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290 sp lubrication/oil questions

R

Rscottdds

Regular Contributor
I have a 290sp and need to replace the gear case oil. The manual says to use 10W-30 motor oil but that manual is from 30+ years ago. The original outdrive needed replacing so I had a rebuilt one installed earlier this year. Is there any reason to use a different oil?

Also what washers/o rings will I need to replace on the drain and fill holes? Anyone have the part numbers?

And one last question. What lube do I use for the zerk fitting on the bell housing? I was told to lube that periodically too.

The mechanic who replaced my outdrive quit and the shop’s invoice doesn’t list any of this info. Thanks for any help
Robert
 
10W-30 still works

If the ring on the top is intact, take it to a good (not big box) H/W store and match it up...
Re: the bottom... Several years ago, I got tired of struggling with the obnoxious straight slot screw plug. Evenrude had a drain plug screw for one of its outboards that has a female hex allen drive... it fits. Makes removal of drain easy ( chip out old antifouling paint, insert hex alen key, remove) The key also helps avoid getting your hands full of old oil if you move fast ...and replacing the screw is easier as you just stick the drain screw on the allen and use it as a handle to reinstall it.

Lastly.... one more unorthodox (Volvo anyway) thing..... use an over the counter drive oil pump to fill the drive FROM the bottom... this makes checking the oil level as you fill it easier. And lastly, use a file to score hatch marks on the end of the dip stick up to the "fill line" to make it easier to see the oil... most 10W-30 is very clear and difficult to see on the dip stick.

Looked it up in my 2017 post.... "Found one w/allen head online for an E-TEC (Sierra 18-4255). It's very inexpensive.. it comes with both a flat nylon washer seal and an o-ring"
 
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For the sp drive (with the slinger pump) you’ll want to use 30W if in cold water, and 40W if in warm water, such as in Florida.

As for the PDS bearings, this becomes a tough call! You may not know what grease was used in there previously. Mixing unlike grease chemistries can cause a loss in viscosity.

my suggestion would be....... try your best to identify the grease that’s in there now. Purchased that same grace and use it.
If the grease cavity had been properly pre-filled prior, several pumps will move the grease through the AFT bearing.
If (key word “if”) the cavity had NOT been prefilled, you will want to replace the bearings.
You will want to lube these with the engine running at idle speed. Dynamic -vs- Static!
A good 5 to 7 pumps should replace the old grease with new!

NOTE: if you have no history of the PDS bearings/seals having been replaced, it would be wise to do it. $50 through your local commercial bearing supplier.
A failure here can be catastrophic and extremely expensive.

Side story:
I have replaced many of these over the years. I have seen where owners have neglected to keep these bearings in good condition. I have seen and repaired the failures ranging from minor damage to;
... a severely torn up AFT bearing bore
... a broken flywheel cover bellows snout
... a broken universal drive shaft
... a broken transmission front collar where the bellows attach.
... all of the above during one incidence.


Spare yourself of this by replacing them now and at a fraction of the cost.



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They do publish charts of what grease is compatible with what, if you have no idea what was used try to pick one that is compatible with most others. Lithium complex seems to be the most commonly used type today although Calcium Sulfonate based grease is superior in wear and water resistance. From what I’ve read these greases are compatible with the widely used Lithium Complex greases.
 
Thanks for the replies. The bearings were replaced when they installed the rebuilt outdrive. I’ll try and find out what grease they used.

On my old drive that upper fill hole was frozen so I always filled from the bottom with a pump with the dipstick out. Takes a fair amount of time but gets the job done. Any downside to doing it this way never. other than time?

I’ll look into that Evinrude part but is the OEM part for that lower drain screw an o ring like the dipstick or a washer? I can’t remember. Anyone have a part number for it?

I am in Southern California where the water temp is usually between high to mid 50’s at the lowest to upper 60’s. What’s the advantage to using 30w over 10W-30? I always have a bunch of 10W-30 around.

Thsnks again for the help.
Robert
 
I would ask the shop if they pre-filled the pds bearing grease cavity.
I can’t tell you how many times I have found them dry.
 
RicardoMarine said:
I would ask the shop if they pre-filled the pds bearing grease cavity.
I can’t tell you how many times I have found them dry.
Click to expand...
Unfortunately I can’t find that info out. There is nothing about it on the invoice other than they replaced the bearings and that mechanic moved away to parts unknown. It sounded like he knew what he was doing as he was a Volvo mechanic for years and owned a 290 himself. So 5-7 pumps with engine running at idle? Any concern about overfilling?

Robert
 
Robert, if you remove the transmission for bellows replacement or _____, pump grease into the fitting and look for grease exiting the ball cage.
if it exits immediately, that would mean that the cavity was pre-filled.
 
RicardoMarine said:
Robert, if you remove the transmission for bellows replacement or _____, pump grease into the fitting and look for grease exiting the ball cage.
if it exits immediately, that would mean that the cavity was pre-filled.
Click to expand...

Thanks. Until then I should just pump 5-7 squirts with the engine at idle a few times a year?

-Robert
 
RicardoMarine said:
Robert, my point was…… if the grease cavity had not been pre-filled, your attempts will be futile.
Click to expand...

I have no reason to believe he didn’t. He was a Volvo spe******t before coming to this shop and knew he needed to replace 2 bearings not one (at least I think I remember him saying some have 2 and some have 1).

Anyway, assuming he did pre-fill it what is the maintenance protocol for those bearings? How often, how much and engine off or on? Thanks for any help.

Robert
 
Ok..... at the risk of being extremely redundant here....... let me say it one more time!

First off.... I spent 24 years doing AQ series work.
In that 24 years, I've seen where certified V/P techs had installed new double PDS bearings and DID NOT prefill the cavity.
Without the cavity having been prefilled, no amount of future 4, 5, 6 or 7 pumps of grease will ever reach the AFT bearing.
The cavity itself requires almost a full tube of grease!
Without periodic servicing (new grease), these bearings will go for maybe 300 to 400 hours ONLY.... if that.

Damage:
Damage from a failed AFT PDS bearing can range from (see post #3 again)

Repair costs:
A good used flywheel cover can run you about $400, and it also will need new bearings/seals.
A new universal drive shaft will run you about $800+.
A new front transmission clamping collar will run you about $350+
The set up time to shim the front collar will run about $250.

None of this covers the frustration caused by a breakdown, nor the cost of a tow back to the dock.
If you're lucky, the boat will NOT have taken on water!

By the way...... this is NOT a design issue..... this is a lack of Maintenance issue.


For the cost of 4 new OEM O-rings and draining the gear oil into a clean container, you can remove the transmission and view the AFT bearing ball cage.
If grease gun action causes movement at the ball cage, you should be OK.
If grease gun action does NOT cause any movement at the ball cage, you will want to add grease until it does.
While adding the grease, periodically bump the starter motor.

If the gear oil is clean, you can re-install it.




Please accept this as a friendly FYI, FWIW or a friendly warning.

I wish you the best!

Rick E.


Anyway, assuming he did pre-fill it what is the maintenance protocol for those bearings? How often, how much and engine off or on? Thanks for any help.
Click to expand...

In my book, we would lube them during each engine oil/filter change.
When we fire the engine up just after the oil/filter change (as to check for leaks, etc), that would be the time to do this with the engine running at idle speed.



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RicardoMarine said:

In my book, we would lube them during each engine oil/filter change.
When we fire the engine up just after the oil/filter change (as to check for leaks, etc), that would be the time to do this with the engine running at idle speed.
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Click to expand...

Thanks Rick. I’ll try my best to find out if it was pre-filled and check it for sure next time the transmission is off. Is there a concern of overfilling? Where does the excess grease go if too much is added? I really do appreciate the help.
Robert
 
When installed correctly, the AFT seal installs in the non-conventional direction. I. E., lip and tension spring facing AFT.

Being in the non-conventional orientation, it allows the seal to purge any excessive grease into the Bellows area...... of which will not hurt anything!

This is also why the front seal must be glued or staked into position. If the AFT seal is not able to purge, the grease pressure may blow the front seal out of it’s bore.
If that was to occur, future grease will not make it through the AFT bearing ball cage.

You would be surprised to know how many trained Volvo Penta technicians are not aware of this.



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O-ring # 955974 would be the drain plug and dip stick O-ring.
It would be a good idea to keep several extras in your tool box.

By the way, that is one of the few AQ series O-rings that can be found at a good hardware store.
Another one would be the oil drain back tube O-ring.


The rest of them should be OEM only.


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