1960 Evrinrude 18 HP Fastwin - spun prop likely but fine grey powder

[James_Faulkner]

I recently got this engine all tuned (all new ignition and cooling) and it runs strong. I had it on the river pushing me (165 lbs) in an empty 14' aluminum, on plane and it's very fast with no issues. I took it up to the lake with the wife and kids after that (add about 210 lbs more) and pulled out and got it right up to speed, on plane and ran fine for a while. I hit some rough water, the back came up and out of the water and back down a little hard, didn't hit anything that I know of, and after that, it started revving with loss of speed after it got up to full power, like a slipping clutch almost, but I was able to bring it back under low power. I noticed some odd vibration even before this. So, I got it home, took the prop off and it's clean but the bushing looks slightly questionable. I put a large masonry chisel in a vice, locked the chisel edge down in the slot for where the drive pin goes and tried to turn the prop around the bushing - I could not. I understand these are supposed to withstand 750 lbs of torque under test so I wasn't surprised. So, I pinged in marks and reinstalled so I can see if this thing really is slipping and will take it out first chance I get. However I have one additional thing that I cannot figure out - under the engine cover, in the front of the power head (looking forward) in the corners and splattered a little over the side cover is a fine grey powder that collected. I don't know if this is normal or not because I haven't had the engine running for more than a few times. I was wondering if something else may be slipping that is causing this but I doubt it. By the way, I changed the lower end oil again (90W) because it turned black again and I figured the first change was to clean it up a bit. No bits of metal, no clunking noises, it really sounds like a spun prop but again - that grey residue, what could it be?

 

[kfa4303]

Re: 1960 Evrinrude 18 HP Fastwin - spun prop likely but fine grey powder

HI James. I think you're right about the spun prop. A pic of the mysterious grey powder might help, but I'm thinking it may be exhaust gas deposits. If you do a search of the forums here you can find all kind of tests you can do to test your prop. If it is the hub, you'll need to get a new prop, or take yours to a prop shop. I think a new one would be about $80-$100 and a rehub would be about $60. You might even be able to steal one off a donor motor, if you're lucky. Sonds like you're gear case is ok too. The black gear oil is ok, but if it turns milky/cloudy, then you have a water leak somewhere. No to worry, a reseal job isn't that hard and you can get a new seal kit right here at iboats for about $25. Here's a link for future reference.


http://forums.iboats.com/showthread.php?t=277190&highlight=lower+unit+seal+kit+installation

 

[James_Faulkner]

Re: 1960 Evrinrude 18 HP Fastwin - spun prop likely but fine grey powder

Thanks fo the reply KFA, I hope you're correct on both accounts. The grey residue does look maybe like very fine smoke accumulation and since I'm using synthetic oil in the 50:1 mix for the first time ever that may be why I've never seen it. And not to mention that I've never owned an outboard with a cover before that allows deposits to collect. That is another reason why I'm running it, bringing it back, pulling the plugs, checking the gear oil and repeating the process rigorously to make absolutley sure everything is okay before I can call this a reliable motor to take on a trip. I'll get the existing prop replaced if it is determined to be defective and get a spare fixed up. Under $160 total into this, it looks and runs like new so I'm still doing pretty good so far! Thanks again.