A little advice?
- Thread starter Dreamer
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Captains Cat
New member
Roger, make sure you pull all the bolts out. I didn'.t on my 45's and chipped the alum plate. Just go slowly and look at the diagrams. Let us know how it goes...
Charlie
Charlie
Yellowstone
New member
Roger - I haven't changed the impeller on a Honda 150 but last year did the water pump change on a Honda 45 and ran into serious problems. The last 8th inch of the bolts had actually fused with the housing, making extraction extremely difficult. Be sure your sockets have as few of points as they can have so you don't bugger up the bolt heads. If the bolts come out easily, you will find it a simple job. Be sure and put some anti-seize on the threads when you re-assemble the parts. Your motors are pretty new but salt water can create problems. Some boaters remove the bolts annually, just to keep things from causing problems when they change water pump impellers. John
journey on
New member
Roger, i just (OK, 2 mos ago,) changed the impeller on Journey On's 150. It was an easy job. I do have the following comments.
1. I got the parts from :Honda Outboard Parts. Saves a little, but more important, they actually look up the correct part for your serial number, if you order by phone. Good service. Get the kit: impeller, gaskets, housing, etc. $45.
2. I also got the Honda service manual. Lots of drawings to show where and which way the parts go. Used it liberally. Or take lots of photos. Got mine through Helm, order by phone.
3. The gearcase slides down when the last bolt is out, and it isn't light. Be prepared. I put the motor straight up. Dealer has a hydraulic lift, but I (and Judy) held it by hand.
4. Rest is straightforward. The hardest parts, and they aren't that hard is to get the !@# impeller in the housing and fit the gearcase back up. Need two people for the gearcase, fitting the driveshaft and the shift lever.
Worked well, saved a 200 mi round trip to the dealer, etc. 300 hrs, and the impeller still had the mold marks.
Boris
1. I got the parts from :Honda Outboard Parts. Saves a little, but more important, they actually look up the correct part for your serial number, if you order by phone. Good service. Get the kit: impeller, gaskets, housing, etc. $45.
2. I also got the Honda service manual. Lots of drawings to show where and which way the parts go. Used it liberally. Or take lots of photos. Got mine through Helm, order by phone.
3. The gearcase slides down when the last bolt is out, and it isn't light. Be prepared. I put the motor straight up. Dealer has a hydraulic lift, but I (and Judy) held it by hand.
4. Rest is straightforward. The hardest parts, and they aren't that hard is to get the !@# impeller in the housing and fit the gearcase back up. Need two people for the gearcase, fitting the driveshaft and the shift lever.
Worked well, saved a 200 mi round trip to the dealer, etc. 300 hrs, and the impeller still had the mold marks.
Boris
Roger,
The impeller change is easy. I have changed ours twice, once in the shop at home, and then on a ramp on the Appalachicola River.
Just be sure to use Honda parts. I bought Sierra impellers and they were too large on the shaft and began to slip after a while. That's why the on the water change took place. Lucky I had saved the original parts.
Brent
The impeller change is easy. I have changed ours twice, once in the shop at home, and then on a ramp on the Appalachicola River.
Just be sure to use Honda parts. I bought Sierra impellers and they were too large on the shaft and began to slip after a while. That's why the on the water change took place. Lucky I had saved the original parts.
Brent
I just changed my pump on a 70 Johnson 4 stroke. Never tried it before, but with the service manual, it went well except for what Yellowstone said. The 4 bolts that hold the pump on were tough to get out. I broke the head off one of them. I have a easy out kit to deal with it, but man it was not fun. Next time if the bolts are tough, I'll wire brush them, and use liquid wrench, then go away for a wile. Come back and try the bolts again. If they still won't come out, more liquid wrench, and let them soak. It's a lot easier to to get em out with the heads still on! Caution, manual says to lube drive shaft splines with OMC moly lube, but do not get lube on top of shaft. It will cause excessive preload to shaft and crankshaft when case bolts are torqued up. Maybe Honda is different.
In the outboard section of C-Brats, someone has a nice photo documented essay for a smaller Honda water pump service. Good luck
Buck.
In the outboard section of C-Brats, someone has a nice photo documented essay for a smaller Honda water pump service. Good luck
Buck.
Pat Anderson
New member
I agree - very easy. I just tell Pete at West Coast Marine "Please change the impeller." What could be easier? And of course open my wallet. But I would be opening my wallet anyway to have Pete repair and reattach the lower unit anyway if I tried to change the impeller myself, and that would undoubtedly cost a lot more!
Discovery":2414ofwj said:
A do it yourself $150.00 water pump impellor change/replace/repair can cost much much more if things don't go right and easy. An old outboard repair guy told me "Its best to leave those jobs to those which knows what they are doing". I agree with him.
When it is time to replace my water pump impellor I will take it to Wefings in Eastpoint, FL and ask Marc to fix it for me. It probably will be cheaper in the long run and I know I will get a professional job. :lol: Wefings are good people. :lol:
When it is time to replace my water pump impellor I will take it to Wefings in Eastpoint, FL and ask Marc to fix it for me. It probably will be cheaper in the long run and I know I will get a professional job. :lol: Wefings are good people. :lol:
Yellowstone
New member
Bucky - I feel your pain! Been there done that. There are easier things to do than drill a center hole for turning a bolt out with a hand held drill. Repeated drilling with slightly larger drill bits got close to the threads, and then the ease out did the job. I discovered that the bolt threads were metric. Hopefully your Johnson doesn't. But a metric tap cleaned up the threads in the housing very nicely. John
When you go to re-assemble, be sure to use anti-seize on ALL the threads. OMC recommends their OMC Gasket Sealing Compound. This is what I use and I've never had a problem. Permatex makes Aviation Form-A-Gasket which is an acceptable alternative.
Roger,
I recently acquired a boat with twin 150 Hondas on it that had about 700 hours on them. It was used in charter service and hadn't been maintained that well and the first job was to swap a lower unit that was leaking water. Yes it is heavy but when tilted up is not too hard to handle. The lower unit came off with no problems, just be sure to remove all the bolts. One bolt is located under the trim adjustment plate aft of the prop. The water pump is pretty straightforward. Take pictures or get a manual. The hardest part with the water pump is getting the key, the impeller, and the housing all lined up. It took a couple of tries. The lower unit went on smoothly. You need to get it seated well enough to start some of the bolts to help pull it on. Once some bolts are started, you slowly draw the lower unit in to place a couple of turns each on the bolts to keep them equal. It took about 20 minutes start to finish including inspecting the water pump on the new lower unit.
To work on the water pump, you will need some way to mount the lower unit vertically. It's much easier that way.
I recently acquired a boat with twin 150 Hondas on it that had about 700 hours on them. It was used in charter service and hadn't been maintained that well and the first job was to swap a lower unit that was leaking water. Yes it is heavy but when tilted up is not too hard to handle. The lower unit came off with no problems, just be sure to remove all the bolts. One bolt is located under the trim adjustment plate aft of the prop. The water pump is pretty straightforward. Take pictures or get a manual. The hardest part with the water pump is getting the key, the impeller, and the housing all lined up. It took a couple of tries. The lower unit went on smoothly. You need to get it seated well enough to start some of the bolts to help pull it on. Once some bolts are started, you slowly draw the lower unit in to place a couple of turns each on the bolts to keep them equal. It took about 20 minutes start to finish including inspecting the water pump on the new lower unit.
To work on the water pump, you will need some way to mount the lower unit vertically. It's much easier that way.
Roger,
I just replaced the water pump on my Honda 90 and found it to be straightforward but there are a few tips that may help.
As mentioned by others, get a manual to guide you. Place the gear shifter in neutral and do not move it while you are working. The bolts holding the water pump cover may be frozen; mine were. If they are frozen, rather than getting a larger socket handle size and forcing them, try using a box end wrench (it makes a direct interface with no play) and use a hammer to gently tap the wrench around. This will work better and reduce the chance of breaking the head of a bolt off. If this does not work either, try P Blaster to soak the bolts. I had to tap all 4 bolts around on mine. Be careful that any antiseize compound that you use does not set up a chemical reaction between the bolt and the aluminum housing. I used a little water proof grease instead. I would use a 1/4 inch socket set to replace the bolts and avoid overtightening them.
On my motor, the SS wear plate had a groove worn by the impeller and I replaced it and the gasket under it. You might want to examine this wear plate (the bottom surface of the pump) and the top of the cup for grooving which will reduce the pump efficiency. Frequently changed impellers are not likely to produce this problem.
Definitely change the o ring gasket that goes between the pump cover and the wear plate taking care that it does not move when you reassemble it. Replace all bolts and spacers into the position that they originally occupied.
I did not have a helper so I used a Black and Decker Workmate to hold the lower unit while I loosened it. I trimmed the lower unit to about a 45 degree angle to do the work. Sometimes the lower unit does not easily break away from the upper housing and carefully tapping down on a 2x4 placed on the horizontal plates on each side will persuade it off. Leave a couple of bolts backed out but still in place to ensure that the lower unit does not get away from you. The workmate is great for holding the lower unit vertically and firmly in place while you change the pump.
You might want to take a light to locate the water tube when you reassemble; just take it slow and easy and you will have no trouble. Inspect the rubber water tube guide on the top of the water pump cover for any dings or damage; I place a little grease on this so that the water tube sildes right in. . The water tube, the shift shaft and the vertical shaft must all line up when you reassemble; patience pays off here.
Hope some of this helps..
Richard
:lol:
I just replaced the water pump on my Honda 90 and found it to be straightforward but there are a few tips that may help.
As mentioned by others, get a manual to guide you. Place the gear shifter in neutral and do not move it while you are working. The bolts holding the water pump cover may be frozen; mine were. If they are frozen, rather than getting a larger socket handle size and forcing them, try using a box end wrench (it makes a direct interface with no play) and use a hammer to gently tap the wrench around. This will work better and reduce the chance of breaking the head of a bolt off. If this does not work either, try P Blaster to soak the bolts. I had to tap all 4 bolts around on mine. Be careful that any antiseize compound that you use does not set up a chemical reaction between the bolt and the aluminum housing. I used a little water proof grease instead. I would use a 1/4 inch socket set to replace the bolts and avoid overtightening them.
On my motor, the SS wear plate had a groove worn by the impeller and I replaced it and the gasket under it. You might want to examine this wear plate (the bottom surface of the pump) and the top of the cup for grooving which will reduce the pump efficiency. Frequently changed impellers are not likely to produce this problem.
Definitely change the o ring gasket that goes between the pump cover and the wear plate taking care that it does not move when you reassemble it. Replace all bolts and spacers into the position that they originally occupied.
I did not have a helper so I used a Black and Decker Workmate to hold the lower unit while I loosened it. I trimmed the lower unit to about a 45 degree angle to do the work. Sometimes the lower unit does not easily break away from the upper housing and carefully tapping down on a 2x4 placed on the horizontal plates on each side will persuade it off. Leave a couple of bolts backed out but still in place to ensure that the lower unit does not get away from you. The workmate is great for holding the lower unit vertically and firmly in place while you change the pump.
You might want to take a light to locate the water tube when you reassemble; just take it slow and easy and you will have no trouble. Inspect the rubber water tube guide on the top of the water pump cover for any dings or damage; I place a little grease on this so that the water tube sildes right in. . The water tube, the shift shaft and the vertical shaft must all line up when you reassemble; patience pays off here.
Hope some of this helps..
Richard
:lol:
The Johnson 4 stroke is really a Suzuki, and yes, all the hardware is metric. I thought I would haft to drive around looking for a replacement bolt, but amazingly, looking through my nut&bolt collection I found a un-used grade 8.8 stainless steel metric bolt the same length as the other 3. What a brake that was. OMC gasket sealing compound on the bolt threads, then torque to only 14.5 ft. lbs.
I would also get the whole kit, not just the impeller, heck, wile your in there, replace it all. I get my Johnson-Suzuki outboard and trailer parts from Kitsap Marina. They generally have it in stock, or will order it for you. Their also one of us, I see him post on this site now and then. They had 7 new C-Dory's to look at wile I was there.
I rather enjoy doing my own work. I can putter along and if it becomes to tough, just walk away for a wile. It's good to see and understand how stuff works. It's also cool to read and be encouraged by others on projects posted on this site. There is some fine talent here!
I would also get the whole kit, not just the impeller, heck, wile your in there, replace it all. I get my Johnson-Suzuki outboard and trailer parts from Kitsap Marina. They generally have it in stock, or will order it for you. Their also one of us, I see him post on this site now and then. They had 7 new C-Dory's to look at wile I was there.
I rather enjoy doing my own work. I can putter along and if it becomes to tough, just walk away for a wile. It's good to see and understand how stuff works. It's also cool to read and be encouraged by others on projects posted on this site. There is some fine talent here!
Jack in Alaska
New member
There is no such thing as ..."a little advice"..... on the C-Brats.
Isn't it great though....???
Isn't it great though....???
Jack,
Amen to that! Thanks everyone for your thoughts on this chore. I tackled it yesterday and all went smoothly. The old impellers wern't too bad but had a definite set to the blades.
At the same time I removed the salt build up at the thermostat housing which prevents the water pressure gauges from registering. I soaked the thermostats in Salt-Away and will replace them the next time the pressure gauges quit.
Photos of both projects are in my album under "BF150 Maintenance" I did order a shop manual, but it won't be here until tomorrow.
Amen to that! Thanks everyone for your thoughts on this chore. I tackled it yesterday and all went smoothly. The old impellers wern't too bad but had a definite set to the blades.
At the same time I removed the salt build up at the thermostat housing which prevents the water pressure gauges from registering. I soaked the thermostats in Salt-Away and will replace them the next time the pressure gauges quit.
Photos of both projects are in my album under "BF150 Maintenance" I did order a shop manual, but it won't be here until tomorrow.