new to me motor lots of pics!!

[sliverslinger]

I just got my new motor all hooked up and started it. My question is, there are some holes below the cavitation plate, I know that they are for water pick up, But there are also some vents right above the cavitation plate, are they for water pick up also? It is a 1969 mercury 2 stroke 4 cyl 50 hp outboard. I did notice that they motor is not peeing out the little hole. What would cause this motor not to pee? Am I just not deep enough in the water for it to do it? What can I check to find out why? Thank you. I know you guys like pics so I will try to get some.

[sliverslinger]

I just ran a piece of weedeater string all the way back up into the pee hole until it wouldnt go any further and pulled it out and tried it again and still it is not peeing. How hard is it to replace a water pump?

[Gundog]

Get a repair manual for the motor changing the water pump is pretty easy. The ones I have done you unbolt the lower unit and the water pump is on the main drive shaft. Once you get the lower unit off you will see a small housing that unbolts and the impellar is under that.
Mike

[sliverslinger]

I went to mercury marine website and it says that the pump is no longer available. I hope I can find an aftermarket one.

[sliverslinger]

http://www.ifish.net/gallery/data/500/medium/ebay_pic_2.jpg

would that little fin thing above the prop have anything to do with the water pick up? What does that fin do anyway? does it have to be straight in line with the motor?

[fishgetter]

The fin has nothing to do with water pick-up, it steers/counter balances pull of the motor, without it the engine will pull to one side, this is why it is not straight.

Good luck, there has to be an aftermarket pump somewhere!!!

[sliverslinger]

I tried to take the lower unit off but could not get it, I found an allen wrech headed bolt that I do not have an allen wrench for. Its a big one. Does anyone know what size it may be? It looks to be almona 1/2" across. I guess that it what is holding the lower unit on. I took 3 bolts loose but could not get the last one, some greyish colored water came out of the seal part. I dont know if that is normal opr not so I checked the oil again in the lower unit and it seems fine. smells like gear oil.

[Orca]

Dropping the lower unit, you shouldn't need to remove any large allen bolt that I remember. I can look in the book later and give you more info. Finding a new water pump won't be a problem.

[sliverslinger]

well I got it off, I had to remove the large allen bolt to access the last nut underneath the fin on the back. Boy it looks really dirty in there. Do I want to clean it out? And refill with new oil ?
http://www.ifish.net/gallery/data/500/medium/ebay_pic_2_050.jpg

http://www.ifish.net/gallery/data/500/medium/ebay_pic_2_051.jpg

http://www.ifish.net/gallery/data/500/medium/ebay_pic_2_052.jpg

http://www.ifish.net/gallery/data/500/medium/ebay_pic_2_053.jpg

http://www.ifish.net/gallery/data/500/medium/ebay_pic_2_054.jpg

[Gundog]

That rusty shaft in the last picture needs to be cleened up the three self locking nuts you see on that housing surrounding that rusty shaft is where the impeller is. Take off the 3 nuts and pull it over that rusty main drive shaft and you will access the impeller. That rusty shaft may make it real hard to get the housing off to access the impeller.

There is no oil in the part of the housing you opened but you can shure clean all the gunk off of it. It would be a good time to change the lower unit oil though while you are at it.
Mike

[sliverslinger]

does the water go up that shaft? how does the water get to the engine block? I am going to go out and take the impeller part off and see what it looks like.

[sliverslinger]

Gundog, I got the impellor almost out and got some pics for you. To me it looks in really good condition with all the fins there.
http://www.ifish.net/gallery/data/500/medium/ebay_pic_2_059.jpg

http://www.ifish.net/gallery/data/500/medium/ebay_pic_2_060.jpg

so being this is in good condition does that mean that the water pump is bad, or could there be a blackage in the line somewhere?

[sliverslinger]

With The Lower Unit Off, Can I Take An Air Compressor And Blow Out The Water Line Backwards?

[Gundog]

With The Lower Unit Off, Can I Take An Air Compressor And Blow Out The Water Line Backwards?

I don't see why not.

Are you sure the impeller is good the fins look like they are bent pretty good do they mate good with the housing they should fit snug against the housing? Is the rubber hard or show any cracking? The picture looks like it might be missing a fin. Impellers are pretty cheap I would change it if it were mine since you have it apart.
Mike

[fishgetter]

Nice Work!!!!

In my opinion that impellar is shot, the fins should return to straight when cover is removed, they deflect when rotating and in that condition they will deflect away from the pump housing thus not pushing water out.

Good Luck!!!!

[sliverslinger]

well it seems to fit in there nice and tight.
http://www.ifish.net/gallery/data/500/medium/ebay_pic_2_063.jpg

[sliverslinger]

Nice Work!!!!

In my opinion that impellar is shot, the fins should return to straight when cover is removed, they deflect when rotating and in that condition they will deflect away from the pump housing thus not pushing water out.

Good Luck!!!!


these seem to be made in that half moon position, I tried to pry thrm straight but they dont seem to go that way.

[Gundog]

Some of them are bent when they are new and some are straight and have to be bent to fit in the housing. It is your call whether or not to replace it or not. If it were mine I would replace it. Good luck.
Mike

[Gundog]

You might try asking the boat doc they have seen a lot more of them than I have.
Mike

[sliverslinger]

All I know is that the fins are strong and not wimpy like they are worn out. But what do I know. This is the first time I have ever been inside a outboard, I hope I can remember where everything goes. :pray:

[Gundog]

They must fit really good to the housing the centrifical force is great when pumping the water. If the fins do not stay in contact with the housing it won't pump much water.
Mike

[sliverslinger]

They must fit really good to the housing the centrifical force is great when pumping the water. If the fins do not stay in contact with the housing it won't pump much water.
Mike


Ok thank you for your input. I have a guy over here who has been helping me , He thinks he has a good one for me. One more question, where is the water pump in relation to the impellor? Below it or on the main motor part?

[Gundog]

That is the water pump. The impeller is what makes the water pump pump.

[Zeke]

Picture 1: The small fin above the prop is a steering trim fin. If your steering pulls to one side or the other you can counter balance the force by offsetting that fin in the opposite direction. On some motors it also acts as the zinc plate that prevents corrosion.

Picture 2: The rusty shaft is your main drive shaft. Clean it up as best you can with some emery cloth of other fine abrasive. Passing the top of the water pump housing over it could cause damage to the seal in the top of the water pump housing. The three self-locking nuts hold the top of the pump housing on. The splined shaft in front of that is the shift linkage, which rotates to shift gears. The hole behind the pump is the pump outlet. When you reassemble the lower unit make sure the tube with the copper colored end in picture #5 fits in there. That's how the water gets from the pump up to the engine. Also, you may have to move the shifter to get the splines to line up with the shift linkage when you reassemble it.

Picture 3 - 6: The large rectangular tube is your exhaust. That's why the outside of it is so grungy. It gets pretty hot even with water cooled exhaust. BTW, no oil goes in any of the compartments you've opened up so far.

Picture 7 - 8: Notice that the main drive shaft, which also turns the impeller is off center in the pump housing. This is so that the impeller blades can straighten out on the side where the intake is and suck in water, and on the side where the discharge is they are bent as they slide along the housing wall. It looks to me like they are not straightening out on the wide side. The impeller blades should remain in contact with the housing walls at all times. When you get a new impeller you will see that the blades are fairly flexible and that when new they are straight. I would replace yours.

Another hint: Have the gearcase checked for pressure and vacuum to about 15 psi. It has double seals on the prop shaft to blcok leakage in both directions. Obviously, you don't want the lube leaking out, but you also don't want water leaking in. That will etch the needle bearings in your gearcase and cause some REALLY expensive damage. If your lower unit lube is milky at all, and not clear you have water in the gearcase. Usually what destroys shaft seals is getting monofilament line wrapped up on the prop shaft.

Remember when you put this thing back together that not only does the drive shaft have to mesh in the splines on top, but the water line has to be engaged with the top of the pump, and the gear shift shaft splines have to mesh as well. It can get a little tricky.

Whatever you do make sure you don't force things together with brute force. Those housings are aluminum and they are expensive to replace. If you strip out any threads in the aluminum you can use stainless helicoils to repair them. Good luck.

[Zeke]

And BTW, the fact that the motor isn't shooting a stream of water out the telltale hole does not mean the engine is not getting cooling water. The telltale hole is just a gravity fed intentional leak from the lowest point in the water jacket. The slightest debris or mud can plug it without engine cooling being affected. So if you see a stream you can generally assume you have cooling water. If you don't see it you still may not have a real problem, but it's a good idea to check things out.

[sliverslinger]

Thank you Zeke, I got a brand new impellor and now have the lower unit re-attached to the motor. It seemed to go back to gether fine, it only took a little blood. :hoboy: I am going to try starting it again this morning after it gets light and see if that corrected the problem. If not I have to follow the pee hose to where it connects to the block , remove it and check to see if the fitting is all plugged up.
Guess I will find out in a couple of hours. Thanks again everyone for all the help.

[sliverslinger]

Thank you Zeke, I got a brand new impellor and now have the lower unit re-attached to the motor. It seemed to go back to gether fine, it only took a little blood. :hoboy: I am going to try starting it again this morning after it gets light and see if that corrected the problem. If not I have to follow the pee hose to where it connects to the block , remove it and check to see if the fitting is all plugged up.
Guess I will find out in a couple of hours. Thanks again everyone for all the help.


Ok I got it back together but now it is in gear all the time. I have tried to find neutral with no luck, The black gadget on the front of the lower unit turns and when I turn it all the way to the right, hard, I get the propellor to spin both ways but when I put it back in, it is still in gear. What else can I try to get this out back together the way it was supossed to be?

[FishNg1]

Ok I got it back together but now it is in gear all the time. I have tried to find neutral with no luck, The black gadget on the front of the lower unit turns and when I turn it all the way to the right, hard, I get the propellor to spin both ways but when I put it back in, it is still in gear. What else can I try to get this out back together the way it was supossed to be?


Sounds to me like you have the splines on the gear shift not line up correctly. Try taking it apart again and make sure that you have both the lower unit in Neutral as well as the shifter on the side of the motor or your controls. Sometimes for certain brands of motors you have to have them in forward gear if I remember correctly.

Steve

[sliverslinger]

do you know if mercury is one of those brands?

[dixiefisher]

my '84 merc required that I have it in forward gear...when attaching the LU......and I also have to turn the flywheel a little to get the teeth to line up correctly. I am not sure about your year. But for mine......once you get the LU in.......it is seated properly if:

(RH prop)
1. In Neutral I can spin the prop both ways.
2. In forward, When I turn the prop clockwise, I get a ratcheting sound but, I can't turn it counter clockwise.
3. In reverse, I can turn it counterclockwise but not clockwise.

[OutTrolling (ot)]

I went to mercury marine website and it says that the pump is no longer available. I hope I can find an aftermarket one.

I went to Phil Nelson at Nelson Marine between Newberg and Dundee. He has helped me with my 1961 Merc 800 inline six "tower of power". Seems like he can get practically anything or may even have it on hand. Give him a call at 503-554-9410. Very nice guy to help. Hope you get it going.

[OutTrolling (ot)]

I went to Phil Nelson at Nelson Marine between Newberg and Dundee. He has helped me with my 1961 Merc 800 inline six "tower of power". Seems like he can get practically anything or may even have it on hand. Give him a call at 503-554-9410. Very nice guy to help. Hope you get it going.

My bad. I hadn't read ALL the posts before I posted. And, if I remember correctly off the top of my head, my engine is like what Dixiefisher described. Good luck.

[sliverslinger]

Mine is a 1969 50 hp motor. I can hear the ratchet type sound but when it is in neutral. I need to get this fixed. I want to go and try it out and see how fast it will go. Is there a speed limit on the water?