oil leaking out of prop shaft

[porkie]

not sure as to where to start search? I have a 40 h.p. 4 cyl. merc classic 1992 i noticed the oil had water in lower unit so i changed oil last fall before storing for winter. now oil is leaking out from around prop shaft. so i am assuming there must be a seal leaking. is there a place where i might get a picture of what has to be changed. i went out and bought two seals and an o ring from the dealer but they would not tell me very much as to how to change seals. thanks

 

[sangerwaker]

Re: oil leaking out of prop shaft

Not sure how to actually do the change, but here's a link to a diagram for you. Not sure if it's the right one since I didn't know the serial number of your motor. If you poke around the site I linked to, there are a ton of diagrams for a lot of motors.<br /><br /> web page

 

[porkie]

Re: oil leaking out of prop shaft

thanks i will poke around and see what i can find

 

[Bob H.]

Re: oil leaking out of prop shaft

Are you sure it's gear oil leaking and not unburned 2-stroke oil? If there's water in the LU the first suspect is bad water pump seals.

 

[porkie]

Re: oil leaking out of prop shaft

it very well could be unburned 2 -stroke oil because it seems to be very dark oil leaking out and not the blueish gear oil i am using.

 

[Scali]

Re: oil leaking out of prop shaft

If it's black sooty oily stuff leaking from the prop shaft it's unburned gas/2 stroke oil/carbon crap..<br />Crack the LU fill plug with the vent plug in place & tight & take a small sample on your finger & compare.<br />This is really common to see this black stuff dripping from the prop shaft, especially after fogging, decarbing, & first couple runs of the season..