Oil leak?
06-02-2018 | 11:31 AM
#1
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From: Higganum, CT
Oil leak?
I just got a used 2006 Fountain 38EC with Bravo 3xr drives. One of the drives had some oil residue on it when I bought it so I had them change the seals before they put it in the water. It has been in a slip for a couple weeks. Drove it 20 minutes or so to the marina, then it sat for a week, all good. I noticed the grease fittings on the drive shaft couplers looked dry so I greased them while looking around in the engine bay. Used the boat last weekend (another short 20 min ride) and noticed a small film of oil coming from the back of the boat. It continued when we got back to the marina. Boat has sat now for a week, still a small sheen of oil trickling out from the back of the boat.
SO... not sure what to suspect. Options: The mechanic screwed something up while changing the seal. The other drive seal started leaking. Trim tab or trim ram leaking. Possibly the grease that I put in is exposed to the water somehow and is making the oil slick? Doesn't seem likely because theoretically it should all be contained in the bellows.
Any ideas would be helpful. Don't know whether I should take it back to the guy who did the seal (pain in the @ss logistically) or have my current marina pull the boat and look for it, or wait and see if it goes away/manifests itself.
Does anybody know what gear oil looks like on water vs hyrdaulic oil from tabs or grease?
Thanks.
SO... not sure what to suspect. Options: The mechanic screwed something up while changing the seal. The other drive seal started leaking. Trim tab or trim ram leaking. Possibly the grease that I put in is exposed to the water somehow and is making the oil slick? Doesn't seem likely because theoretically it should all be contained in the bellows.
Any ideas would be helpful. Don't know whether I should take it back to the guy who did the seal (pain in the @ss logistically) or have my current marina pull the boat and look for it, or wait and see if it goes away/manifests itself.
Does anybody know what gear oil looks like on water vs hyrdaulic oil from tabs or grease?
Thanks.
06-02-2018 | 11:54 AM
#2
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From: Omaha/LOTO
Could just be some residual lube in the water jackets. Run it and see if the lube level continually drops.
It will probably drop some for the first couple hours as the air pockets work out.
It has nothing to do with greasing the zerks.
It will probably drop some for the first couple hours as the air pockets work out.
It has nothing to do with greasing the zerks.
06-02-2018 | 12:38 PM
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From: Higganum, CT
Thanks I was hoping somebody would tell me to run it lol. It hasn't been run much so I was hoping it was just some residual but I was losing hope since its been leaking for a week now. I'll run 'er tomorrow and see what happens.
06-04-2018 | 09:07 AM
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Put about an hour on it yesterday, the stbd side drive oil reservoir has dropped a little. Not sure if that's just from working air out, or if that indicates that the drive is leaking. Still have a slight oil slick trail leading from the back of the boat when at rest. When should I start to worry and pull the boat to check it out?
06-04-2018 | 09:16 AM
#5
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Run your drives and tabs up down several times and see if the oil film gets worse to narrow down the source. May be that the drain/fill plugs sealing washer got left off when drive was refilled. That can be a pita when you have gear lube draining out while you are trying to get the plug back in.
Id think by now any residue from a refill would be washed away
Id think by now any residue from a refill would be washed away
Last edited by US1 Fountain; 06-04-2018 at 09:22 AM.
06-24-2018 | 08:04 PM
#6
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From: Higganum, CT
Finally figured out it's the port side tab. It's getting worse, I need to do something about it and of course we are leaving for 3 days this weekend, so I need to pull the boat and fix it and put it back in, quickly. Since the boat is in the water at a marina I can't confirm what's leaking and would like to be prepared to fix it as soon as it comes out. I am assuming it is leaking at the shaft seal, does anybody have any info on a seal or kit to rebuild? How does the cap come off? Researching as we speak but haven't found anything on these specific tabs.
06-25-2018 | 07:53 AM
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From: Guelph, Ontario, Canada
May not apply to you, but I had the same problem with my K plane tabs. The problem developed when trailering and using transom straps. The straps side loaded the ram on the tabs when set too tight. I had a constant oil slick for a couple days after launching. I still use transom straps but don’t set as tight and have no more issues with a leaking ram.
06-25-2018 | 10:51 AM
#9
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From: Higganum, CT
They are K planes. I have the o-rings on order. Boat is in the water so I can't look at it... How mandatory is the tool to get the end cap off? Is it a special tool that I can buy or should I just try to make something work? I have a few of those pin spanners for angle grinders and such
Last edited by 10M; 06-25-2018 at 01:35 PM.
06-25-2018 | 11:05 AM
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From: SF Bay Area
I don’t have K planes but insta-trim instead, and they suck, lol. My caps came off with channel locks and nearly no pressure on my junk. I would just advice to look for the reason it failed like a burr or corrosion. Some fine wet sandpaper can usually polish things up in short order. Plenty of YouTube videos helped me out.
