My '86 30 Horse Evinrude

[thunderheart]

Hey Folks,

I'm getting an old boat I bought late last summer ready to fish this year. Put it in the water last week and noticed something I thought a little odd. At the risk of sounding paranoid, I thought I'd ask for opinions here. I've attached a photo of the lower unit below. There is a weep hole near the leading edge just above the cavitation plate. You'll notice a dark strain around and below the hole. When the motor is running on the bench, an oily discharge weeps from this hole. On the water, the motor runs great, and I took it from Farrington down to 64 Bridge and back several times at full power. No problems ... shifts good and everything. Anybody think this oily discharge is a warning sign? I think the weep hole is intended to allow water to run out when the motor is dry to prevent freeze damage (I read that somewhere).

[SIMPLEMAN]

Smell It Thunderheart. If It Has A Odor Other Than 2 Cycle Oil I'd Worry That It Might Be Lower Unit Gear Oil. You Could Always Drop The Lower Unit Oil And Check It For Water. If You Are Running Ear Muffs On Your Bench Tests, This May Cause Water To Run Back Out Of The Seep Hole Because Of Excessive Pressure And In Normal Conditions You Would Not Notice It. Just My Two Cents.

[Muddy Water]

Screw out you lower oil drain screw. If what comes out is grayish or milky, then you got a bad seal somewhere in the lower unit. Having the same problem myself on a 25 johnson.

[thunderheart]

Thanks for the replies guys. I was using ear muffs to run the motor out of the water and that is when I noticed the discharge. I had the pressure pretty low. The discharge actually WAS a milky gray at first but then ran more like water (slightly oily). The motor hadn't been run in probably a year or a little more.

Thunderheart