Cutlass Bearing

Oct 30, 2019
62
Hello All,
I'm about to pick up the Vega, wipe down her bottom and lube the
propellor (original Combi). It dawns on me that there is a bit of
wear in the cutlass as well. . .I'd guess somewhere between an eighth
and a sixteenth of an inch when I last had my hands on it. . .which
to be fair was over 900 miles of motoring ago. . .since last
November. The vibration when running doesn't seem bad to me but then
again, it's the only way I've ever known her and the tugboats I used
to run all had more shake rattle and so forth than she does in any
event. So anyway, the questions:

How do I judge that I need a new cutlass, or it's OK to continue with
the old one??

Since I'll only be out of the water at most half a day, preferably
only an hour or two, I need to pre-buy the bearing, so other than
25mm ID, what size is it?

I have to believe an appropriate bearing should be readily available
in Seattle, but if not, where does one buy such a thing?
Thanks, Ken Preston
 
Nov 8, 2001
1,818
Hi Ken

The wear does not seem excessive. Leave alone until lots of slop. The bearing
will be more than half-day work. You will have to take the prop to bits and
that is not easy. Best to do the complete combi at teh same time (cheap, just
mucky work!). The bearings are now made from NYOIL (OILON) which is an oil
impregnated nylon. ID of 25.15mm and OD of about 31mm. It swells slightly in
water (3%) so must not be too tight a fit on the control tube. We sell them in
the UK for £12 ($20). Carriage is quite cheap as they are very light.

Hope tthis helps.

Kind Regards


Steve Birch

At 14:43 08/08/03 +0000, you wrote:
 
Mar 25, 2016
25
Hey guys, I'm thinking it's time to replace my cutlass bearing (see here: https://photos.app.goo.gl/HOZFzQxa08WG4LG32)I'm down island though, so I probably only have what's available at an Island Water World or Budget Marine. From what I've read, I need a 25mm bearing, but I'll measure the shaft directly and make sure. Any tips on getting it out?