Ongoing questions: this time "Gearcase"

[frankr]

If you attempt to straighten it, it may break. Then again, maybe it won’t. On the other hand, you might run it as is and never know the difference. Hard question to answer, isn’t it?

[nj-boatbuilder57]

Well, ….yes! 🙂

[fisherman6]

As Chris_P said, the skegs are not officially supposed to be swapped. They are indeed machined as a matched set after the two halves are assembled. They quality control seems to have been pretty good, however. I too have swapped skegs a number of times without issue and have received motors which had the skegs swapped when I got them and were either sealed or would reseal without issue. Cajun is correct, they should be kept together. Chris is also correct. They usually swap without a problem. Is it ever a problem? Perhaps, but I have not seen an issue yet myself. They even swap from different generations of castings. By this I mean a skeg from the late 60s will have a different profile than one from the 50s for the same size gearcase. I have even seen those swap out without a hiccup. All that said if it were mine, I’d try to straighten the original with some heat and gentle bending a little at a time. If it works you saved having to buy another and you kept the matched pair together. If it breaks off what have you lost? Exactly nothing if you were planning to replace it anyway. My 0.02 that’s worth exactly what you paid for it.
-Ben

OldJohnnyRude on YouTube

[fleetwin]

Well, I know many have swapped skegs, and had no issues….And, I could see it working out more on the smaller engines, but I wouldn’t attempt it on the larger gearcases like yours. That skeg is not bent much…I would simply reattach it to the gearcase so the two halves could be clamped somewhere…Then, apply some heat and gently work the skeg back over with a soft mallet….
I too would avoid trying to mix/match parts…Not saying it won’t work in this case, just saying I have been "gotchad" too many times when trying to mix/match pieces like this…

[nj-boatbuilder57]

So I figured I’d circle back with an update on the mangled skeg. Long story short, I saved it!

I screwed the skeg to my bench….you can see how bent over it is….

…and began applying heat. I first reached for a can of MAP gas, then thought better of it, since this is an aluminum casting. Regular propane was used instead…

I thought about using a mallet, but then figured "force" would be better than "impact", so I used a bar clamp as a lever. It took several heat-then-bend cycles, as aluminum cools fast & I didn’t want to snap the casting. I heated it evenly for about 5 minutes, then worked it for about 10 seconds, moving it a dinky little bit each time. I could ‘feel’ when it was time to stop & re-heat.

In short order, things were looking pretty good!

In addition to being bent, the edge had a helluva rollover burr on the edge. That was best ground off with a carbide wheel in a drill. I gave the whole thing a uniform profile…

It was still very hot at this point, and being a casting, I wanted it to cool evenly & slowly. A few minutes in front of my fan & it was cool to the touch.

I ran over the repair with a RAS sander w/ 100 paper to clean it all up….

I’ll take it to work on Monday for a ride in the degreaser, then prime, then paint. Not bad for an hour’s time!

[chris-p]

Awesome! With that nice new sharp leading edge you just gained 1mph top end!

[Buccaneer]

Must more satisfaction in "fixing" something than just replacing it! 🙂

Prepare to be boarded!

[outboardnut]

Good Job!

[nj-boatbuilder57]

Thanks!

And, yes: fixing is much, much more satisfying than simply replacing. But I was "born to tinker"….as I suspect most of you were, too! Can’t hardly imagine how anyone could begin to enjoy this hobby if they weren’t, right? 🙂

[garry-in-michigan]

RIGHT ! . . . . .

[Author]

Posts