Not too bad on paying the stupid tax

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scn

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I have been a procrastinator all of my life. Never do today what you can put off until tomorrow! And, yes, it has bit a few times before. I remember being up all night typing up my senior term paper. I had a few typos that took me from an A to a B. That worked out in the end by correcting those mistakes and using it for my college English term paper and getting an A that time around. Several other example of getting bit over the years.

Anyway, it was time to get my flats boat ready for a trip to the Gulf. I was tight on time, but still in the ball game. One of the tasks was to swap my Garmin unit for a Lowrance so I could run the Florida Marine Tracks chip. Still in the game until I couldn't get the old transducer cord out to pull the new one in.

I also needed to change out the lower unit grease because I NEGLECTED it last year. While I was at my boat dealer getting the lube, I mentioned to the parts manager about the transducer cord. Normally those guys are booked 3-4 weeks out at this time of the year. I was told to check with the shop manager to see on the transducer. The shop manager told me if I got it down that afternoon, that they would do it. When I got the boat back down there, I asked them to do the lower unit service IF they had time.

When they pulled the plugs on the lower unit, there was more water than grease in there. I had a MAJOR wad of fishing line behind the prop that I had never taken off that had cut the seals. Since they were going to have to order the seals, the shop guy put some grease in the lower unit and started it up to lube everything until the seals got in. In doing that, he saw I had a bent prop shaft that was also tearing the seals. Then, he discovered that the castle nut holding everything together was seized where even heat and a breaker bar couldn't move it. So, it became time for a new lower unit.

They got one in today and put everything back together for me. With the exception of needing to do some break in on the new lower unit, I probably could still make my trip. But, the weather next week down there doesn't look very good, so we put that trip off until a little later. Anyway, paying the stupid tax on my end wasn't as bad as I had feared. Kudos to Clark Marine for taking care of me in a VERY timely manner!!!

I'm sure we don't have anyone else on here that has been too stupid to pull their prop and look for line, or not do the annual change of lower unit grease............
 
Good story thanks for sharing. I think we all have procrastinated a time or two. When you say lower unit grease, is it grease or gear oil? Both my Yamaha's have gear lube....

And yeah I should check my prop for fishing line...it's been a while since I have pulled them.
 
FLTENNHUNTER1 said:
Good story thanks for sharing. I think we all have procrastinated a time or two. When you say lower unit grease, is it grease or gear oil? Both my Yamaha's have gear lube....

And yeah I should check my prop for fishing line...it's been a while since I have pulled them.
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Gear lube.
 
scn said:
But, there is something about DIY.............
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Agree totally.
But my DIY boating/fishing is relatively simple & cheap compared to many.
I don't have a livescope, don't have a big outboard.
Still seem to enjoy my fishing trips :)

But then, my DIY hunting is more like others' DIY boating!

Like Andy S. says . . . . . . .
If I had saved all the money I spent on hunting, I'd spend it on hunting :)
 
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It never seems to end with a boat!

Being somewhat new... how do you bend the prop shaft?? Do you recall hitting something solid?

And when I serviced my lower unit last December... I slathered the prop shaft threads with marine grease before putting the castle nut back on. Would that prevent the nut from seizing?

Last weekend I thought I was going to break the fuel water separator off its mount from the sidewall bilge... and I had just replaced the filter 6m before. Amazing how fast stuff can seize up on a boat (but I put marine grease on the seal of the filter before I reinstalled it last weekend)
 
megalomaniac said:
It never seems to end with a boat!

Being somewhat new... how do you bend the prop shaft?? Do you recall hitting something solid?

And when I serviced my lower unit last December... I slathered the prop shaft threads with marine grease before putting the castle nut back on. Would that prevent the nut from seizing?

Last weekend I thought I was going to break the fuel water separator off its mount from the sidewall bilge... and I had just replaced the filter 6m before. Amazing how fast stuff can seize up on a boat (but I put marine grease on the seal of the filter before I reinstalled it last weekend)
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I remember hitting two things down in LA. After the hurricane, I hit a big board that was "new" to that spot. It was a thump, but did nothing to the prop and didn't seem like a big deal. I also hit a rock in a submerged rock jetty. I was at idle speed, and got one little ding on the prop. Neither was an immediate concern for me. So, who knows?

My biggest mistake was not doing the annual type service in removing the prop and checking for line, and doing the lower unit lube. Had I done those, I likely would have caught the issue in time to prevent having to get the whole lower unit.

I suspect your greasing of the threads/castle nut makes that a non issue for you. And, yes, it doesn't take long in saltwater for things to go bad.
 
scn said:
I'm sure we don't have anyone else on here that has been too stupid to pull their prop and look for line, or not do the annual change of lower unit grease............
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I bought the gear oil and pump for my lower unit a year or so ago. Still haven't got around to it. Completely stupid. It literally takes 30 minutes. Thanks for the reminder. I'm going to do it before my next trip.
 
Spurhunter said:
I bought the gear oil and pump for my lower unit a year or so ago. Still haven't got around to it. Completely stupid. It literally takes 30 minutes. Thanks for the reminder. I'm going to do it before my next trip.
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Make sure you pull the prop as well. I had ZERO idea that I had line trapped behind the prop. I'm sure I cut some of the seals with it, but suspect that the bent prop shaft was the bigger deal.
 
TheLBLman said:
More & more, I do see the value in just hiring a top-notch guide for a variety of fishing trips :)
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Funny you mention this. My uncle lives in Florida and has a flats boat. He is considering selling his boat for that very reason. Apparently it's cheaper to just hire a guide rather than deal with the maintenance, storage fees, and harassment from the HOA.
 
Stuff like this is why I have a kayak and not a boat. 😜 Having said that, I have paid my share of the stupid tax.

Last week, I got the kayak, fishing rods, and paddle loaded up and went fishing at Shelby Forest. I backed the truck down the boat ramp, and reached in the backseat for the life vest. Only it wasn't there! I realized I left it at home, on the couch. Sooooo...I drove 20+ minutes back home to get the life vest and back out to the lake. Ended up catching a bass, so it was all good.
 
megalomaniac said:
It never seems to end with a boat!

Being somewhat new... how do you bend the prop shaft?? Do you recall hitting something solid?

And when I serviced my lower unit last December... I slathered the prop shaft threads with marine grease before putting the castle nut back on. Would that prevent the nut from seizing?

Last weekend I thought I was going to break the fuel water separator off its mount from the sidewall bilge... and I had just replaced the filter 6m before. Amazing how fast stuff can seize up on a boat (but I put marine grease on the seal of the filter before I reinstalled it last weekend)
Click to expand...
I have bent a prop shaft. I hit a rock in the stones river. Luckily my insurance covered most of it. I am surprised that scn didn't notice it when running the motor. It was very obvious for me.
 

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