445 beneteau cutlass bearing problem

[norton44]

just purchased a 1996 445 Beneteau. passed survey with minor repairs needed. motored it 24 hours at 2400 rpm to home port. boat is equipped with maxprop as I was not familiar with how this would handle in reverse i took it out 3 days later in choppy seas and practiced backing up for maybe 2 hours. took it out twice more and noticed while diving on a reef that the fiberglass nose cone that encased the cutlass bearing had broken completely off the strut. did not really notice any excessive vibration when I bought it back in or took it to be hauled out We are fixing it now but I am still confused as to why it happened we did not hit anything or catch any lines. could this have been previously cracked and just gave way? poor design for a maxprop? I am not concerned about the repairs I would just like to know what caused this so I can avoid future problems

 

[Gunni]

That is called the shaft log. Likely damaged by incompetent travellift placement. Make sure you have lift sling locations prominently marked on your topsides so that yard personnel know where to place their slings. It is important that the shaft log be free and clear of repair debris as it channels cooling / lubricating water for the cutlass bearing.