water leak by the shaft/seal!

BennyHogue

New Member
Aug 31, 2009
37
Long Island
Boat Info
1997 370 Sundancer
Engines
7.4 mercruiser 340HP
It's almost the end of boating season and I noticed that there is a very small water leak into my bilge from where one of my engine shaft/seal are. Can this be changed easily by me or should it be done by marine mechanic? they told me the job could be around 2k. what do you guys think?

1997 SR 370 DA
 
Benny
THE man to speak to is J Levine. I'll page him for you. But don't fret. Not that big of a job for a mechanic or you. Even possible it can slide for a while. I'll let Jon give you the skinny.
 
Assuming you've got dripless seals...since you've got a DA with V-drives your biggest issue might be access.
That quote sounds high for replacing lip seals- even assuming both seals are to be done.
If you lay-up for the winter, I'd wait until then to avoid the cost of an additional haulout.
 
Even if you have a spare seal in a carrier on the shaft, there isn't room in a 330DA to change the lip seal without removing the coupler, prop and backing the shaft out.

If your seals have been running in the same spot on the shaft since 1997, you will most likely have enough of a groove that the seal will need to be relocated. Also, the reasons the Tides seals leak is usually that the seal body has worn and is allowing the lip seal to move/wobble on the shaft, so the fix isn't as easy as slapping in a new lip seal. It is to replace the entire seal assembly.

The seal itself is about $450, add a haul-out and a couple of hours labor from the boat yard and that is about what the cost should be.

There is more to this than changing parts. If you don't have experience with shaft removal, prop removal and installation, polishing the shaft, and fitting a seal, this may be one to buy some experience from others on.

Lastly, on a 10+ year old set of seals, you are already paying for a haul-out and blocking, so I'd replace both at the same time because one seal has experienced everything the other has and it is likely to start leaking about any time.
 
Frank
The OP's got a 370DA. Jon did his '95 370DA this spring and he can get to them.

330DA = hoist at least one engine. 370DA = on your knees and contort.
 
Thanks guys! i kind of knew that this guy was high on the repair cost. i will definitly get it done when i haul-out the boat for the winter season. I will also send a message to J Levine and see what he has to say. Thanks and enjoy the weekend!!
 
Keep us informed and share his knowledge.I my self am on the same side.My mechanic tells me to replace my strongseals with PYI PSS instead of the sureseal.Thay cost about the same.What would you suggest?
ps:The shaft has a replacement seal ring for my strong seal but is made in 2000 and already 9 years old.Should i trust such and old seal and its rubber even if the ring is protected by the plastic house ?
thank you.
 
I don't think Jon used Tides seals.

There is no way to install new seal assemblies on either boat in the water since the shafts have to be partially removed. I've got a 450DA and cannot change the lip seal with out damaging the new one trying to press it in, even when you use the seal carrier as a driver. If we can't do it on a boat like the 45, I don't see how it can be done on smaller boats with less access. If you can, I want to borrow your double jointed monkey.

Using old seal is certainly possible, but you need to feel the seal lip and be sure it is sift and pliable and has no rough edges or cracks..........when you figure out how to do that without removing the shaft, let me know.
 
Keep us informed and share his knowledge.I my self am on the same side.My mechanic tells me to replace my strongseals with PYI PSS instead of the sureseal.Thay cost about the same.What would you suggest?
ps:The shaft has a replacement seal ring for my strong seal but is made in 2000 and already 9 years old.Should i trust such and old seal and its rubber even if the ring is protected by the plastic house ?
thank you.

I installed a PSS seal on my Chris-Craft and have had no issues with it. I like the fact that the O-ring seals do not spin around the shaft like the Tides, so they don't leak.
The guys at my yard now recommend Lasdrop, but I haven't looked at them yet.
 
Lasdrop is very much like the PSS seal....i.e. stainless collar runs against a carbon seal body. The Lasdrop has a spring loaded collar containing a lip seal, whereas, the PSS is loaded by compressing the bellows on the shaft tube, then sliding the stainless (o-ring sealed) collar against the carbon seal body. I think I like either or both designs better than the Tides rotating lip seal.
 
After a lot of research I replaced my leaking Tides Strong Seals with PIY PSS seals and have been very pleased with them. The seals cost me about $500 for the pair and I installed them myself. The biggest PITA with this job was getting the hubs off of the shafts so they could be pulled back to change the seals. The hubs had to be heated to get them to pop off. I actually removed the shafts and took them and the props to Atlantis Propellor here in NJ to have the cleaned and inspected. I also checked the wear on the cutlass bearings while I had the shafts out. Once the parts were all cleaned, putting them back together along with the new seals was very straight forward. The seals have been 100% water tight without as much as a single drip since they were installed and have required no adjustment. I cant recommend this product enough. If you have good mechanical skills this is not that hard to do.
 
Thanks Jon! I will look into it when i haulout the boat next month. I will keep you posted if you would like. Thanks again!
 
After a lot of research I replaced my leaking Tides Strong Seals with PIY PSS seals and have been very pleased with them. The seals cost me about $500 for the pair and I installed them myself. The biggest PITA with this job was getting the hubs off of the shafts so they could be pulled back to change the seals. The hubs had to be heated to get them to pop off. I actually removed the shafts and took them and the props to Atlantis Propellor here in NJ to have the cleaned and inspected. I also checked the wear on the cutlass bearings while I had the shafts out. Once the parts were all cleaned, putting them back together along with the new seals was very straight forward. The seals have been 100% water tight without as much as a single drip since they were installed and have required no adjustment. I cant recommend this product enough. If you have good mechanical skills this is not that hard to do.
 
Hello,

How many hours did it take to do 1 engine:remove the shaft, hum, old seals, new seals, put everything back together. thanks
 

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