A little more than I wanted to get into....HELP

[jlroberts280]

As part of preparing to go back in the water, I decided to service my stuffing box. In our purchase survey last season it was suggested that I service the stuffing box and replace the clamps due to some discoloration. I removed the clamps and found that the hose had a crack in the end that attaches to the stern tube. So I decided it had to be replaced. After a few of the most frustrating days of my life, with hours spent upside down in a hatch, I had only managed to push the prop shaft out of the coupling about 1/4 inch by using the spacer in the coupling and rebuild method. Then one of the bolts pulled right through the transmission coupling (my coupling is tapped and there is not enough room behind it to use a nut/bolt system. I retapped the coupling and continued but quickly realized this would not work. After days of work, I gave up and cut the shaft.

When I removed the shaft I could see that the cutlas bearing was in very bad shape and needed to go too. I found no collar or set screws holding it in. I used a hack saw blade and removed a center section. As I was attemting to remove the rest of the bearing, a ring of what I thought was fiberglass just seperated from the boat and came out with the bearing. At least it is all out.

I ordered a new shaft, coupling, bearing, and the Indigo 3 blade propeller. OUCH!!! This is all more than I wanted to get into when my goal was to just replace the clamps and go sailing. My question is....

1) What would you do about the ring that is now missing from the end of the stearn tube. I dont think this is actually part of the tube but may have been built up around the bearing when it was installed (fairing material?). What material do you think it is? How would you handle the installation of the new bearing. What sealant would you use? Would you try to build up the ring again?

2) How would you handle the transmission coupling with the now weak tapped hole(s). Redrilling and tapping for the next size bolt would require driling out the new shaft coupling also. It would also be very difficult to do becasue of the access to this part while still mounted on the engine.

Any help would great as I did not plan on this much work before launch. Thanks in advance. I am having trouble changing the size of my pictures. I hope this works.

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[Tim]

Nothing is ever easy, is it?

How thick is the deadwood through which the stern tube passes? At this stage, with the broken end and all the other issues, it might be a good time to drill out the old, deteriorating stern tube (Pearsons of this age are notorious for having resin-starved and weak fiberglass tubes here) and replace it with new. This is surprisingly easy. Here is one way to do it.

I think you have part of the tube in that chunk that broke off. Most of that is just fairing, obviously of a weak nature, but it was also clear that your tube extended past the deadwood, as is common. You are likely going to want the same amount of protrusion to ensure the proper fit of your shaft and propeller in the aperture. Installing a new tube is the easiest way to accomplish this, and probably necessary anyway.

Do you have any pictures to help illustrate what you're talking about with the coupling?

[jlroberts280]

I looked at the piece that came off with the bearing again. It looks like about 1/4" of tube and the rest is fairing material. I reviewed the link about replacing the tube. Do you have a source for tube material?

The deadwood is pretty thick but I will not get to the boat again until Friday. The existing tube extends well into the boat and appears solid. While replacing the tube might be the best course of action, do you think I could build out the existing tube 1/4" or so again after installing the bearing or a waxed tube of the same diameter? The bearing only extends out of the tube about 1/2". I dont want to cut corners but also have limited time to spend on the project due to a looming launch date. (This is my own fault for picking this time of year to pull apart the boat)

I'll try to reword the coupling situation. The shaft coupling gets bolted to the transmission coupling with three bolts. The bolts go thru the shaft coupling and screw into the tapped bolt holes in the transission coupling. There are no nuts involved at all. While I was using the couplings and a spacer to "push" the shaft out of the shaft coupling, the bolts pulled out the threads in the tapped transmission coupling. I ran a tap (3/8 fine 24) thru the transmission coupling bolt holes but the bolts pulled out again. I am worried these will not be strong enough now. A possible solution I thought of was to redrill the holes and retap them a size larger but this would be diffficult without somehow removing the coupling and I would have to do this to the new shaft coupling also. I am looking for other suggestions. There is not enough room to put nuts on the back side of the coupling.



Also, I have tried to attach photos but every time I click "add the file" the site shuts down or my computer shuts me out and I have to log on again and my message is gone. It's probably me.

[Tim]

Is it possible to drill new holes in between the existing ones on your trans coupling? Not fun in the space in which you're working, probably, but is it possible?

I think you can extend the tube the amount you say, provided the remaining tube is in good condition. Reinforce the area outside the hull with some glass and fair it into the deadwood, sort of like the mess you pulled off but stronger and nicer.

[jlroberts280]

I guess I might be able to drill new holes. Part of the problem is the tight fit to the transmission. I would guess there is only about 1/8". I guess I might have to get the coupling off either way. Anyone remove this before?

Tim while I have your attention I would like to say thank you for this site and your own website. It is an amazing reference to be able to look at both. I was wondering if it is possible to attatch a search function to your website projects. I knew I had read about the tube replacement process but didn't know in what project. It might save you some time. Not sure if it's even possible.

I am still considering the tube replacment and would welcome any sources for these.

[jlroberts280]

I spoke to Moyer Marine this afternoon. They suggest that a stripped 3/8 hole is the starter hole size for the next size tap. Therefore, I would not need to drill out the holes in the coupling. I would just need to clean them up and tap them for the next size bolt up. If this does not work, I might try drilling new holes between the existing holes.

Would you replace all three bolts with the next size to keep the weight balanced, or leave the "not broken" holes alone and use the old bolts? I am not sure how critical the weight balance is on the spinnnig coupling/shaft. They suggested only replacing the bolt with the damaged hole.

FYI: they also say that with the holes stripped there is almost no good way to remove the output coupling from the "transmission" (I was corrected about the use of the term transmission with an A4) because all "field" options for removal use the bolt holes to push the coulping off or to attach a puller.

[Tim]

I'd feel confident sticking with Moyer's suggestion to replace only the one bolt.

[Chris Campbell]

This is off topic from the thread's subject, but you can search Tim's Lackey Sailing site by using Google - just specify which site you'd like to search as part of the search string: "stern tube site:http://www.lackeysailing.com/" - just as good as a site search built in (better than most, really) and no need to implement search! It definitely helps that Tim's sites are all organized and structured so cleanly.

[jlroberts280]

Thanks, I'll try that in the future.

Over Friday and Saturday I was able to get the boat back together. Installed new shaft, bearing, coupling, and prop. I had to reuse the stuffing box because I could not find a new one with the correct hose size and shaft size in the same unit. I cleaned up the box and replaced the hose and clamps. I replaced the "stuffing". I drilled in a hole for a set screw and then glassed in the bearing, leaving about 1/4" exposed. I added a fairing coat and had to leave the boat before it cured. I'll sand, prep, and bottom paint the area this weekend.

This turned out to be about a $1000 dollar project, all to replace a 4" long hose. It was very clear that the stuffing box received very little, if any, attention in the past. I'm glad I took the time to do the project. I plan on following Tim's two year plan to keep the parts free and able to be removed.

Thanks Tim! Also, I love Mainesail's website http://www.pbase.com/mainecruising/boat_projects for his step by step instructions on stuffing boxes and other maintenance items with excellent pictures!

FYI- I ordered the Indigo 3 blade prop (http://www.atomic4.com/propeller.html) and received it two days later. I ordered the shaft and coupling from (http://www.DeepBlueYachtSupply.com) on Monday and had them in Maine before noon on Friday. The local area shops I contacted said it would take weeks to get the parts. I have no interest in these companies I just needed the parts fast and they delivered. The quality seems good and they sent me the right size the first time unlike some stories told here.