Has anyone fitted a dripless seal to their shaft? Any horror stories or has it all been dry and trouble free?
- Status
Dripless seal reply
I had one on my H27 for 12 years before I sold the boat with absolutely no problems. I just ordered one to be installed by my marina for the upcoming season on a H30. Hope this helps. Mike
I had one on my H27 for 12 years before I sold the boat with absolutely no problems. I just ordered one to be installed by my marina for the upcoming season on a H30. Hope this helps. Mike
I've got one on my 320
Not a drip to be noted, and I'm very happy with it. My bildge is completely dry and clean.
Not a drip to be noted, and I'm very happy with it. My bildge is completely dry and clean.
I installed two so far
one on a Catalina 30 and another on a 36. No problems. If I remember the hard part may be in separating the coupling during installation.
one on a Catalina 30 and another on a 36. No problems. If I remember the hard part may be in separating the coupling during installation.
I put one on and the only problem I had was
getting the collar on the shaft. It fit so tight that the O rings between the collar and the shaft were completely compressed and I had to drive it all the way to its desired position. Joe S
getting the collar on the shaft. It fit so tight that the O rings between the collar and the shaft were completely compressed and I had to drive it all the way to its desired position. Joe S
I changed the one..
I have owned five boats now with dripless seals and never once had a problem. Last spring I replaced the seal on our current boat at over 1700 (P.O. ran the ditch three times) hours and sent the bellows back for inspection. PSS told me that the bellows had the same elasticity as new ones do and that I could re-use it as a spare. Here's some information on installing a PSS Shaft Seal: http://www.pbase.com/mainecruising/pss_shaft_seal As other shave said the most difficult thing is getting the coupling off the shaft. One additional note of caution is this. When a non-split coupling is fitted and faced to a prop shaft the tolerance between the inside of the coupling and the shaft is within .0001 of an inch or better. When you remove the coupling, after any decent amount of time in the marine environment, that layer of rust is usually more like .01-.001 so when they go back together they can wobble and the precise fit has been compromised. this can cause the grub screws to become loose, and continually get worse until you have A) ruined the shaft or B) ruined the shaft and coupling. In my opinion, unless the coupling is less than maybe two years old, you should never re-use an old coupling once it's been removed unless it has been given the ok by a qualified machine shop. I see & hear of this time and time again and unfortunately it's usually too late and folks need a new shaft ($$$) by the time they figured out what happened.. I always recommend replacing the coupling, and having the new one fitted and faced, EVERY TIME you pull the shaft. New couplings are about $45.00 and fit and face runs less than an hour's labor yet a new shaft is $400.00 to $800.00... When that shaft goes into the coupling it should need to be driven in with a large wooden mallet. If you can install the coupling onto the shaft by hand you need a new coupling and a fit and face!
I have owned five boats now with dripless seals and never once had a problem. Last spring I replaced the seal on our current boat at over 1700 (P.O. ran the ditch three times) hours and sent the bellows back for inspection. PSS told me that the bellows had the same elasticity as new ones do and that I could re-use it as a spare. Here's some information on installing a PSS Shaft Seal: http://www.pbase.com/mainecruising/pss_shaft_seal As other shave said the most difficult thing is getting the coupling off the shaft. One additional note of caution is this. When a non-split coupling is fitted and faced to a prop shaft the tolerance between the inside of the coupling and the shaft is within .0001 of an inch or better. When you remove the coupling, after any decent amount of time in the marine environment, that layer of rust is usually more like .01-.001 so when they go back together they can wobble and the precise fit has been compromised. this can cause the grub screws to become loose, and continually get worse until you have A) ruined the shaft or B) ruined the shaft and coupling. In my opinion, unless the coupling is less than maybe two years old, you should never re-use an old coupling once it's been removed unless it has been given the ok by a qualified machine shop. I see & hear of this time and time again and unfortunately it's usually too late and folks need a new shaft ($$$) by the time they figured out what happened.. I always recommend replacing the coupling, and having the new one fitted and faced, EVERY TIME you pull the shaft. New couplings are about $45.00 and fit and face runs less than an hour's labor yet a new shaft is $400.00 to $800.00... When that shaft goes into the coupling it should need to be driven in with a large wooden mallet. If you can install the coupling onto the shaft by hand you need a new coupling and a fit and face!
Volvo seal
I fitted a Volvo shaft seal to my Hunter 34. Very easy to fit and not a drip gets into the boat. They are much cheaper and simpler than others with nothing to go wrong.
I fitted a Volvo shaft seal to my Hunter 34. Very easy to fit and not a drip gets into the boat. They are much cheaper and simpler than others with nothing to go wrong.
Problems are rare for a Mechanical Dripless seal
Though not unheard of. Like anything nothing is 100% foolproof all the time. You could search in the archive this has been discussed many times before Had a Mechanical seal on my old boat and had something happen (not catastrophic, but until I knew what was going on it got me very worried for a little while). I wrote about it here on SailboatOwners a long time ago (almost 8 years ago) below is the link to the archive story on it http://archives.sailboatowners.com/pviewarch.htm?fno=20&sku=2000250101229.81&id=45058&ptl=What%20Happens%20IF_%20PSS%20Fails%21%21%21#2000250142527.43 Bottom line is I would not mind having a Mechanical shaft seal on a boat I owned unless maybe I was sailing around the world and was trying to keep everything KISS
Though not unheard of. Like anything nothing is 100% foolproof all the time. You could search in the archive this has been discussed many times before Had a Mechanical seal on my old boat and had something happen (not catastrophic, but until I knew what was going on it got me very worried for a little while). I wrote about it here on SailboatOwners a long time ago (almost 8 years ago) below is the link to the archive story on it http://archives.sailboatowners.com/pviewarch.htm?fno=20&sku=2000250101229.81&id=45058&ptl=What%20Happens%20IF_%20PSS%20Fails%21%21%21#2000250142527.43 Bottom line is I would not mind having a Mechanical shaft seal on a boat I owned unless maybe I was sailing around the world and was trying to keep everything KISS
makes me sneeze
My only problem with my dripless seal is that when I pull up the floor boards to inspect the bilge, all the dry dust makes me sneeze. I love it. Agaliha
My only problem with my dripless seal is that when I pull up the floor boards to inspect the bilge, all the dry dust makes me sneeze. I love it. Agaliha
- Status