Removing aluminum cable wheel from ruddershaft

Mar 15, 2019
5
Hunter 33ft St Mary's, Ga
My cable wheel is a two piece aluminum wheel over the ruddershaft. It is bolted together with SS bolts and and bolts are locked up due to galvanic corrion. I'm at the point of cutting through the bolts and drilling them out later. The heads are going to brake off anyway if I can get a solution in the aluminum threads
 
Jan 11, 2014
11,321
Sabre 362 113 Fair Haven, NY
Drilling out SS bolts is not for the feint of heart.

Try using copious amounts of PB Blaster. Apply and then let it sit over night.

Try an impact driver to loosen the nut.

If those fail, heat the bolt with a propane torch until it is red hot, then drive the bolt out.

Reassemble using Tef-Gel
 
Aug 22, 2017
1,609
Hunter 26.5 West Palm Beach
It is sometimes better to thru drill the joint & use a nut & bolt, rather than to tap a SS machine screw into aluminum, for just this reason.

Heat can be your friend here. Aluminum expands roughly twice as much as most steel alloys, when heated. Enough heat will often soften the bond between the aluminum & the ss so that you will be able to turn the stuck bolt out of the threads in the aluminum.

If you end up needing to drill SS, use a 135 degree split point bit (preferably Cobalt) & use some sort of flood coolant along with a slow drill speed. Real cutting fluids work best, but a steady stream of plain old water will get you by. Proper drill speeds for SS are roughly 1/4-1/5 as fast as you should use in mild carbon steel. Go slow & use plenty of coolant, so that you don't roast the bit.
 
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Mar 15, 2019
5
Hunter 33ft St Mary's, Ga
If I drill, it won't be along the SS bolts it will be across it at the split point where the two pieces of the wheel meet. So I will need to drill through 3/8"of SS on 4 bolts, cutting them into. Thanks
 
Jan 11, 2014
11,321
Sabre 362 113 Fair Haven, NY
If I drill, it won't be along the SS bolts it will be across it at the split point where the two pieces of the wheel meet. So I will need to drill through 3/8"of SS on 4 bolts, cutting them into. Thanks
Before you do this, check out the cost and availability of a new steering quadrant. It may shape your decision. If this is an Edson quadrant, drilling the bolts out from the side, along the split will likely weaken the quadrant.

Heat is your best option.
 
Mar 15, 2019
5
Hunter 33ft St Mary's, Ga
Before you do this, check out the cost and availability of a new steering quadrant. It may shape your decision. If this is an Edson quadrant, drilling the bolts out from the side, along the split will likely weaken the quadrant.

Heat is your best option.
 
Jan 13, 2009
391
J Boat 92 78 Sandusky
Heat is a big no no with aluminum especially cast aluminum. Heating caan change the physical properties and make it brittle or soft. It is a pain in the rear to drill out.
 
Mar 15, 2019
5
Hunter 33ft St Mary's, Ga
Heat is a big no no with aluminum especially cast aluminum. Heating caan change the physical properties and make it brittle or soft. It is a pain in the rear to drill out.
Thanks but I removed wheel. The 4 bolts were not threaded through the wheel as I was told . Lubercation was key .
Another job completed !
 
Jan 11, 2014
11,321
Sabre 362 113 Fair Haven, NY
Thanks but I removed wheel. The 4 bolts were not threaded through the wheel as I was told . Lubercation was key .
Another job completed !
Great! On the Edson steering quadrant, none of the bolts are threaded, however, as you discovered, that doesn't prevent corrosion and bonding. Get some Tea-Gel and coat the bolts before you reinstall them. Be kind to the next person who has to take the quadrant apart, it might even be you. :)
 
Aug 22, 2017
1,609
Hunter 26.5 West Palm Beach
Heat is a big no no with aluminum especially cast aluminum. Heating caan change the physical properties and make it brittle or soft. It is a pain in the rear to drill out.
All the aluminum alloys that I am aware of are OK up to 320F. I agree that if you get too horny with the heat, bad things can happen, but 320 is usually enough to have a desirable effect. If you are concerned about being able to tell when something gets to that temperature, you can usually find temperature sticks at welding supply places. They come in a variety of different temperature ranges. To use then, you basically make a mark with the stick, then heat the part. When the mark melts, then you know that you have reached the designated temperature range. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B019984DW4/ref=sspa_dk_detail_2?psc=1
 
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