Motor Boat question

[shemandr]

I have a runabout I bought after the painful sale of my 356. It gets me out while I'm looking for my next sailboat.
It has hydraulic rams to raise and lower the 60 hp Mercruiser outboard. What maintenance should I do for the hydraulics? How do you check the oil level? There are some plastic plug there but I'm afraid if I remove the fluid will leak out. What kind of oil goes it there? Someone told me just use transmission oil - I'm guessing that won't fly around here.

 

[Winkfish]

Shemander, I have the rams on my Whaler's motor, a 90 hp Merc. I'm certainly no expert, but I don't think there's any way to "check" the fluid. If it's not leaking out of the cylinders and the tilt is working alright, I think you're ok. The last time I brought my boat into the shop for the motir's periodic maintenance, ther was some evidence of leakage, so the mech fixed the seal on the trim cinder. That was the first time in 8 years I've ever looked at it.

 

[JVB]

Automotive analogy

How often do you change the hydraulic fluid in your car's brake system ? I'll bet most owners can answer "never". There is nothing to contaminate the fluid unless there is a leak. So if you don't see signs of leaking then don't worry about it. If it starts to run erratically or make unusual sounds or the lift fails to completely lift the motor then you need to check it out.

 

[shemandr]

Ok. So I'm hyper-ing it. On to bottom paint and launch. Then bass fishing. Things are looking up here.

 

[GeorgiaBII]

Find the pump assembly and check the oil level. It's probably a bit low, I top mine off each season. That's it.

 

[Stu Jackson]

Andrew, when in doubt, go to the manufacturer's website and find out. Good luck, happy fishing.