pss driping can o worms

[29chawk]

got a pss dripless shaft seal shitbox on my 31' morgan noticed the thing is leaking and flinging seawater around in my engine room. not leaking from the bellows but cant get the piece of crap to stop leaking aroung the collars. thinking im gonna have to pull off the coupling to remove it and replace it with a traditional packing setup not looking forward to dealing with cutting or pressing it out havent figured wich method is better? heard the socket and bolt technique could damage the tranny flange, cutting with a grinder can damage the shaft. either way im assuming i need a new coupling, does replacing an old coupling with a new one usually go smooth or will i likely run into issues?

 

[F/V First Team]

It might be that you just need to loosen the rider and slide it down against the bellows more.

Swap it out for something that works.

https://www.tidesmarine.com/?page_id=33

 

[F/V First Team]

Removing a coupling isn't a big deal (if everything goes right) you just need a hammer and some wedges (screwdrivers work in a pinch) slide them into the slot and spread it a bit and it should slide right off.

 

[captainlarry84]

It sounds to me like you most likely had clogged water feed. That staved the unit from lubrication. Once that happens the facing on the black plastic like piece gets fried and it has to be replaced.

You could also try one more adjustment, but it most likely is fried. Loosen the allen sets and measure 1" on the shaft with the metal ring just making contact. Next push the metal collar down the shaft one full inch to compress the bellow. Socket it up. If she still leaks it is most likely damage facings.

Also check the two rubber O-rings on the collar they could be damaged. The collar must be removed to do so.

Lastly make sure that no debris is trapped between the two mating surfaces.

Clogged water feeds are the cause 99.9% of the time. The PSS is a great seal zero maintenance.

The socket and bolt trick works very well. Get everything nice and tight with the socket in place and apply some gentle heat. It will pop right off. Heat is the key, but gentle heat only.

 

[BillD]

It might be that you just need to loosen the rider and slide it down against the bellows more.

Swap it out for something that works.

https://www.tidesmarine.com/?page_id=33

Travis,

I'm curious about the Tides Marine shaft seals. Tides dripless seals are in my Blackfin. Not sure if the seals were installed in the factory in 96 or "upgraded" by an owner. No issues with them yet, not sure how many hours on the two....at least 1,000 hrs. Both seals are cross fed from the other engine.

I notice many builders up your way use the PSS seals.

What is the design about the Tides vs other dripless seals that you can state
" Swap it out for something that works."

Thanks, Bill D

 

[tunaorlater]

Remember when removing the stainless piece on the shaft, there are two Allen nuts in each hole. One acts as a lock. Been there done that! As far as the colar goes, I had to cut mine off because it would'nt budge. Just use a cut off wheel, it's steel so try to vacume up the dust as much as possible because it will rust all over your engine room. With any luck you'll be able to slide it off.

 

[29chawk]

yeah i tried sliding the collar back tighter after i hit the collars with some 320 grit. guess the graphite side is shot like you say. is there any risk of warping the transmission flange when doing the socket bolt trick someone told me not to do it.

 

[29chawk]

yeah i figured out about the two extra screws after wrestling with it for 20 minutes got it to move easily after that

 

[Sailorgp]

The two set screws in each hole also fooled me for about an hour...live & learn

 

[Sailorgp]

instead of using a socket and bolts against the transmission flange, I bought a piece of 5"x5"x 3/8" thick steel. drilled four holes in the steel to match the coupler bolt holes then used the steel plate with a large socket and 4 bolts/nuts to slowly press the flange off the shaft.
Admittedly you need to pull the shaft aft enough to get the piece steel in between the coupler facings...but in my case I had the room. I did this in a deep keel sailboat while on my back and slightly upside down....boating is so much fun

 

[November Rain]

I noticed ours was making some water as well. I really hope I can just tighten it. The thought of taking everything apart is just misery.

 

[F/V First Team]

Travis,

I'm curious about the Tides Marine shaft seals. Tides dripless seals are in my Blackfin. Not sure if the seals were installed in the factory in 96 or "upgraded" by an owner. No issues with them yet, not sure how many hours on the two....at least 1,000 hrs. Both seals are cross fed from the other engine.

I notice many builders up your way use the PSS seals.

What is the design about the Tides vs other dripless seals that you can state
" Swap it out for something that works."

Thanks, Bill D

You can bump into Tides product and not have water piss out everywhere. Ron Popeil said it best; set it and forget it. Need to slide your shaft back? No problem. Need to do some quick adjustment? No problem. Need to fiddle around with stuff and not worry about misalignment from your feet dangling under you? No problem.

I'm going on 12 years with mine, not a single drop has emerged from either my shaft or my rudder post.

 

[BillD]

You can bump into Tides product and not have water piss out everywhere. Ron Popeil said it best; set it and forget it. Need to slide your shaft back? No problem. Need to do some quick adjustment? No problem. Need to fiddle around with stuff and not worry about misalignment from your feet dangling under you? No problem.

I'm going on 12 years with mine, not a single drop has emerged from either my shaft or my rudder post.

OK thanks, I like "Ron".

btw, how many hours of running time is in 12 years ??

 

[F/V First Team]

About 3 tach's worth :-D

 

[HappyHour]

Check shaft alignment to transmission too. I had a couple of broken motor mounts that caused water to pour in above certain RPM'S. angle of the dangle.

 

[Boat Doc]

I've had good luck with Lasdrop shaft seals: Nautical Specialties manufacturer of Lasdrop Shaft-Seals

One pushboat with 8,000+ hrs and personal Bruno w/1,000 hrs...but agree that cooling water flow is important!

 

[BillD]

About 3 tach's worth :-D

29,997 hours ??

 

[jwalka51]

Why would someone cross feed them.???? That is a disaster waiting to happen. I have a de boat so I only have one engine and one shaft to worry about. However, one of the beautiful things about twins is that if one shits out on you, then the other will get you Back to the dock. But in your case, you will burn your shaft seal out and inner cutlass if you have one while doing this. Reason being is that the shaft that will be attached to the engine that still runs will not be getting any lubricating water because the engine that feeds it will not be running. This most likely was not done at the shop. Probably by a previous owner who did not know what they are doing. I would highly recommend that you change them over so they are fed from the engine that they are attached to. Good luck

 

[29chawk]

was told by a prop shop that when i cut the old coupling off the new coupler needs to be fit and faced to the shaft which means droping the rudder and cutting my sand shoe to do it, oh boy does this sound right? what about engine alignment after a fit and face does that change too?

 

[BillD]

Why would someone cross feed them.???? That is a disaster waiting to happen. I have a de boat so I only have one engine and one shaft to worry about. However, one of the beautiful things about twins is that if one shits out on you, then the other will get you Back to the dock. But in your case, you will burn your shaft seal out and inner cutlass if you have one while doing this. Reason being is that the shaft that will be attached to the engine that still runs will not be getting any lubricating water because the engine that feeds it will not be running. This most likely was not done at the shop. Probably by a previous owner who did not know what they are doing. I would highly recommend that you change them over so they are fed from the engine that they are attached to. Good luck

twin engines = cross feed

Port engine feeding port & starboard dripless
Starboard engine feeding starboard and port dripless

Lose an engine, the dead shaft can spin away on the trip back with plenty of water feed from the running engine.