Yamaha Marine Grease A-What is compatible-replaceable?

So I ran out of grease and went to Advance Auto and all they have there is Lucas Oil Marine Grease NLGI#2 which is a Litium Complex grease.

I think the Yamaha Grease A is an aluminum complex grease, and based on the following chart:

http://www.mobilindustrial.com/ind/english/files/tt-grease-compatibility.pdf

It says these are incompatible.....

We got a grease expert here? Or will I have to order some Yamaha A and wait for it to ship here (now that I have the hoses off the pumps and was going to clean them out!)

@fairpilot You're an oil expert...thats like grease right?

I thought you were talking about the trailer hubs. Mine calls for a Grade A marine grease. However I thought the bearing housing just needed a regular marine grease because all it does is keep the moisture out. You have me wondering if I'm incorrect now. Hope an expert chimes in.

The service manual calls for Yamaha Marine Grease A.....I've just had trouble identifying what that is and what would be a good or better substitute. I'm probably overthinking this....but I do that....and that is why we have this forum....(so we can over think things as a team! LOL)

Julian said:

The service manual calls for Yamaha Marine Grease A.....I've just had trouble identifying what that is and what would be a good or better substitute. I'm probably overthinking this....but I do that....and that is why we have this forum....(so we can over think things as a team! LOL)

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I'm completely with you on all those points, haha

I've just been using the same marine grease that I use on the axles.

itsdgm said:

I've just been using the same marine grease that I use on the axles.

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And what would that be? Lithium based? Seems that is the most popular out there?

itsdgm said:

I've just been using the same marine grease that I use on the axles.

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X2.. High temp wheel bearing grease. Kinda emerald in color.
I do use pure Lithium grease on my nozzle pivot points and gate and steering slides.

So I pulled off the hoses on both pumps yesterday and found that there was about 3-4 inches of brown grease in the tube before I got to normal looking green grease. #grease #pump

You can just make out the color change about an inch from the end of hose


Here is a shot of the hose connection point...I pulled back the zip tie and pulled off the hose.

Somehow missed upload

Julian said:

So I pulled off the hoses on both pumps yesterday and found that there was about 3-4 inches of brown grease in the tube before I got to normal looking green grease. #grease #pump

You can just make out the color change about an inch from the end of hose
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Here is a shot of the hose connection point...I pulled back the zip tie and pulled off the hose.

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Yeah @Julian I did the same thing last year when I boat my boat. I pulled the end of the tube and pushed the fresh stuff all the way through. The new stuff I used is almost like a blue color. The stuff that was in there was a brown color, but a little lighter than the stuff you're pushing out. What's the deal with this, huh?

Mr grease here. My favorite marine grease is Belray waterproof grease, available at any motorcycle shop. I did a test with my old I/O, painting a different type of water resistant/proof grease on each of the 4 prop blades and then going to the lake for the day. All were gone except the belray. In my menagerie of mechanical toys, to keep things simple I only use 2 greases, amsoil synthetic and Belray waterproof. I have been using only these two for 20 years or more. I try to label at the grease nipple are what type of grease it contains. On my trailer hubs I used a labeller. The Belray is also an aluminum complex grease. At work (pulp and paper) the maintance guys swear by the petrocanada OG2, calcium based grease and have the test results to prove it. I have been trying it in a few places but have not used it long enough to have proof of excellence. Cam.

ps not all greases are compatible. For ex mixing calcium with lithium is a no-no, so in some cases you need to clean out the old grease before switching or at lease verify they are compatible.

Julian said:

And what would that be? Lithium based? Seems that is the most popular out there?

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Yeah. Sorry about not giving more info. I'm pretty sure It's lithium based marine grease. I tried over analyzing it last year and came to the realization that I couldn't figure out exactly what type Yamaha used in the first place. I'm no expert on the subject. It seemed that as long as the lithium grease wasn't mixed with a calcium one it should be ok. it's been working so far and that I haven't had issues. But like I said, I'm no expert.

ToddW850 said:

Yeah @Julian I did the same thing last year when I boat my boat. I pulled the end of the tube and pushed the fresh stuff all the way through. The new stuff I used is almost like a blue color. The stuff that was in there was a brown color, but a little lighter than the stuff you're pushing out. What's the deal with this, huh?

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A coworker of mine was bringing his Seadoo jetski online last weekend. He found that the grease in his feed tub was near solid. I do not know his maintenance etiquette, but he was guessing it was dehydrated from the heat in such a small space. Is this realistic? could this be cooking/changing the grease color.

I plan to do the same thing @Julian , push thru all the current grease and refill/re-install. can this bearing be overfilled? hearing the grease purge out from the bearing can't be good for seals.

Yes you can overfill it....and there is no way to know if you are.....so its a bit of a guessing game! The feel the hose until it gets hard game isn't exactly precise. Which is why I decided to pull my tubes and see how things looked. Glad I did. Not sure if that brown grease is a bad thing, but I feel better about getting it some nice fresh stuff!

For those who haven't read all about grease on the other other site, I'll share some tid bits:

ISLANDRACING wrote:
Just to shine some light on the subject:
Not one molecule of grease pumped into the intermediate shaft tube actually greases the intermediate shaft bearing. It is a SEALED bearing.
The grease ( providing the intermediate housing was actually assembled correctly from the factory ) is injected between the two rear most seals in the housing.


Grease compatibility info:

http://www.mobilindustrial.com/ind/english/files/tt-grease-compatibility.pdf

The Yamaha stuff ain't all that expensive:

http://www.parkeryamaha.com/yamahamarinegrease141oz.aspx

In light of Island Racing's professional observation regarding the role of grease in this instance, I didn't pay too much mind to making sure the grease I used was compatible with an Aluminum Complex grease. And of course, I'll have to go open up my tote full of boat supplies to see exactly what grease I've been using because I have no recollection. Good thing I keep all the boat supplies separate from my other stuff.

Is there a link somewhere to what all should be greased on the boat and how often?

@Volffas the service manual is your best bet for that....has grease points and frequency nicely laid out.

Volffas said:

Is there a link somewhere to what all should be greased on the boat and how often?

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from my service manual: (check your PM)

justason said:

from my service manual: (check your PM)
View attachment 5064View attachment 5066View attachment 5067

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Great thanks!