'Freebie' water test. Not good.

[Unclebob]

Okay, here's what I've done to the 'Freebie' 18' Aquasport Cuddy so far:

Replaced batteries. Pulled and cleaned fuel tank, added sender and gauge, and replaced water seperator. Replaced control cables. Replaced bilge pump, added fishfinder, cleaned up wiring. Pulled bottom carb and cleaned needle valve and float. Cleaned and adjusted all linkages/choke/etc.

Figured it was good enough for it's first water test, as everything seems fine on the hose.

Put her in the water this morning, and let it run for a bit at the boat ramp. All is well, hull is dry. Ran about a mile or 2 up the creek, and the engine is a little sluggish at first, but cleans up and is running great. 36mph on the GPS in about 1ft chop. Head back towards the boat ramp and decide 'what the heck' and head into the open river. 2 foot chop and starting to white-cap, we're going with the wind, running great. About a mile out, we turn around and start heading into the wind, back to the ramp. 5 minutes later, we start to slow. I take it out of gear to let it settle down, and when I put it back into gear, nothing. Reverse is the same. No funny noises, no grinding, but the prop doesn't spin. Throttle still works fine, linkages all working good. We're broke.  :(


Luckily we brought a trolling motor, but we weren't making much headway into the wind. I had to hang off the bow and paddle just to keep us straight. A dozen boats pass us withing 50 yards and none stop. About 100 yards from the boat ramp, a friendly boater tows us in. Of course, 6 boats waiting to load at the ramp, and a dozen more waiting to put in.   :x

Any guesses on what the damage might be? I've put a few water pumps in and worked on carbs a bit, but I'm not real familiar with a lower units workings. The powerhead runs fine, just doesn't go into gear. Back on the trailer with the engine in gear, I can turn the prop and hear a 'tink-tink'. The prop spins as if it's in neutral.

I haven't picked up a manual but will tomorrow. I have a pretty decent shop with a cherry picker.

Oh, and if you ever see someone in the middle of the river, hanging off the bow paddling against the wind with all their might, they MIGHT be broke down. Stop and check. I would have. Bastards.

[JimCt]

Cheer Up Unclebob :!:  :!:  :!:
All in all it was a good shake-down considering she is a freebie.  I think your problem isn't a biggie.

OK, Here's what you've found out:

Positives:
1) Engine started right up (I assume).
2) Engine "cleaned -up" (blew out the old gas & crud)
3) Hull didn't take on any water.
4) Shifter worked fine at first (therefore not busted from before).

only Negative
The shifter has failed to proceed after having worked fine.  

If you have changed the lower unit lube with the right stuff & the right amount and no signs of leaking oil fron the prop shaft seal, chances are that the lower unit gears are ok.  My guess, from 1600 miles away, is that the linkage rods inside the lower unit have slipped apart.  That would happen if the connecting union bolts weren't tightened down enough when the water pump impeller was last replaced.  The "tink-tink" you hear turning the prop is likely the clutch dogs almost engaging.

I think ther's an inspection port with a metal cover over it on the side of the lower unit.  I think if you look in that port you may see the rods & the problem.

Good luck :!:  

[JimCt]

You did check the lower unit lube, didn't you????
If you didn't and there was no lube, the gears are likely gone...

[scott_gunn]

Could it possibly be a spun prop?  If there was no grinding at any point or other funny noises, I doubt anything is seriously broken.  Is it going in gear but not spinning, or is it not getting into gear?

[Unclebob]

Thanks, JimCt. I'm not disappointed with the boat. They way I figure it, even if I have to re-power, I still have a great deal. I was more upset at the inconsiderate boaters.

I did check the lube back when I first got the boat, (months ago). It was at the fill line and seemed fresh? I didn't change it because I wanted to see if the gear oil would be milky or nasty after the water test, indicating that the unit was taking on water. In hindsight, I should have checked it again this weekend.

The previous owner DID say she had a new water-pump put on before parking the boat and letting it sit, it hadn't been in the water since. The water-pump sprayer was fantastic.

Scott_Gunn, I cannot tell if it is going into gear or not, it doesn't sound like it. I hear nothing when I try to put it in gear. The prop isn't stripped.

Hopefully I can educate myself enough to find out what's the matter.  

If I drain the gear oil and find chunks, I can assume the worst? If the gear-oil looks decent, I might not be in too bad of shape?

thanks again.

[Unclebob]

I just went out to the shop to drain the gear oil. The drain plug was loose, not even finger tight. Dry as a bone. That can't be a good sign.

It must have vibrated loose when it was being flushed, or in the water. I never bothered to make sure it was torqued.  Doh!

[JimCt]

Go ahead & drain the oil out and see what comes out with it. Bet you'll see nothing but clean oil.

The key piece of evidence that the shifter linkage has slipped is that the water pump was replaced.  The union in the shifter linkage has to be disassembled to do that job.  If it's not connected together properly and tightened down securely, it can/will slip.

NOTE: it failed when you shifted; not when the gears were turning.

Don't let the turkeys out there on the water get you down.  They're not worth it.

Will await further developments...

[JimCt]

That'll do it.

[Anonymous]

The "tink-tink" you hear could also be from you turning the prop in the wrong direction. If it is a regular rotation enginenot counter, when the engine is engaged forward you should try to turn the prop in a counter-clockwise rotation. In other words opposite to the dircetion the prop would spin when the engine is running and engaged foward.  In one direction you will get the "tick-tick" sound, but when you go the other way it should lock and not spin. Once it locks keep trying to turn the prop, if it still turns somewhat hard, then the prop is spun, and no biggy.

[Unclebob]

When in gear, there's nothing either direction except an occasional 'tink-tink' . If I lost all my gear oil, I suspect the worst. I'm afraid finding a mid '80s foot for a 115 Suzuki might be a bit of a problem. Where can I find this stuff?

I'll take pics when I get the foot dropped. There's GOT to be some neat looking carnage in there.  

[JimCt]

Did you check the linkage union yet?

[Unclebob]

JimCT, not yet. Didn't get a chance to run by the boat shop for a manual. But surely, if the gear oil ran out, there has to be significant damage in the gear sets, right? The lubricating properties of the St. Johns River can't be that good.

[scott_gunn]

You can find rebuilt lower units on ebay.

[JimCt]

Unclebob,  You're right about river water being a poor lube.  I've had a similar lower unit adventure but the problem was with the prop shaft oil seal.

You might be able to get an idea of what happened, if anything, to the gears by filling the gear housing with kero or light oil, put the filler screw plug in and tip the motor up and down a few times to shake things up then quickly open the drain & fill screws to let the kero dump out as quickly as possible.  This should act to flush out loose metal flakes & bits.  If you don't see any evidence of metal you might have dodged the bullet. Not likely, only possible.

[Unclebob]

Just for grins, I went out to the shop and pulled the drain plug, and stuck a magnetic retriever wand in the hole. I pulled out about a 1/2 thimbleful of chunks, the biggest being 1/4 dime sized. The lower unit is definitely toast.

Suzuki parts don't seem very plentiful, even on Ebay. This project is on hold until I can find a lower unit or work up the nerve for a repower.