Level of difficulty, Prop Seal?

[ChilliSpoons]

I changed out the leg oil and it’s clear that there was water in the oil. I’ve ordered new gaskets for the fill and vent plugs hoping that resolves the problem. When I removed the prop I don’t see any oil residue or fishing line wrapped around the prop shaft.

I’m wondering what the level of difficulty (1-10) on changing out the prop seal on a 1992 15hp Force. I’m a pretty hands on guy that fixes most of the issues around the house plus work as building maintenance in a large resort.

 

[jerryjerry05]

Not hard at all.
If you can remove the bearing carrier the seals are a snap.

DO a pressure test before you do anything.
It might be something simple like the fill/ vent seals???

Make sure you use a good sealer under the seals.
ANY corrosion on the seal surfaces???? post pics?

 

[ChilliSpoons]

I’ve ordered the fill/vent seals hoping that those are the issue.

I wish that I had the equipment to pressure test the unit. I’ll have to have a look at YouTube to see if someone has a DIY solution.

 

[jerryjerry05]

The seal should be just a felt washer.
You can actually just flip it over and reuse it.
Now if it's the old style plastic crush ring?? They need to be replaced with the new felt washer.

I buy them by the bag, 10 in a bag.
Replace them every time.

You really need to pressure test
.
Since your working on it? you should consider resealing the whole thing??

How tight were the fill /vent screws? If they're tight? probably not the leaker.

 

[ChilliSpoons]

The bottom fill screw was very tight while the vent screw was surprisingly loose. This leads me to think that the water intrusion was coming from the vent screw.

The gasket on the screws seem more like rubber washers.

I’ll probably order a set of seals and o-rings and do know I should be in good shape moving forward. The nice thing with a small outboard is how easy it is to access and work on.

 

[jerryjerry05]

Yup fairly easy to work on.
A simple pressure test can tell a lot.
If you fix one seal? pressure test again.
Sometimes a new seal doesn't fix the problem.

Some seals need to be shimmed or lifted up to make the new seal ride on another
surface.