I know the o-ring on the top of the drive shaft is supposed to keep water out of the powerhead, but is this really a problem? Has anyone experienced a failure from this?
It doesn't keep water out of the powerhead. It's job is to keep water off of the crank & driveshaft splines. It's still a good idea to keep those splines greased. In fact if you grease the splines yearly with a good lube you really don't need the O ring. I recommend both good grease and the O ring.
I always lube the splines when I install a shaft but I forgot to put a ring on and thought dang, I don't want to pull this thing again. Most of the older motors I've torn down lately don't have o-rings on the shaft.
All you need is one time having a driveshaft rusted into a crankshaft to wish you had replaced the o-ring... It's a PITA if there ever was one...
- Scott
Heck yes, you need it. Ignore it and you will find the splines frozen and impossible to get apart next time. Worse yet, given enough time it will rust the splines out of the crankshaft and THAT is THAT!!
