- Joined
- Feb 1, 2015
- Messages
- 9,559
With 6" of snow this past week, it is time to put the boat away for the winter. One of the tasks is changing the lower unit gear lube. Now I have had several of the pumps that screw into a 32 oz. bottle of lube and they work....for the first season. After that they either lock up or fail to pump. Rather than buy yet another, I decided to make my own. I wanted something simple.... the KISS principle. Here is what I came up with.
I happened to save spent silicon caulk cartridges. Applying a shot of compressed air to the nozzle will shoot the piston out with a satisfying pop. Don't point in the direction of anyone or anything you don't want to hit. For the less daring, place the cartridge in the caulking gun to contain the piston. Peel any residual caulk from the tube. If the caulk hasn't set up, give it some time to cure.
Using an awl, pinch a 1/4" hole in the center of the piston. Start a nut in a 10" - 12" length of 1`/4" threaded rod and place the piston on the rod, skirt first. Secure the piston with a second nut. On the other end, I used a fender washer secured with two nuts. A length of 3/8" PVC tubing completes the pump. I terminated mine with a fitting which screws into my outboard lower unit but it's your choice as to termination.
It takes less than five minutes start to finish to make and works flawlessly. As it turns out, my lower unit take 10 oz. of lube and it's a 10 oz. caulk tube so one fill does the job. Should you require more than 10 oz., simply pull the plunger out and pour some more lube in.
I happened to save spent silicon caulk cartridges. Applying a shot of compressed air to the nozzle will shoot the piston out with a satisfying pop. Don't point in the direction of anyone or anything you don't want to hit. For the less daring, place the cartridge in the caulking gun to contain the piston. Peel any residual caulk from the tube. If the caulk hasn't set up, give it some time to cure.
Using an awl, pinch a 1/4" hole in the center of the piston. Start a nut in a 10" - 12" length of 1`/4" threaded rod and place the piston on the rod, skirt first. Secure the piston with a second nut. On the other end, I used a fender washer secured with two nuts. A length of 3/8" PVC tubing completes the pump. I terminated mine with a fitting which screws into my outboard lower unit but it's your choice as to termination.
It takes less than five minutes start to finish to make and works flawlessly. As it turns out, my lower unit take 10 oz. of lube and it's a 10 oz. caulk tube so one fill does the job. Should you require more than 10 oz., simply pull the plunger out and pour some more lube in.
