Not to be an idiot...just a new comer. but what is the stuffing box and what is its required maintainance?
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Not stupid if you don't know.
James: The stuff box (also known as the packing gland) is where the propeller shaft passes through the hull. There is ususally a nylon or brass/bronze assembly that attaches to the hull with a piece of rubber hose and a couple of hose clamps. Some boats have a dripless seal in place of these nylon/brass assemblies and they look quite different. Normally there is not any maintenance until they start to drip. They should NOT drip when the prop is not turning. Depending on the type of packing inside the box they will normally drip 1-3 drips per minute when the shaft is turning (this is the lubrication). With some of the new stuff (teflon) they do not need to drip. If yours is dripping you need to remove the cotter pin(assuming that it has one) and tighten as little as possible to slow/stop the drip. If it is too tight it will heat up and can cause other problems. Once the packing (stuffing) wears out they need new stuffing. The older type of material is flax (cotton with wax) the newer material is a teflon material. Hope this helps.
James: The stuff box (also known as the packing gland) is where the propeller shaft passes through the hull. There is ususally a nylon or brass/bronze assembly that attaches to the hull with a piece of rubber hose and a couple of hose clamps. Some boats have a dripless seal in place of these nylon/brass assemblies and they look quite different. Normally there is not any maintenance until they start to drip. They should NOT drip when the prop is not turning. Depending on the type of packing inside the box they will normally drip 1-3 drips per minute when the shaft is turning (this is the lubrication). With some of the new stuff (teflon) they do not need to drip. If yours is dripping you need to remove the cotter pin(assuming that it has one) and tighten as little as possible to slow/stop the drip. If it is too tight it will heat up and can cause other problems. Once the packing (stuffing) wears out they need new stuffing. The older type of material is flax (cotton with wax) the newer material is a teflon material. Hope this helps.
Location in the 28.5
Hello James, Your stuffing box is located beneath a removable panel under the forward cushion of your aft cabin. It (probably) is made of while nylon and resembles a pair of 3" nuts placed around your prop shaft with a cotter key running through small holes in both of them to prevent them from coming unthreaded. (Nice run-on sentence, huh?)
Hello James, Your stuffing box is located beneath a removable panel under the forward cushion of your aft cabin. It (probably) is made of while nylon and resembles a pair of 3" nuts placed around your prop shaft with a cotter key running through small holes in both of them to prevent them from coming unthreaded. (Nice run-on sentence, huh?)
Stuffing Box
I had a badly leaking packing box about 1.5 years ago. I understand that this replacement is something done at haul-out. I had borrowed a "Prop knocker" from the yard and butted out the Prop shaft from the "Keyed" receptical in the engine. Remember to loosen all locking bolts in advance. I had ordered a replacement packing box from Hunter $78. Prior to haul out. Althought I had the correct engine side diameter of the new box, the hose collar on the prop side was wrong. They kindly took it back. After you've separate the shaft and pulled out the box, take a stiff wire and pick out the old packing matterial. Since the new box Hunter sent wasn't size correct on one side I simply "washed" the original (10 years old) in Muriatic acid "mean stuff - use HD rubber gloves! and neutralize with detergent soap!!. I'll come out nice and clean though. If your shaft is corroded - simply use lite 120 grit sand paper to polish the oxidation off. I think I used 3/16 diameter flax rope (Check out West Marine) call Hunter for exact size. I diagonal cut the ends of the flaxen rope so that it winds more flush in the packing box. I think it took about 3.5-4 turns on the shaft. It seems to make a difference which direction you coil the flax.When in the wrong direction it will bunch up when you start to screw back on the packing box "cap". It bunches up in the wrong direction..... Like when you put pipe tape on a plumbing connection in the wrong direction. Don't over tighten the cap. It may make a little whine when you first drop the boat back in the water and run the engine ...slowly!... until the water gets into the packing box and acts as a lubricant. You may need to check the appropriate tightness again. Mine has worked fine since. Good luck
I had a badly leaking packing box about 1.5 years ago. I understand that this replacement is something done at haul-out. I had borrowed a "Prop knocker" from the yard and butted out the Prop shaft from the "Keyed" receptical in the engine. Remember to loosen all locking bolts in advance. I had ordered a replacement packing box from Hunter $78. Prior to haul out. Althought I had the correct engine side diameter of the new box, the hose collar on the prop side was wrong. They kindly took it back. After you've separate the shaft and pulled out the box, take a stiff wire and pick out the old packing matterial. Since the new box Hunter sent wasn't size correct on one side I simply "washed" the original (10 years old) in Muriatic acid "mean stuff - use HD rubber gloves! and neutralize with detergent soap!!. I'll come out nice and clean though. If your shaft is corroded - simply use lite 120 grit sand paper to polish the oxidation off. I think I used 3/16 diameter flax rope (Check out West Marine) call Hunter for exact size. I diagonal cut the ends of the flaxen rope so that it winds more flush in the packing box. I think it took about 3.5-4 turns on the shaft. It seems to make a difference which direction you coil the flax.When in the wrong direction it will bunch up when you start to screw back on the packing box "cap". It bunches up in the wrong direction..... Like when you put pipe tape on a plumbing connection in the wrong direction. Don't over tighten the cap. It may make a little whine when you first drop the boat back in the water and run the engine ...slowly!... until the water gets into the packing box and acts as a lubricant. You may need to check the appropriate tightness again. Mine has worked fine since. Good luck
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