Stuffing Box Repacking

[Dan Hutchinson]

I just repacked the stuffing box on my 1986 Hunter 31'. No one told me before I started this that Hunter, at least on this model, uses washers between layers of packing. This makes it appear, when the adjustment nut is unscrewed, that there is NO packing in the gland, because a washer is in front of the first layer of packing. The only way to get at the old packing (that I could come up with) is to slide the whole stuffing box back and forth on the shaft to get the washers to pop out. This involves taking the hose clamps off the rubber boot that seals the stuffing box and the shaft tunnel. I also had to do quite a bit of "clean up" work on the shaft to get the stuffing box to slide up the shaft freely. Plus I couldn't get three layers of 5/16" packing to go back in; I had to settle for one 5/16" and two 1/4" strips. Any comments?

 

[Guest]

Get a PSS Dripless Shaftseal

nm

 

[Doug]

Same experience

I too found that washer. When I removed the nut I thought - no wonder it drips - no packing! I got the washer out by shaking the shaft log hose up and down. There I found one wrap of packing - about 1/4 - 3/8 thick. Hunter recommended 3 wraps of 3/16. (Why did you use 5/16?)It took a bit of work but I got three wraps in. I don't like the plastic nut set up but I repacked mine with my boat in the water so replacing the set up wasn't an option. I ran the engine after the repair and couldn't get it to drip while in gear. I contacted the Hunter rep and he replied that I should give it some time and it should start to drip. I have found contacting the Hunter rep through this site usually gets a pretty quick response.

 

[Dan Hutchinson]

Stuffing Box Response to Doug

The Hunter rep is the source of the recommendation to use 5/16" packing for the Hunter 31", and that appeared to be the size I took out. However, as I mentioned, reuse of 5/16" seems to be a problem, and the rep made no mention of the washers. I, too, have found the Hunter reps to be quite responsive, and you have to like their sense of humor in not mentioning the washers! I like the ease of adjustment afforded by the plastic (nylon?) casing, but if I start having problems now I might change my mind. I haven't gone back in the water yet so I don't know if I have been successful or not. My fear is not so much no drip but a steady stream! My E-mail address is dahutchi@rrha.state.va.us. Contact me directly if you care to.

 

[Jay Hill]

Maybe not wise, but...

...if the old packing isn't in bad shape, I just turn it over and put it back in. My H31 is on fresh water though. The stuffing in my boat is just over 8 years old, "rotated" last September, and I just last week tightened the packing nut 1/8 turn to reduce an intentional 1-drip-every-15-seconds to 1 per minute.Once you get it adjusted, they still work great. Of course, you should also check you engine alignment to make sure you're not going to destroy the stuffing box with engine vibration.