Metal Shavings On Lower End Magnet

[olesilverside]

Went To Change Lower Unit Grease And The Bottom Screw Has A Small Magnet On The Bottom Of It. It Had A Few Little Metal Shavings On It, Motor Is A 1995 Merc 150 Only The Third Time I Have Changed Lower End Grease Was Doing It Every 5 Years... Think This May Be From Shifting The Gears??? Feels Good And Tight, No Noise..i Know Will Change Every Year Now......

[Whompus Cat]

from my little bit of experience here's what I know... It is common to see a small amount of fine "metal shaving". If you're talking the size of a finger nail trimming then you're probably grinding some gears or your prop shaft is slightly bent. When you shift your motor into gear you should not "baby" it. You should bump it into gear quickly. If you're babying the throttle into gear you can hear the clutch dog bumping the gears. Not 100% sure if this is what is causing the metal shavings but it could be i guess. If the shavings aren't that big and everything seems to operate fine then I wouldn't worry too much. Just my opinion. Hopefully someone else with more experience will chime in.

[Barnacle Bill]

I agree with Whompus Cat. Especially about the shifting. Those gears are not syncronized like auto transmissions. Never ease it into gear. Its a good idea to change that oil yearly. If something is going wrong you may find it before its really expensive. One of those things I like to call cheap insurance.