1973 50, 50ELS73R lower unit oil problem

[hotshot123]

after i got my fuel line issue solved, i just wanted to run my little motor for a bit on the muffs. i plan on changing the water pump this week but i wanted to hear it run.

before hooking the water hose to it, i had checked the lower unit and the oil looked good. i hooked it up on the muffs and fired it up and after maybe 30 seconds, i couldnt find any water coming out so i shut it down before it got hot. thinking water pump is next, i decided to go ahead and drain the lower unit yesterday so i could work on it today. what i found was after connecting to the muffs, the lower unit now has water in it. this thing dont leak a drop and the oil looked great before muffs, now all grey and watery after muff. what should i look for while inside working on the water pump?

also, where should i see water discharging from this old girl? it has no pisser.

 

[Haffiman]

Re: 1973 50, 50ELS73R lower unit oil problem

Replace the seals under the water-pump, or even better completely re-seal the unit. On that engine, water will, when running on muffs, normally exit through the prop.

 

[hotshot123]

Re: 1973 50, 50ELS73R lower unit oil problem

thanks haffi, i did have a little water blowing out the prop but the heads were getting warm to the touch pretty quick so i assumed it wasnt pumping any at all. i didnt expect a 35 year old water pump to work but without a pisser, i am lost. i work in a fab shop and after i get the pump and seals replaced, i might borrow the temp stik set and see for myself that everything is within range. does this motor have a thermostat? if so, i guess it is not seperate from the head cover or else i cant find it. i got a clymer manual and it is not helping me much

 

[MRneatfreak]

Re: 1973 50, 50ELS73R lower unit oil problem

Replace the seals under the water-pump, or even better completely re-seal the unit. On that engine, water will, when running on muffs, normally exit through the prop.

Sorry to hijack, does this hold true to a 1977 85 horse, as far as water exiting the prop when on muffs?

 

[eavega]

Re: 1973 50, 50ELS73R lower unit oil problem

You actually don't have to touch any of the LU seals while servicing the water pump, so as Haffiman suggested, you should probably do a full re-seal of the LU separate from replacing the water pump. You could also pressure-test the LU to verify where the leak might be.

Your motor does not have a tell-tale. When the motor comes up to temperature, you should see some water spraying or misting out of the exhaust relief ports at the top back of the leg. If you feel more confident with a tell-tale spraying water out, there is a how-to here on iboats on installing a tell-tale on these older Johnson/Evinrude motors.

Rgds

 

[hotshot123]

Re: 1973 50, 50ELS73R lower unit oil problem

both seals above and below the waterpump are pretty hard and crunchy, from the looks of it, if these are bad, it would let water into the gearcase. aslo, with that top seal looking rough, i could also be getting water in there throuh the shift rod boot because it was pretty hard and cracked too. i think i will replace them and check it before resealing the lower unit. the only reason is that before i connected to the muffs, this was some clean LU oil and had zero leaks. pulling the lower unit is easy enuf so i think ima do the waterpump and seals and give it a shot first.

eavaga, thanks, i was wondering if there was a way to add a tell-tale and that thread could become useful.