1988 Alpha 1 water in bellows

[freeflyfool2000]

Hello, I am hoping to get some thoughts on what I am seeing. I just pulled my alpha 1 due to gear oil leaking (It failed pressure test) and found a bit of cloudy water in the bellows. The u-joints appear to have just started rusting. I may have caught this early enough to prevent major damage. I have been taking on water while underway but have not had a chance to inspect exactly where it was coming from while on the water.

My question is this: Is it possible for water to enter the bellows from the drive unit itself? From what I have read on other forum posts, I am suspecting my shift shaft seal is a culprit in the failed pressure test. Testing at 15psi, drops to 10psi in less than 5 minutes, then to 0 by next morning. (Drive did seem to hold pressure before I moved the shifter from fwd to reverse several times). Is is possible for a failed shift shaft seal or something similar in the drive to cause water entry to the bellows?

The bellows appear to be good, but I have not yet gave it a really close look. Also, worth a note: the drive came off extremely easily (my first time pulling one). I did not need to wrestle with it at all, as soon as the last nut was loosened the drive started to seperate on its own. Could a poor seal between the gimbal housing and the drive cause water entry I am seeing. Is it likely?

I will attach pictures on a 2nd post ASAP, need to log in from my phone.

1988 Alpha 1 gen 1

 

[freeflyfool2000]

Well, apparently the photos on my phone cannot be used as attachments on the forum. I will try to add some photos when I get home.

 

[freeflyfool2000]

Here are a few pictures, the first simply shows the water that was present on the u-joints when first pulling the drive loose. The third pic shows the actual water I have in the bellows.

 

[Bt Doctur]

if the large rubber ring is not glued in place, if the water inlet o ring is damaged, if the gasket is damaged, then Yes

 

[freeflyfool2000]

Just split the halves and pressure tested. Found shift shaft seal leaking as suspected. I can't see how, but is there any way this leak could cause water in the upper half and bellows? If not, it looks like the bellows are suspect too. I cleaned the drive bellows and felt around, they look new. Should I replace anyways? I did notice one of the ribs are protruded toward the inside, could this be a issue? See pics. Am I missing anything? Bellows r and r have me a little nervous.

 

[Rick Stephens]

If the bellows looks good, you should look careful at the shift bellow. Also the seal on the shift shaft is important to inspect. Any of those three can get you water as much as the main ujoint bellows can.

Without looking carefully, and finding your likely source, no way to answer the 'should I replace the bellows anyway' question. I would say yes or no based on how big a deal is it to test in real conditions? If it is easy to drop the boat in the water, then don't replace it until you do the other stuff.

BTW, no need to ATV Silicon the leg to the bell housing. Makes it a lot easier to test for a day and then pull the leg back off to see if you got the leak if there isn't any sealant in there at all. You might watch achris's Alpha1 install video and see how pro does it. He doesn't leave much to chance and keeps it really simple.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aGVrY4cWiDA

Rick

 

[freeflyfool2000]

Sounds good, thanks for thr reply. I have no problem fixing what I know is wrong, testing, then pulling again for inspection. I also found the same cloudy water in my u joints, so I'll add them to my list. I would like to verify the drive bellows are dry before I change them out though.