Going dripless

[scotthons]

I have repacked and didn't seem to fix the issue so I am going dripless. I have an '06 21V. Has anyone had any luck installing this system? Any tips? My uncle did it, but he has a '99 Sunsport direct drive. Thanks in advance.

Shaft Seal 1 1/8 OJ Dripless
http://www.skidim.com/images/21805.jpg

[Jetlink]

I just installed one on my Comp. I cannot stress enough to read the directions at least twice before doing anything as a simple miss step can really mess up your day. That being said, my install was super easy and I plumbed in off the cooling line going to the port exhaust manifold and haven't had any issues yet. The reason for tapping in the port manifold line is that the water needs to come downstream from the thermostat and the port line had a longer run on between the manifold and the thermostat housing.

With any questions, you can always call Skidim and ask for Vince.

[docdrs]

I just installed one on my Comp. I cannot stress enough to read the directions at least twice before doing anything as a simple miss step can really mess up your day. That being said, my install was super easy and I plumbed in off the cooling line going to the port exhaust manifold and haven't had any issues yet. The reason for tapping in the port manifold line is that the water needs to come downstream from the thermostat and the port line had a longer run on between the manifold and the thermostat housing.

With any questions, you can always call Skidim and ask for Vince.

I would not plumb it from anything other then the tranny cooler drain plug , or just before the tstat housing. It is a cooling line, not wetting or lubricating. Hot water will cause expansion of the dripless housing and early failure. Or at least dripping when the motor is hot. Now if you happen to get the metal/bronze housing then ive heard it may not be a problem. The plastic /abs housings have had issues. I have had discussions with OJ on this.

[cadunkle]

Trans cooler drain plug would be suction side of the raw water pump on most setups, eh? I looked at dripless before and was worried about plastic housings. There was one available with a metal housing that seemed more robust and cost a bit more, may not have been marketed for ski boats but was available in 1" and 1 1/8" shaft sizes. Also heard some are more tolerant of being run dry at slow speeds (getting towed in) and others will fail quickly. Never been towed yet, but if one exists that works like that I'd prefer it. Too many choices and with my indecisiveness I just repacked with gore-tex but considering dripless again. Let us know what you go with and your impressions.

[Salty87]

OEM from '87 had no cooling requirement. I wonder why that's changed since then. I've had to replace the rubber compression boot but other than that it's still going strong and I've been towed plenty of times.

[docdrs]

OEM from '87 had no cooling requirement. I wonder why that's changed since then. I've had to replace the rubber compression boot but other than that it's still going strong and I've been towed plenty of times.


He's talking about the OJ dripless driveshaft seal not the pre 2008 drippers

[meteorman]

I just put an OJ on last weekend - it's definitely something you can DIY. First thing is that your going to need the correct size socket to get the nut off of the driveshaft so that you can separate it from the flange that bolts to the V-Drive. That was 1-1/16" on mine. I know it sounds weird since the shaft size is 1-1/8 but it tapers off on that end or something. I didn't have that size so I called my dealer before going to the store - he told me they use different sizes but suggested mine was probably that and it was. Your flange may also have a set screw with an allen head - mine did.

Be prepared to spend a bunch of time bent over your V-Drive fiddling around in awkward positions to undo the bolts on the flange which is behind and under it. This part may involve some swearing and thoughts of "I shouldn't have started this - but now I'm in too deep to stop". Be strong, you'll make it. I temporarily removed some cooling hoses to get better access. Those gear wrench ratchet wrench things would probably make this way easier.

Finally, there's the issue of the plumbing the cooling line. Like Jetlink, I plumbed mine off of one of the lines feeding the exhaust manifold. It is crucial that it be on the "pressure" side of the raw water pump and the hoses feeding the manifolds are the only 1" ones on my boat which is the size of the OJ T-fitting. This is also how I was advised to plumb it by the guys at the place I bought the kit.

Edit:
Your flange may also be stuck on the shaft - to unstick mine, after separating the driveshaft flange from the v-drive flange and removing the set screw and bolt from the driveshaft side, I took a small (1/4) socket and taped it to the center of the flange on the V-drive side. Then I bolted the driveshaft flange back up using two opposite bolts slowly and evenly. It didn't take much pressure for that socket to pop the driveshaft free. It's not splined, there's only a keyway.

Good luck!

[Jetlink]

I would not plumb it from anything other then the tranny cooler drain plug , or just before the tstat housing. It is a cooling line, not wetting or lubricating. Hot water will cause expansion of the dripless housing and early failure. Or at least dripping when the motor is hot. Now if you happen to get the metal/bronze housing then ive heard it may not be a problem. The plastic /abs housings have had issues. I have had discussions with OJ on this.

I forgot to mention, I did the PSS seal and it is all metal plumbing fittings and standard rubber hoses. I originally thought about installing the brass T between the raw water pump and the thermostat but figured I would check with the Skidim boys first. They directed me to install the brass T where I said I did it.

[scotthons]

Thank you everyone for all the suggestions. Great write up meteorman! I will let everyone know how it goes after the weekend.

[scottschmitt]

I bought a OJ dripless shaft seal last year and started to put it on. Skidim has a nice explanation of Meteorman's approach to removing the flange (http://www.skidim.blogspot.com/2008/10/oj-dripless-shaft-seal-installation.html also here: http://www.pbase.com/mainecruising/pss_shaft_seal).
I separated the coupling from the transmission. The coupling seemed pretty stuck on there and I got chicken about putting too much pressure on the transmission flange. I'd read about bending this out of alignment. So in the end, I just went with Goretex and have the OJ sitting in a box.
Sounds like the coupling comes off reasonably easy and I should have pressed on.
Any trouble getting the coupling back on the drive shaft? Did you have to use heat or anything?

[docdrs]

Yes, on some models the tranny cooler is before the impeller and should not be used. Proper alignment of the shaft is also crucial. A bent shaft , even if only .003 out may cause premature failure. As far as using hot exhaust water for cooling or post tstat water ,it will be 160degrees plus once the engine heats up and worse on a hot day when lake water is 80 plus. Once i switched from post tstat as recommended to pre tstat all leaking around the housing stopped. .02