I replaced the impeller on my recently acquired 1980 9.9 hp johnson sailmaster because no water was flowing at all from the pee hole. after repalcing the impeller there was still no water flow at all. So I took it apart again and read several of the posts on this site and compared my parts to the manual and realized that the water tube grommet was missing. It must have been left out by the previous owner because i was very careful to put all the parts into one container. Also, when I first took the lower unit apart the impeller was completely disintegrated. So I figured that must be the only problem. But, because i now knew that there were at least 2 problems to contend with, it was reasonable that there may be something else wrong. What if pieces of the impeller got sucked up into the housing around the engine block and was interfering with water flow? So how do you test for that? I think it was Joe Reeves (Sorry if i got the name wrong) who suggested connecting a garden hose to the water tube and letting water flow thru the system as intended as a check for wate flow. but I didnt have a garden hose that small.
So here is what i did while I still had the lower unit gear case removed. I found an empty 18 ounce bottle of Joy liquid soap. filled it with water and discovered that the opening fits the pee hole input perfectly. So i squeezed about 4 or 5 ounces of water thru the water exit hole and it ran out the water tube right away and there were no little pieces in the bucket that I could see. so this test told me that the lack of water flow was not due to blockage in the upper section but is likely to be the grommet and of course, originally, the destroyed impeller.
I am sure you mechanics and outboard experts have already thought of this a long time ago. but I am a beginner in OB mechanics and I noticed there are quite a few beginners on this site. so maybe this little discovery will help someone else.
Thanks for all the help you guys have given me. If there is something you can add here or if I am missing something, please help.
thanks,
Eddie Lee
So here is what i did while I still had the lower unit gear case removed. I found an empty 18 ounce bottle of Joy liquid soap. filled it with water and discovered that the opening fits the pee hole input perfectly. So i squeezed about 4 or 5 ounces of water thru the water exit hole and it ran out the water tube right away and there were no little pieces in the bucket that I could see. so this test told me that the lack of water flow was not due to blockage in the upper section but is likely to be the grommet and of course, originally, the destroyed impeller.
I am sure you mechanics and outboard experts have already thought of this a long time ago. but I am a beginner in OB mechanics and I noticed there are quite a few beginners on this site. so maybe this little discovery will help someone else.
Thanks for all the help you guys have given me. If there is something you can add here or if I am missing something, please help.
thanks,
Eddie Lee