youen
Well-Known Member
Would you change the lower bearings seals on a 120 saildrive if the oil looks fine?the oils seals are 5 years old.Thanks
volvo saildrive
- Thread starter youen
- Start date
billgray
Well-Known Member
No. Unless you are planning to keep your boat in the water for a few seasons.
RichardS
N/A
I agree. Providing you can get to a lift or drying-out spot if necessary, even if the seals were to start to leak, provided you check for milky emulsion regularly you will quickly spot the problem and the drive won't come to any harm as long as the gears do not sit in "separated" water for too long.
One tip I have read, which I believe has been approved by Yanmar agents if not Yanmar themselves, is to keep the oil level at the lower end of the dipstick marks rather than the upper. This allows more room for air expansion and contraction when hot or cold and supposedly helps prolong the seal life.
As I can't see any downside, this is what I do with mine and they still seem fine after 7 years but might be coincidence.
Presumably Volvo saildrives will be similar.
Richard
Skylark
Well-Known Member
To the best of my knowledge it's a non-service item. "If it aint broke, don't fix it"
aluijten
Well-Known Member
It mostly depends on the level of sand in the water your boat is in. In muddy water you get much more wear and tear on the outer seal and, even worse, the shaft itself. In clear water it will last much longer.
My guess is at 5 years you are getting towards the end, but in clear water you could expect a few more years from them. Changing the seals is not hard but requires some tools as you need to remove one of the bearing-races.
What I do is remove the flange that holds the shaft (after oil removal) and take it to a VP dealer and haven them replace the seals. Takes about 15 mins. You can clean/inspect the shaft yourself. If the shaft is badly worn a the spot where the seal lives things become expensive. Either you need to replace the shaft or there is this product from SKF these days that may help. It's a very thin collar made of hardened steel that slips over the shaft and covers the worn bit. That may be a viable option as well.
Long story short; If you can monitor the quality of the oil regularly (once a year) then do nothing, else replace the seals.
A.