Alpha 1 Gear Lube use problem
 

Hey Folks: It is in the middle of winter here - going down to - 21 C (approx -5F) and I am still trying to figure out a problem I am hoping you can help me with, cause warmer weather is on the way!

Two years ago the piezo alarm went off taking the boys waterskiing... stopped the boat and found the gear lube reservoir at the low mark. Toodled slowly home (didn't have gear oil in the boat) and of course replenished. Spent the rest of the summer keeping the lube at the proper level. Found that high speed boating would go through a 1/2 liter in ~4 hours....low speed with the girlfriend consumed none at all - no teenagers aboard of course.

So last winter I searched the net and thought I had had it figured out. The Alpha series, because of their design can heat up under duress and the seals blow on the bottom end (according to the url below)..... so I bought and installed a "drive shower" http://www.driveshowers.com/ that I figured would fix the issue. Didn't replace the seals though. BTW the shower is a slick unit and definitely showers the water onto the bottom end.

No luck.

No sign of oil leakage at any time. Boat sits at a dock, no sign. Low speed no sign. High speed is when the oil gets consumed. Do notice however when I run the bilge that I leave a cloud... not too impressed with my green-ness ....

Anyone else experiencing this?

The theory behind the transom shower is the fact that at high speed the bottom end is not getting enough cool water to keep it cool. As I recall, the Alpha 1 is designed for 15 lbs of pressure max,,, anything exceeding that blows the seals.

So this spring,,, when it is warmer... I will check the bottom end gear oil for milk,,, cannot believe there will be too much as I probably went through 5 litres of gear oil last summer,,, max 150 hours of use. Am considering replacing the seals in the bottom end but look forward to advice from more experienced I/O experts.

Thanks.

Sean - outside of Ottawa, Canada

2001 Mariah Shabah 4.3 (the last of the breed) Alpha1

What gear oil are you folks using?

I'm using the factory Gear Oil - Quicksilver High Performance Gear Lube.

WetWilly

Re: Alpha 1 Gear Lube use problem
 

Hello

I have a 200Z Talari. 4.3 lx with alpha 1 outdrive. This past summer i noticed the drive oil disappearing, especially when playing!!! No outward signs of leaking, but dont remember or didnt hear no beeping. Many suggestions as to why. This past friday i stopped at the boat shop and talked to the service tech there and he went over the drive and probable causes. We will start out by removing the drive and he will do a pressure test on it. He mentioned that they see this frequently and the repair should be a simple seal and a gasket. Of course then while your in there check out everything else...Hence the name boat...BREAK OUT ANOTHER THOUSAND.
Their labor rate is $95 clams and hour and it will take them 1 hour to remove the drive and test it and check the ujoints and gimbal bearing.
I will let ya'll know how it went.
Counting down
Brian

Re: Alpha 1 Gear Lube use problem
 

I remember reading somewhere a little while ago that it is possible to have a small pressure/rpm related leak at the prop shaft bearing seal which is very difficult to find as most of the time any trace of the leak is washed away by the water and exhaust running through the prop.

I have had simular problems with Alpha drives in the past. I found and now buy my seal kits from Aftermarket Marine in LA. They make their own tripple lip seals and it has cured all my prop shaft seal problems and main shaft seal leakage, which I would suspect if no visable signs are present and loosening the bellows clamp dosen't reveal anything. Another thing to check is bearing preload, pressure testing may not detect a leak if the leak is caused by a lose or worn main drive bearing assembly. This can cause the input shaft to wobble while running, causing an oblong seal to leak. Pressure testing with engine off an unloaded won't all ways show leakage.
Wonsnam

Re: Alpha 1 Gear Lube use problem
 

I have a 96 maria shaba 4.3 alpha one and I have isolated this leak to the top side.I find the gear oil in my bilge I leaks more when the foot is in up position..I cleaned the bilge out very clean with dish soap and water till all oil was gone. I checked the oil in the foot and it was clean and up to the top of the vent hole kn top of foot..so I put oil in resevoir and waited for the oil to reach the vent screw hole on the foot..closed the screw and climbed in the boat and watched the bilge and under the plate that is attached to the transum the oil started flowing....the whole resevoir over night sittinv in the yard.....so my question is is there any components this gear oil lubes other the the lower unit...because the foot is staying full...its leaking inbetween the out drive mounting plates and coming out the underside of the inside out drive into.the bilge...I can see it trickling out from under the plate that mounts to the transum.. so I'm not putting no more gear oil in it if I is strickly" for the foot gears because the.foot is staying full..I have ran it all week about 8_hours and the foot oil is still at the top vent screw on the foot so I believe the leak is not really a major proplem as long as the oil in the foot is full and clean...I'm not sure what else that oil is supposed to lubricate though so my question is that....what else besides the foot does that oil lube up? Because I its nothing which I think it is I wkll not put another 15Dollar quart o quicksilver in it just to leak out in my bilge...what do you guys think?

Re: Alpha 1 Gear Lube use problem
 

Find and fix the leak. It isn't going to go away , and your gonna kill a drive sooner or later(sooner for sure):(.

Larry

Re: Alpha 1 Gear Lube use problem
 

I assume by the year that you have an Alpha 1 Gen 2 drive. Follow the hose from the gear lube reservoir back to the transom. There is a fitting that comes through the transom that the hose is attached to. Either this fitting is leaking lube or you have a leak in the hose itself. Happy hunting.