1982 Evinrude 15 hp lower unit fluid question

[Bentrod425]

The story: I have just finished a full tear down, seal replacement, and rebuild of the lower unit on a 1982 Evinrude short shaft after finding water in the lower unit last fall. This was my first time replacing seals on an OB lower unit, so was a learning experience. Everything seemed to go well enough following the instructions in the maintenance manual and from tips online. Once I got into it I found that the shifter yolk had been previously bent and had rubbed on the forward and reverse gears. The gears were fine, but the shifter yolk arms were worn. I ordered a replacement yolk and clutch dog cradle.
Reassembly went smoothly enough as far as I could tell. I used the recommended sealants and greases for the seals and o-rings for installation. To hold the clutch dog detent spring and detent balls in the prop shaft for reassembly I used a little marine wheel bearing grease, which worked great. I took the motor out for it's test run and ran it for about 20 minutes making sure I used it in forward and reverse and ran it at full throttle.
After letting it dry overnight I drained the lower unit fluid too see if it leaked. I used Evinrude HPFpro lower unit fluid.
The HPFpro going in is a honey colored fluid. I was sort of expecting that to come out, but what I got was darker and a little cloudy. After letting it sit for a couple of days, it does not appear to separate, so didn't think there was water leakage?nor did any water come out when I drained the lower unit.
I've searched around and can't find any info on what the stages of normal oil wear are. I do know it'll turn black after prolonged use.
I also wonder if the various Evinrude gasket sealers and wheel bearing grease that I used upon reassembly could have reacted with the HPFpro oil.
Please look at the pictures of the drained fluid and tell me what you think (normal, water leakage?other?).
Thanks for any input.

 

[sutor623]

I think the gearcase was just dirty inside and you effectively cleaned it up with the new oil. If you want you can get a vacuum tester from an auto parts store and pump in 5 or 6 psi of air and spray all the sealed areas with soapy water. It is common practice to drain lower unit oil after 10 hours after a gearcase rebuild\seal.

When you pulled the lower unit drain screw you'd have seen water come out first (if the motor had set for a day or so) also you'd have seen water on the bottom of that glass jar if it had been setting for a few days

My opinion: looks good.

 

[schematic]

did you change the shift shaft o-ring?

 

[Bentrod425]

Thank you both for the replys. Schematic, yes I did change the shift shaft o-ring and vinyl washer. I did a complete seal kit replacement as well as a new water pump. Sutor, although I did my best to fully clean out the disassembled casing and clean the gears/parts, I'm sure I couldn't fully clean out all the bearings and races since I did not remove any except the timken bearing from the housing and bearing carrier.
I did not want to put new lower unit fluid back in until I had a better idea of what I am seeing in the drained fluid. Hopefully you're right on the money. Appreciate the help.