Stern Drives Polished Right
Michael T
Member Posts: 7,227 ✭✭✭✭✭
This post is me trying to get out of the dog house (where I often find myself). The Admiral saw a post I made showing our drives with some sc*m on them. She likes to clean them and I took pictures before she had cleaned and polished them - so I heard about it! Today, while I was putting the second coat of wax from the waterline to the first hull mold line, she cleaned and polished the drives. Great job, awesome Admiral! BTW, these drives have spent two summers (6 months each time) in the water. Yes, it's fresh water but a lot of scum does attach to them. The fact that the Admiral cleans and polishes them impeccably and I touch-up any scratches with Mercury OEM paint really helps. As well, you might note that there are new anodes installed. Magnesium for fresh water. I put new ones on every year. I figure If I do all of this my drives will look like this for many years. As mark B. said, It's all about maintenance.....and as I say - you can do some work now or pay a LOT later! :-) P.S. .....anyone else got boat pics to share? I could look at them all day!
Comments
PC BYC, Holland, MI
Dream 'Inn III -- 2008 400 Express
Dream 'Inn III -- 2008 400 Express
@ H342 Do you mean on a lift over the water like DIs and mine (was) or do you mean on a lift on land? If you mean in a lift on the water I would say it depends on clearance and what you have to get under it with. A dinghy probably wouldn't work but a flat work scow might? An alpha or B1, I could see pulling but a Blll X drive - man that's heavy!
@LaRea, I was thinking of using some CLR or some other strong lime/sediment remover. I was discussing this with the Admiral when a guy working on his Regal walked over and said, sorry to interrupt but I used a strong acidic wash a few years ago on my props and had gleaming props but found out later my wash had damaged all of my prop seals. I do have a question though - why do the ss props on the Volvos seem to attract less deposits? Do they employ some special kind of special finish?
P.S. @LaRea - I DO hate the look of those once beautiful shiny props. The "film" that is on them is very thin but very hard, likely electro deposits from stray marina currents. I just don't know how to get it off without damaging the props or the shaft seals. Maybe some kind of ScotchBrite non-metal scrub pad? Don't want to make it worse!
Hey mattie, yes they work very well, we love them and get great comments. We have installed two different sets, both by the same maker, Ocean LED. The Rinker factory install were two Ocean LED Pro 3s. That's two light bars with 3 leds in each one. The factory color was blue and they are very nice. They shine out about 15 - 20 feet in fairly clear water. We got a lot of positive comments about them and the fish are mesmerized by them - as are the grand children LOL!
Last winter we had two Ocean LED Pro 8 Extreme Colour Changing light bars installed, by a technician at the dealership. I would say that the average boat owner could have installed them as the instruction manual was very detailed and the company tech support line is fantastic. They are certainly bigger than the factory-installed Pro 3sbecause they have 8 LEDs each. IMO they are amazing. They can be set for single color, to flash on a single color, to scroll through a rainbow of colors or to strobe through a rainbow of colors. To be fair they are expensive at about $500 each but there are many that are a lot less expensive. You may have read the review I wrote elsewhere on this forum about these lights.
The good news Mattie is that there are so many different underwater LEDs now available of different colors, different capabilities, different installation techniques and different price points that there is a huge choice. I have seen many different types for sale on eBay and Amazon or on dealer specials like from Defender Marine.
There are two features that I look for on any underwater LED lights: First, I want them to use as little power as possible - so I suggest you check their power draw in amps. Second, I'm too timid to drill a 2" or 3" hole through my hull for the big round-type underwater LED lights - so I bought the ones that only need a 1/2" hole to run the wiring through.
Good luck with your hunt. If you put some in, please post pictures!
The only way I've found to remove it is with a coarse wire brush on an electric drill. It's hard work. It makes them look beautiful again, but only for a month or two.
I've tried various chemicals without success. There's a paint product on the market ... it's super-expensive, so I've never tried it.
Thanks Michael for the Ocean LED idea. Easy to do - especially since someone has already researched/used the product.
mattie
Remember: NEVER use a steel brush on SS. You will embed iron on the surface and accelerate corrosion. Brass only or SS. The latter might make a mess though. The only way to clean the iron off is to passivate them.
PC BYC, Holland, MI