Prop Shaft removal question/s??

[BillD]

Hello ALL,

Some of you know I just purchased a 25 T Jason.
I need to remove that shaft and this is the 1st DE I've owned.
I can't "visualize" the process in my mind.

Seems to me if I remove the tiller arm up top that no matter which way I swing the rudder the rudder shaft will remain in the way of sliding the shaft out ??

What "pieces" need to be removed to get the rudder out of the way?

Top and bottom collars??

A tutorial with pictures would be greatly appreciated !!

As always..., thanks Bill D

 

[F/V First Team]

Based on those pictures it looks like you're going to need to disassemble the entire thing. First off remove the bolt holding your steering ram to the steering arm, looks like you need a 15/16" wrench or so, might be a 7/8". Loosen the nut and bolt holding your steering arm to the rudder shaft, tap a commons screwdriver into the split and the arm should slide up the shaft fairly easily, not sure as to the amount of corrosion you will encounter - a hammer can be your friend here. Disassemble your packing gland and slide it up and out of the way. Now you will have to remove the base that is bolted to your boat. You might employ a bottle jack and a nice stick of wood to help facilitate this from below. Be sure to use blocking under your skeg so you dont snap it off if you put the bottle jack on there. Once that is up and out of the way, you should be able to grip the rudder and pull it up and out of the skeg bearing, simply hold it to one side and lower it out of the hole.

Voila!

 

[F/V First Team]

Additionally, not sure if you have enough room below the bottom of your boat to get the entire rudder shaft out, you might have to dig a small hole in the gravel and rocks there to get it out completely.

 

[captainlarry84]

Dropping the rudder is a pain in a.....
#1 make sure your boat is blocked high enough to swing the rudder out.

#2 Disconnect all steering hardware so only the rudder post is left.

#3 Remove the stuffing box nuts & packing.

#4 Remove the four mounting bolts for the rudder stuffing box housing.

#5 Apply some gentle heat such as a heat gun to the stuffing box.

#6 Using a stiff putty knife break the stuffing box sealant & remove the stuffing box.

#7 With the stuffing box out the rudder post will be flopping in a 3" hole which will allow you to lift it out of the shoe and over to one side of the skeg.

#8 Put some soapy water on the shaft it will make the pull easier.

#9 Clean the old stuffing box and carefully inspect for cracks.

 

[captainlarry84]

Funny we both must have been responding at the same time. Same info....digging a hole is a good trick if you are blocked to low.

 

[F/V First Team]

*cough*dinosaurparts*cough*

http://downeastboatforum.com/otis-e...-strong-rudder-shaft-seal-5957.html#post60010

 

[BillD]

Thanks,

U2 described it exactly as I thought.

Take the whole system apart.

 

[F/V First Team]

And upgrade it? :-D

With the upgrade, you only need to take out the center which is the bearing and the seal, then you can just lift and remove the rudder

Easy peasy and a slice of pie

 

[Toolate]

No dumb questions right?

Can you slide it out forwards? Seem to remember quite a bit of sawzalling and engine removal in that area. Not sure when it has to go back in.

 

[BillD]

No dumb questions right?

Can you slide it out forwards? Seem to remember quite a bit of sawzalling and engine removal in that area. Not sure when it has to go back in.

I believe I could

 

[Raider Ronnie]

I've seen plenty of rudders with a hole drilled to pass the shaft through.
I assume they disconnect the steering tiller arm to give the rudder enough to turn sideways.
Bill's rudder is fiberglass.
Why not slide the shaft back to mark the location, mark the spot and drill a hole, glass it back up later ?
He's going to have plenty of resin & mat on had while doing the deck anyway.

 

[lobstercatcher]

Bill , Since you are removing the engine , you could also remove the wheel off the shaft and remove the shaft from inside the boat and you don't have to touch any of the rudder and other steering components back there. You may have noticed a hole in some rudders. They are placed there to allow you to slip the shaft out without removing all that stuff too.

 

[captainlarry84]

Bill , Since you are removing the engine , you could also remove the wheel off the shaft and remove the shaft from inside the boat and you don't have to touch any of the rudder and other steering components back there. You may have noticed a hole in some rudders. They are placed there to allow you to slip the shaft out without removing all that stuff too.

True, however with a boat this old it would be a good idea to pull that stuffing box and re-bed it. Start fresh. Drill the rudder is always a good idea with SS or bronze, like I did, however his is fiberglass & hollow so drill is not a good idea.

 

[petrel]

Why not just fab up a brand new stainless rudder? It's only money LOL. The deck framing went to the dump and some of that was good. Tweak that rudder for yet a pinch more speed and give yourself a hole to cover w/ a zinc, which you are going to need. Unless you are going to pop off your top and washboards too, you definitely need something else on the punch list. Send that rudder to the tar pit.

 

[Toolate]

True, however with a boat this old it would be a good idea to pull that stuffing box and re-bed it. Start fresh. Drill the rudder is always a good idea with SS or bronze, like I did, however his is fiberglass & hollow so drill is not a good idea.

This is a great point. Going to be up to my armpits in this kind of logic this winter. While youre at it....

Much easier now than when it leaks after the first hour of running in may.

 

[Keelboater]

I think Lobstercatcher and Toolate are on the right path. I just had to pull both shafts on the Bertram........one of those pointy bottomed boats with two holes in the bottom...........and couldn't get the transmission couplings off the shafts because they were so corroded in the bores. No heat was enough to break them free even with a real beefy puller. The solution was to remove them from the inside of the boat and finish disassembly afterwards on the work bench. It took a makeshift slide hammer made from a heavy walled pipe that was slid over the shaft to do the trick. Both were impossible to remove from inside of the boat after being flooded with salt spray for 33 years. Not sure if your trans coupling is removed already or not. Just another method to the madness. Good luck!

 

[BillD]

I'll remove the shaft from the inside of the boat and not have to wrestle with the coupler that is most like fused to the shaft,

 

[BillD]

Why not just fab up a brand new stainless rudder? It's only money LOL. The deck framing went to the dump and some of that was good. Tweak that rudder for yet a pinch more speed and give yourself a hole to cover w/ a zinc, which you are going to need. Unless you are going to pop off your top and washboards too, you definitely need something else on the punch list. Send that rudder to the tar pit.

My 25 T Jason is staying together.
Remarkably the hull/top/washrails are in very good shape.
No removal.
New rudder is strictly an option on a list of wants.

Besides, the dam boat is already fast enough with the glass rudder

 

[F/V First Team]

Besides, the dam boat is already fast enough

Oh come on, what's a little more?

 

[jwalka51]

Why are you all telling this guy to bang his head against the wall and do this the hard way??? Why take the rudder assembly apart if you do not have too???

Here is the easiest thing to do and it will benefit you and your wallet many times to come in the future of this vessel.

First disconnect the rudder ram so the rudder can be turned completely sideways ( 90 degrees) . Next slide the shaft back till it hits the rudder, take a sharpie and trace the outline of the shaft on the flag of the rudder. You should now have a perfect circle drawn on your rudder. Now find the center of the circle, take a center punch and make a dimple in the center of the circle. Now take an adequate sized hole saw and drill a hole in the rudder big enough for the shaft to pass through with a little extra room. when you are done with the job, just put the slug that you drilled out back in the hole and put a rudder zinc larger than the hole through the pilot hole to hold it there so you dont get cavitation. Now removing your shaft will be very very easy this time and every other time in the future. easy to the point that you can beach the boat, and remove the shaft and replace a cutlass before the tide comes back up.