Alpha 1 gear oil leak out drive shaft

[bashr52]

Hello All.

I recently did a full service on my Alpha 1 Gen 2 (new u-joints, water pump, bellows, etc) and first time out on the water the reservoir kept getting low so I would top it off. I figured I may not have gotten it quite full after I refilled it and it was just seeking it's happy level. I have zero signs of any oil leaking out of the drive, or into the boat from the reservoir/oil line.

The only sign of oil I see is a little puddle in the transom plate near the flywheel. I did pull the vent plug, fill the reservoir, and let it sit until oil ran out to verify it was full, and then refilled the reservoir up to the line. After about a week the oil level has gone down about half way. It has to be going somewhere! All I can think is maybe the O-ring and/or oil seal on the drive shaft got damaged when I had the drive shaft out to replace the U-joints, and it is leaking internally into the bellows? Would gravity be enough to force oil out that way?

 

[Rick Stephens]

I'm guessing that the oil seal and o-rings you mention are on the drive shaft? If so, they have no bearing on oil leaks.

If in doubt, always pull the drive and take a look. See what is going on in your bellows. It takes minutes.

 

[jhamblett]

You still have a cavity above the top oil plug. The oil from the tank is filling the remaining space in the outdrive.

 

[achris]

You still have a cavity above the top oil plug. ...

Which is why I fill my drive in the upright position, then lay it on the floor (starboard side down) and continue to filling until I've got as much air out as possible.

Chris.....

 

[bashr52]

Just wanted to circle back on this with an update. I ordered a new drive bearing oil seal and o-ring in anticipation of something being bad once I removed it. I pulled the drive today and sure enough the entire seal was broken out of the housing allowing oil to fill the bellows. Quick and relatively cheap fix.

 

[achris]

Just wanted to circle back on this with an update. I ordered a new drive bearing oil seal and o-ring in anticipation of something being bad once I removed it. I pulled the drive today and sure enough the entire seal was broken out of the housing allowing oil to fill the bellows. Quick and relatively cheap fix.

So you pulled the bearing and drive gear out of the housing, disassembled the bearing pack off the yoke and put a new seal and o-ring in, then set up the rolling torque on the bearings and put the assembly back in the housing, tightening the cover nut to 200ft-lbs, yes? (before refilling the drive with oil and putting it back on the bell housing)

 

[bashr52]

Yep..had all the tools from when I did the R&R, and had the cover nut stamped with dots when tightened correctly so it was easy to torque and verify it was back where it started from.