I bought a 1975 Cat 30, it's been sitting in the slip for over two years that I know of... I was able to get the engine (diesel mk25) to start up, transmission seems to be stuck in neutral, and prop shaft seems to be frozen... not able to turn it by hand... not certain what my best course of action here would be??? My thought is to get a tool such as a rounded vice clamp, similar to what can be used to remove oil filters, to slip over the coupler and maybe free it up a bit??? any other thoughts? that I should try?? one of my Delima's is the hoist to haul sailboat out of water is in another marina... looking for ways without causing too much damage to hopefully get the prop shaft freed up and maybe the transmission to shift to where I can move sailboat over to other marina for haul out
Frozen prop shaft
- Thread starter DAR
- Start date
There are bolts on the coupling that are probably on either pretty tightly or frozen themselves. Maybe you can get the proper size socket and a long ratchet wrench or a breaker bar. Since the bolts will be off center from the shaft, when you try to loosen or tighten the bolt, it will apply radial force on the shaft and might just get it to break free. The bolts are pretty big so its unlikely you shear the bolt but don't use a 300 pound NFL tackle to apply the torque if it doesn't move. Just a thought
You don’t want to do that in the water - the coupling could break, the strut could dislodge, the shaft could bend, ….. or you could do the “if you feel lucky” trick and hope it’s only some barnacle buildup.
Why not simply tow to a lift before you have bigger problems?. You will eventually need to pull the boat anyway if only to inspect and clean the bottom.
Why not simply tow to a lift before you have bigger problems?. You will eventually need to pull the boat anyway if only to inspect and clean the bottom.
IT'S frozen. What is IT? I'd suggest finding just what IT is before you apply any force.
1. Separate the two flanges by removing the four bolts.
2. Then try turning the prop shaft by itself.
3. Next try turning the X-mission shaft by itself after ensuring it's in neutral
This will tell you which is frozen, the prop shaft or the X-mission shaft. Or maybe it's both, which proves you really should have been going to church more often rather than sneaking out to go fishing.
1. Separate the two flanges by removing the four bolts.
2. Then try turning the prop shaft by itself.
3. Next try turning the X-mission shaft by itself after ensuring it's in neutral
This will tell you which is frozen, the prop shaft or the X-mission shaft. Or maybe it's both, which proves you really should have been going to church more often rather than sneaking out to go fishing.
I am betting it is the shaft packing gland is dried out and frozen. That said way to many variables.....
Call for a tow, drag her to the yard and pull here out of the water.
easy peezy
Call for a tow, drag her to the yard and pull here out of the water.
easy peezy
Yeah, will do that... but first will try to see if it will nudge a bit with out to much effort
Former C30 owner here. The direction seems to be to figure out what is holding the prop shaft- is it he transmission stuck or shaft packing "welded" to the shaft or a frozen cutlass bearing. I would go for loosening the coupling bolts from the transmission. Does the transmission have fluid? Once you remove the coupling bolts, the transmission flange should turn. If it is frozen, you are looking at a rebuilt or replacement. I replaced my Hurth Trans with a Twin Disc with only a few dimensional adjustments. To take the transmission out you need to lift the rear of the engine ( loosen the rear mount upper nuts. Maybe the same on the front mount upper mounts. Some people use a beam across the companionway- I used a deflated soccer ball under the oil pan (mine wasn't rusted) then I did tie up the engine. The bell housing has to come off. You will probably need to replace the spring plate- couldn't remember the correct name.
If the shaft still doesn't turn you have the step carefully here because if the packing is frozen to the shaft then it will tear up and leak horribly if you break it loose. Boat out of the water is better here. Could also be a frozen cutlass bearing- boat out of the water fix,
If the shaft still doesn't turn you have the step carefully here because if the packing is frozen to the shaft then it will tear up and leak horribly if you break it loose. Boat out of the water is better here. Could also be a frozen cutlass bearing- boat out of the water fix,
Hum, good advice... If I can't get the coupler & output shaft to spin a bit with just a nudge of force, then I know what's next... thanks
I was thinking it might be... no drips currently... so most likely dried out... thanks
As other's have mentioned and I alluded to, I wouldn't use too much torque. You said it was in Neutral. How do you know that? I assumed that was the case and the attempt to turn with reasonable force was on knowing it was in Neutral. You said you were able to start the engine. Are you able to change engine rpm and there is no unusual sound from the transmission? If so and you are sure you are in neutral then moderate torque might work but I wouldn't be "grunting" to try and turn it.
If you have a traditional packing gland make sure the packing gland nut hasn't been tightened down too much. That can make it really hard to turn the shaft. For those of you familiar with packing glands, is there any approved lubricant that can be applied?
Yeah, was thinking not to touch the packing glad just yet... I have seen where you can change the packing while in the water... but with unknows... best to do this one out of the water at least this time around... it sounds more like a good way to go before hauling it out of the water is to separate the coupling and see if transmission works (output shaft spins, shifts)... and then address the prop shaft out of the water... at least I will know if I'll need to pull the transmission out as well...
No chatter when engine is running... sits at a 1000 rpm when idle without any struggle... engine does throttle up with no chatter...I have not disconnected the shift cable yet to see if I can shift transmission... trying to shift forward or reverse NO GO using shift lever...still poking around and looking for what I need to do once hauled out... hopefully I can minimize what I need to do out of the water...
If you should find that it's the packing welded to the shaft, maybe try penetrant, heat, tapping, prayer and anything else you can come up with. Get the cap loose and hopefully unscrew to loosen.
You may be faced with some REAL costs if you get into hauling your boat over to the other marina unless you've got a free tow. Start now and keep us posted as to what you find. All you've got to lose is a pile of money if you can't move the shaft
. You only want to move at a snail's pace to the other marina.How many miles away is that marina again
?
Sounds like you are in neutral. If you think the shaft is somehow seized so much that even a little nudge won't move the shaft I wouldn't try to adjust the shift cable and engage the transmission for all the reasons mentioned by others, plus it might damage the tranny if it engages on a stuck shaft. The lowest risk path is to get towed to the boatyard and proceed from there. I am not sure there is much to be gained from disconnecting the coupling if you are sure you are in neutral except that it might tell you if the output shaft from the tranny is seized, but I wouldn't think that is l
The two most likely (and probably the only) places I can think of downstream of the coupling that would bind the shaft are the packing gland and the strut. I guess it could be barnacles built up in the shaft tube. In any case "nudging" might see if it is really stuck or just hard to turn. I wouldn't do anything that requires too much force in any case.
The two most likely (and probably the only) places I can think of downstream of the coupling that would bind the shaft are the packing gland and the strut. I guess it could be barnacles built up in the shaft tube. In any case "nudging" might see if it is really stuck or just hard to turn. I wouldn't do anything that requires too much force in any case.
I am starting to ponder if I am the only guy on here that has AAA and sea tow. Some days getting a lift to the nearest garage or boat yard is well worth all the years I donated.
Not having some sort of tow insurance is worse than not having AAA or some other car tow coverage. At least when the need for a car tow happens, you can get out of the car without getting wet or risk of drowning! The OP is, however, a new owner so we may just have to cut some slack that he/she didn't come to the SBO forum for "advice and counsel" before the purchase. Lesson learned - we all have "should've, could've, would've" somewhere in our boating resume. OH! That reminds me I need to renew mine before the end of August. Thanks for the reminder.
jssailem
SBO Weather and Forecasting Forum Jim & John
- Oct 22, 2014
- 23,525
Tow boat to lift. Safest solution. Make sure bilge pump is working.Tow Boat is a good choice. Professional.
Also a dinghy and an outboard is like a friend and a tow rope.
Since we have now ventured off topic - contracting with Sea Tow or any other service, while it may create a feeling of security, actually limits you to only one option when needed. I have always encouraged others to investigate simply adding tow coverage to their existing boat insurance as it is 1. usually very cheap, and 2. Allows you to call for any available tow service and watch them race to your aide to beat the competition.
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I did use the term(s) AAA and Sea Tow as generics because most know what they are.
I do apologize if I took this off topic. That said, I think part of this tread was and is coming up with viable solutions to a described problem.
So let's get back to the issue(s) at hand.
The boat has a frozen prop shaft.
The boat has set in the water for two years.
When started, the throttle controls the engine speed but it does not engage into drive and reverse. If it does engage the shaft does not move.
Question when you put it into gear did the motor take on a load? Did the RPMs drop? This would be an easy way to tell if the transmission actually engaged.
Did the transmission even work when it was docked 2 years ago?
Two years of inactivity is really hard on a boat.