Lubrication is an important component of ongoing maintenance for your Kiwiprop unit.

It is essential the units are lubricated to ensure ongoing smooth operation. In tropical environments where water temperatures are much higher, the  grease contained in the unit will tend to be removed faster than in cold water. In addition - in coral areas the high carbonates in the water will precipitate out into the internal components of the unit which also tends to displace the hydrocarbon greases.

It is the owners responsibility to ensure the units are well lubricated in use. Where the vessel is not going to be hauled for a period and is being used - it may be necessary to lubricate between hauls. This can be easily done underwater.

Each blade has a small Pozidrive screw that can be removed and the individual blade greased using the needle nose grease point supplied with the unit.

We recommend any brand of high quality marine grease.   It should be of grade or consistency - NLGI No 2.   An example of this would be Caltex Delo ESI which has particularly good retention properties in harsh environments.

DO NOT USE A BLACK GREASE WHICH IS LIKELY TO CONTAIN GRAPHITE  AND WILL INDUCE CORROSION ISSUES FROM THE 1.4 V ELECTROPOTENTIAL WITH CARBON.

In addition the boss at both the front of the unit and the rear should be greased as described In the  OPERATING MANUAL  using the needle nose grease gun attachment that comes with every unit. Greasing instructions are also available on our web site - see below. 

On the K4 units and post mid 2014 the K3 units - the reverse Tri Rollers have a small black polypropylene cap pressed onto the upper surface to prevent antifouling locking up the reverse rollers. It will also assist with keeping marine deposits out of the bearing surfaces thus ensuring minimal friction to allow the reverse rollers to move as freely as possible during a reverse engagement.

To fill these with  grease - first lift the roller a fraction off the boss by inserting a small flat screwdriver under each roller in turn and then injecting grease into the central recess on the top of the cap. This will allow excess grease to ooze past the bearing surfaces and out of the lower section of the bearing without generating excess pressure that could blow the cap out of the recess in the roller.

If the cap was to blow off - it can be reinserted into the roller upper surface and tapped back into position with a small hammer tapping around the perimeter until it is again pressed tight onto the upper surface of the roller.

The photo below shows the caps with central grease recess and Kiwiprop supplied grease nipple that fits the cap recess.