Hunter 31 Drive Shaft Packing

[Jerry]

I have a 1986-31' and I am at the end of the adjustment screw threads for the drive shaft wax packing. Does anybody know what size wax packing for a 1" shaft and how many packing rings are needed. Please advise.

 

[Steve Dion]

from the HunterMarine Web Site!

Jerry:This is directly from the Hunter Marine Web site.http://www.huntermarine.com/about/faq.htmPlastic Stuffing boxes............................ 1/4" stuffingBronze Stuffing boxes for 1" shaft........ 3/16" stuffingBronze Stuffing boxes for 1.25" shaft... 5/16" stuffingI would check this out but that is what they had!

 

[Tim Leighton]

NUMBER OF "RINGS"

Jerry: The info Steve gave you is right on. You didn't specify what model Hunter you own, so any of those are possibles depending on your shaft diameter. There are a number of materials available for packing, including wax, teflon (my choice) and some other more exiotic stuff. Check with your local marine store. As for the number of rings to use, there is no set number. Most people I know say they use 3 rings of packing with the ends spaced so they don't align when in place. I'd recommend you use whatever number you remove. On my H31, believe it or not, I was never able to get more than 1 ring of packing in! Seemed to work fine though so I just left that number alone and changed the packing at every haulout. Good luck!Tim Leighton

 

[Tim Leighton]

OOPS!!!

Jerry: Should have read your original post more closely! The size packing for your 1" shaft is what Steve posted. Again though, use whatever number of rings you remove. Again, good luck!Tim Leighton

 

[Ron Searcy]

Replace ,how frequent ?

Tim , I pull my boat every season . Should I change the rings every season ?

 

[Steve Dion]

Not until it wears out!

Ron:You really do not need to worry about changing out the stuffing until it wears out. We leave our boat in the water and have changed it out about every 4-5 years. The key is to make sure that the packing is no tighter than it needs to be. If it is the traditional flax, that means that you should have 1-3 drops/minute when you engine is in gear. It should not leak at all when the prop in not turning.Once you progress to the newer teflon packings, they do not need to leak at all. You just want to make sure that the packing is too tight. Overtightening will cause the shaft to heat up and will score the shaft material too.