The curse continues... Brand new coupler slipping?
09-25-2016, 10:25 AM
#1
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The curse continues... Brand new coupler slipping?
I got my 242 back together from having to replace the spun coupler. We found an alignment issue that hurt the original coupler, and corrected it. The alignment was perfect: we set it using my forklift and the tool, and tested the alignment in multiple positions so we knew we were good there.
Got out yesterday, and things started out pretty well. The engine had a slight miss at first, but cleared up with a couple of revs. That's a tuning issue that I'll work on so no biggie there. After leaving the dock, this is when things became frustrating: I can get on plane with no problem, and she does it effortlessly. She'll slowly get on plane holding at 2200. She get on plane quickly at 2500, and approaching 3k rpm gets us to about 40 mph on the GPS. Going over 3100-3200, the boat comes off plane like she was put into neutral. This happened two or three times consecutively.
Checking the bilge, no smoke but a good amount of very sticky black grease was slung inline with the driveshaft. I'm assuming that it's spline grease mixed with the breakin-dust of the coupler/driveshaft. Anyway, it's pretty nasty stuff, and very hard to get off. I didn't find any chunks of rubber.
I decided to continue on to my destination, keeping her around 2900. I had a very long no wake zone to go through (probably a good three miles or so through the Norfolk naval shipyards), and once through, I got back on plane and made it to meet up with everyone. I figured that if she broke, I'd use my towing insurance to get back. Thankfully, I had no troubles the rest of the day but I babied her the entire time.
Can a brand new coupler go bad in the span of say 15 minutes? The alignment was checked and rechecked, and was perfect when I put the drive on. Can a mal-adjusted cable cause slipping in the drive? I don't think my prop slipped, but I'm going to look at it today.
Any help is appreciated. TIA!
Got out yesterday, and things started out pretty well. The engine had a slight miss at first, but cleared up with a couple of revs. That's a tuning issue that I'll work on so no biggie there. After leaving the dock, this is when things became frustrating: I can get on plane with no problem, and she does it effortlessly. She'll slowly get on plane holding at 2200. She get on plane quickly at 2500, and approaching 3k rpm gets us to about 40 mph on the GPS. Going over 3100-3200, the boat comes off plane like she was put into neutral. This happened two or three times consecutively.
Checking the bilge, no smoke but a good amount of very sticky black grease was slung inline with the driveshaft. I'm assuming that it's spline grease mixed with the breakin-dust of the coupler/driveshaft. Anyway, it's pretty nasty stuff, and very hard to get off. I didn't find any chunks of rubber.
I decided to continue on to my destination, keeping her around 2900. I had a very long no wake zone to go through (probably a good three miles or so through the Norfolk naval shipyards), and once through, I got back on plane and made it to meet up with everyone. I figured that if she broke, I'd use my towing insurance to get back. Thankfully, I had no troubles the rest of the day but I babied her the entire time.
Can a brand new coupler go bad in the span of say 15 minutes? The alignment was checked and rechecked, and was perfect when I put the drive on. Can a mal-adjusted cable cause slipping in the drive? I don't think my prop slipped, but I'm going to look at it today.
Any help is appreciated. TIA!
Last edited by TomZ; 09-25-2016 at 10:28 AM.
09-25-2016, 10:31 AM
#3
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And in regard to the coupler, I thought they either worked or didn't. No in between.
There is a change to the drive and it's worth noting.... I'm no longer using the Merc lube. I'm using Mobil 1. Does it require a friction modifier to work with the cone clutch? The boat ran well the last time out right before the coupler let go so I didn't think it was fluid related.
There is a change to the drive and it's worth noting.... I'm no longer using the Merc lube. I'm using Mobil 1. Does it require a friction modifier to work with the cone clutch? The boat ran well the last time out right before the coupler let go so I didn't think it was fluid related.
09-25-2016, 10:38 AM
#6
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you sure this transom or engine stringers are alright,,something is moving causing the coupler to slip.
09-25-2016, 10:38 AM
#7
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And in regard to the coupler, I thought they either worked or didn't. No in between.
There is a change to the drive and it's worth noting.... I'm no longer using the Merc lube. I'm using Mobil 1. Does it require a friction modifier to work with the cone clutch? The boat ran well the last time out right before the coupler let go so I didn't think it was fluid related.
There is a change to the drive and it's worth noting.... I'm no longer using the Merc lube. I'm using Mobil 1. Does it require a friction modifier to work with the cone clutch? The boat ran well the last time out right before the coupler let go so I didn't think it was fluid related.
09-25-2016, 10:42 AM
#8
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The transom and stringers are all new. The coupler is brand new with, at the time, no more than 15 minutes of light load.
Haven't had this issue before.
Haven't had this issue before.
09-25-2016, 10:50 AM
#10
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A buddy of mine and I ane talking about this right now... we're about to go new with it. We're in agreement that the coupler probably isn't bad. I wouldn't have been able to get home if it were, don't you guys think?
