chances of not having to rebuild volvo 280

montymbad

Member
hey guys, I was talking to the po of my boat, the boat has a volvo 280 that was rebuilt right before the boat was parked. the problem is the boat has been sitting about 8 years. It was ran on the rebuilt leg for about 3 months (maybe 10 or 15 hours tops). The leg will shift back and forth seemingly fine, and the prop will turn fine in neutral with out grabbing. I havent been able to drain the oil as Im not doing it in 2 feet of snow. The boat has been stored outside for the 8 years. thanks!

Monty
 
I know those legs inside and out. I dont quite understand what you need to know, please explain further, Thanks, Dave.

untitled.jpg

Fill the dam tub!
 
I know those legs inside and out. I dont quite understand what you need to know, please explain further, Thanks, Dave.

untitled.jpg

Fill the dam tub!
 
First thing you need to do is drain the oil to see if there is any water if thats checks out. Next thing is to pressure test to see if all the seals are ok. You will need to replace the drive and exhaust bellows as well as the raw water pick up hose,don't forget to grease the universal joints. GOOD LUCK

Cheers
 
First thing you need to do is drain the oil to see if there is any water if thats checks out. Next thing is to pressure test to see if all the seals are ok. You will need to replace the drive and exhaust bellows as well as the raw water pick up hose,don't forget to grease the universal joints. GOOD LUCK

Cheers
 
quote:Originally posted by Wireman

First thing you need to do is drain the oil to see if there is any water if thats checks out. Next thing is to pressure test to see if all the seals are ok. You will need to replace the drive and exhaust bellows as well as the raw water pick up hose,don't forget to grease the universal joints. GOOD LUCK

Cheers

Yea, you can take any advice given to you.. Heres a good idea, rebuild everything.. not!
I have been a Volvo mechanic and have been in and out of those legs many times over. Just give me the info I need and Ill give you the best advice I can, If I dont know something Ill tell you, but I will not advise you to spend $ you dont need to.

untitled.jpg

Fill the dam tub!
 
quote:Originally posted by Wireman

First thing you need to do is drain the oil to see if there is any water if thats checks out. Next thing is to pressure test to see if all the seals are ok. You will need to replace the drive and exhaust bellows as well as the raw water pick up hose,don't forget to grease the universal joints. GOOD LUCK

Cheers

Yea, you can take any advice given to you.. Heres a good idea, rebuild everything.. not!
I have been a Volvo mechanic and have been in and out of those legs many times over. Just give me the info I need and Ill give you the best advice I can, If I dont know something Ill tell you, but I will not advise you to spend $ you dont need to.

untitled.jpg

Fill the dam tub!
 
Hay, I'm not a Volvo mechanic and I'm not looking for your business but I do have a volvo drive,and if this boat has been out of the water for 8 years you can bet that your bellows have all but cracked and deteriated and I'd want to know if there was water in the leg
Just voicing my personal opinion!
 
Replacing the drive bellows, ehaust bellows and water hose is a costly job, even if you can do it yourself. Volvo ujoint bellows are 100$ alone. Youll know right away if theres water in there just by loosening off the hose clamp and look in. I usually put a bit of oil in there before putting it back together.
Yea, greasing the u-joints is definately a good idea, but also adding oil there will help prolong the life of the u-joints and bellows and any water in there will be much more clear as the oil will be milky.
The exhaust bellows actually have holes in the bottom to let water drain when legs up and boats out of the water. Its normal to have water come out with the exhaust.
The water tube is a pretty tough hose, I'd be more concerned about the goose neck.(On the leg end). The earlier ones were aluminum and tend to corrode away, Volvo eventually went to plastic just for this reason.
I would loosen the lower oil drain plug and check the condition of the oil. If it were my boat, I probably wouldnt change it if it looked like new. Remember not to use synthetic gear oil if it has a brass cone clutch..
Sorry about sounding like a *****, I dont like seeing people replacing costly components needlessly and uninformed. It actually doesnt have to cost a fortune to own a boat.. And, I dont need your buisiness as I can hardly keep up as it is.

untitled.jpg

Fill the dam tub!
 
What's wrong with using synthetic grer oil? I've been using Amsoil 80-90 gear lube for 3 years and it had in there before I bought the boat so I kept using it. The drive is an early 80's 280 single prop that I just changed the lower to a 290 duo prop.
Cheers.
 
I was going to ad a synthetic additive into my gear case until I read the details of the product. The clutches (from manual) in the upper gear case are not compatible with the additive. Read carefully.
I've got an extra exhaust bellows in pretty good shape if you want 1 cheap. I replaced mine 'for no apparent reason'.
I also have a couple of props 15x17 and 15x19 both rebuilt.
 
sorry guys been away for a while. The bellows, and hoses do all look good, no tears, or serious deterioration that I can find. Once spring comes I am giong to drain out the oil and check it out. Thanks for the info. Also how hard is it to change over to a duo prop, and is it worth the hassle? and how expensive are they?

Monty
 
It is easy to change over to a duo-prop unit. Providing you have a DP bottom end to put on. Volvos are very simple to drop the bottom off of. When re-installing get a seal kit (about $9) and a tube of RTV sealant. Be careful when re-installing B/E as the big O-ring can get easily pinched. There are shims on the upper race that s/b sussed out as well for bearing play. gl.
 
Yea, its an easy swap. but you gotta make sure your gear ratios are right. The upper and lower ratios are different and the overall leg ratio is found by adding the two #s and dividing by 2.
Ive never used any sealant other than grease on the orings/ seals and Ive never had any leaks. Anyone who uses sealand just makes a mess for the next guy to work on it.

untitled.jpg

Fill the dam tub!
 
Back
Top