Same kit as '57 - 18hp Johnson or Evinrude. Oops, better take that back. What is your model number? Not all Gales are created equal.

 

[jwh114]

Re: 1957 Viking (Gale) 12 HP Lower Unit

Hi,

Thanks for the reply. The model number is 12D15V. It is the model with a fuel pump and regular shift, does not use pressurized tanks.

I figured it probably leaked but when I opened the drain hole there was no water. None inside the gearcase either once I opened it up (I had started it up in a deep garbage can yesterday full of water). No signs of any rust or corrosion. But, better to be safe than sorry anyway if the parts are available.

I've also heard that it is smart to pull the cylinder head off and clean out all the water channels. I'm just worried that if I do that and the head gasket is toast, a replacement won't be available. Anyone know if the head gasket is the same as any other OMC models?

 

[F_R]

Re: 1957 Viking (Gale) 12 HP Lower Unit

Head gasket is NOT the same and is obsolete. Leave it alone.
Yes, the seals for the lower unit on that one would be the same as a '57 Johnson/Evinrude 18hp

 

[tmcalavy]

Re: 1957 Viking (Gale) 12 HP Lower Unit

Yeah, someone put grease in the lower cause one of the seals is leaking...that's a doable/liveable temporary cure for water intrusion. It's a fun job changing those seals...take your time, walk away and come back later if it gets frustrating. An extra pair of hands helps, too. The grease is probably Lubriplate 105...it was the LU lube of choice before Neoprene rubber was invented and used to make seals, in the older vintage motors that were direct drive. I keep a tube in boat kit just for kicks.

 

[jwh114]

Re: 1957 Viking (Gale) 12 HP Lower Unit

Thanks everyone for the replies. I was able to source the necessary seals to replace them in the gearcase. They were not available in a kit so I had to buy all four separately. Part numbers are 302495 (prop shaft seal), 321788 (driveshaft seal), 302493 & 301877 (o-rings for shift rod and prop shaft housing). Also a length of the spaghetti seal was required.

I was also able to source a new headgasket from a parts store that still had stock. Part number is 0552181 (obsolete since 1996).

I bought a seal puller kit for automatic transmissions from a auto parts store after reading other posts about some of the difficulties in pulling the old seals. It came with a 12" puller and a 6" puller. With one of the seal pullers, I had all of the seals out within 10 minutes - it was fantastic and only $10.

I now need to install the new ones. This is a dumb question but as I don't have a repair book, I'm wondering about gasket sealer for any of these seals?
If it is required what should be used? I do have some regular silicone if that works?

It also looked like the seals had been replaced at some point. I want to just confirm that the drive shaft seal and prop seal should be installed with the part number facing up (brass side).

Anyway, thanks in advance for any feedback and all the previous help.

 

[jwh114]

Re: 1957 Viking (Gale) 12 HP Lower Unit

I've now replaced all the seals. I ended up coating hthe outsides of the seals and spaghetti seal with the Permatex aviation gasket sealer prior to replacing them.

The impeller was intact and looked like it was still in good shape (rubber was still firm but pliable) so I left it and reinstalled.

I did some compression testing of the cylinders and they were both about 95. Based on what I've read this isn't too bad for a motor over 50 years old so I'm leaving the headgasket as is and saving the extra one I bought. I put a bit of sewing machine oil in each of the cylinders

I also replaced the coils as they were toast, the points/condensers, rebuilt the carb with a NAPA kit & replaced the internal fuel lines.

The recoil was also really stiff so I replaced that as well. Out of all of the jobs I've done on this thing - that was by far the absolute worst!

Well, today was the big day so I tried to start it and it was a bit of a disappointment. With the shift in neutral and throttle on START I did manage to get it going after more than a few pulls. I started with the low speed at 1 1/2 turns and the high speed at 1. At first it kind of sputtered a bit, kind of just idled and blew lots and lots of smoke (gas is 24:1). I fiddled with the high speed and managed to get it going good at higher throttle by turning the high speed two full turns (seems really lean). Unfortunately, it sputters and stalls out if I turn the throttle any lower than START even after I tried adjusting the low speed in both directions.

Kind of disappointed as I'm a bit at a loss on how to proceed. Both cylinders are getting spark when I crank it by hand although one seems a bit stronger than the other. Fuel pump seems to be doing it's job. I left the existing float when I did the carb work as it seemed to be OK.

If anyone has any ideas, I'd really appreciate it.

Hope everyone has a great weekend!

 

[steelespike]

Re: 1957 Viking (Gale) 12 HP Lower Unit

My guess is there is still some gunk in the carb somewhere.You need to prove all passages and jets are clear.Be sure float is set right and working freely.
I usually blow into the float valve fitting and invert carb; should close easily.
Initial settings on both needles is 3/4 turns out from gently bottomed.
Carb inverted float should be even and flush with the gasket surface.Can be adjusted by carefully bending the float lever. when righted float drop should not exceed 1 1/2 inches.Drop can be adjusted by bending the small protuding tab on float lever.These adjustments are good for all 12-20 hp OMC 55-67.