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Crack in lower unit

B

bentrabbit

Member
Have had the boat out a couple of times and never had any issues... No incidents come to mind that would have created, this so I'm thinking it was there when I bought the boat a month ago...
Anyway, I found this when I was getting ready to change out the stabilizer - How concerned should I be? Pre-alpha Mercruiser 165

crack01.jpgcrack02.jpg
 
lower cant be fixed. most likely caused by water freezing in the unit because it was stored in the up position. use it till it breaks and then replace the lower unit.
 
Ok it can be welded,here is the problem, you will have to split the drives and remove everything internal in the lower.

Then a master welder really good with alum. will need to weld it.

Then a new seal kit.

It can be done.

My friends son-in-law is a master welder went to school for it and welded up my friends merc drive. You will never see it cause it was that good a job. He has the equipment.

Or you can upgrade to a sei.

When you get done with labor alone you can have a new lower.

Check it out at seisterndrives.com
 
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What's happening to the internals while it's in this condition? I looked at the SEI page (they must have changed their URL -> http://www.sterndrive.cc/ ) and they show compatibility back to '73 Alpha's - Mine is a 69 Pre...
There's a guy close by selling his 'spare' 165 for $150 - Wasn't sure if I needed to make it a priority on this month's budget to go pick it up, or whether mine is sound enough to use until I replace it...?
 
Get a small grinder like a dremmel and carefuly gring the crack into a very small V shape.

THEN

J B WELD it, let it cure and sand it down athen a quick shot of your multi black paint and forget about it........as long as it does not leak any gear oil no issues......for now anyway.
 
To me, it also looks like there are some pieces broken from the prop. You might want to replace or repair the prop to reduce any unnecessary vibration. Excessive vibration may cause the crack in the lower unit to propagate at a faster pace.
 
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