Shaft Tube Repair

[balibob]

I have a Ranger 29 with Atomic 4 gas engine..my packing gland froze and spun off the stern tube..the tube is only long enough for one hose clamp now. Can anyone give me a way to add to inboard end of stern tube without pulling her out of the water..is there some type of packing gland hose that will wrap or comes in two parts? I want to hold off pulling out...thanks for help

[Matt sachs]

Do you have any pictures of it?

[Charlie]

Was it the fiberglass tube or the rubber hose. It is possible to do this without hauling but it can be scary. Take an Ace bandage, dive the boat, and wrap it around the shaft so that it limits the amount of water intrusion. From there you can disassemble the shaft move it towards the stern and replace the hose. Be sure that the diver stays on hand to align the ace bandage after you push the shaft back and again to remove it when you have completed your work. If it is the FG tube I don't have enough experience to help you with that.

[balibob]

Thanks for reading about my problem..I would like to have a bit more stern tube to put the hose on..I don't think I can get the coupling off the top end of the shaft without heat and a lot of hammering. So if I can do something to make the packing gland work for now, then pull her out in a few months. Any ideas to beef-up the connection to the stern tube? I will try to put some pictures up here. Thanks again

[jkw]

I fixed my rudder tube on my catalina 27 that the previous owner had cut a chunk out of by taking a 2" pvc pipe, cutting it length wise into two 180* pieces. I then wrapped the pvc around the rudder tube, sealed it with 5200, and held it in place with hose clamps. It has worked well, and the upper part of the tube had very little to grab on. I'm not sure if it will work for you but maybe it'll give you an idea.

[balibob]

Thanks for that advice.....I will have to change some things to use the same packing gland as the hose would be bigger going around the new pvc tube....may see if your idea will work putting the pvc inside if the shaft isn't too big...

[delmarrey]

My advice would be to get it out of the water and go through the whole set up while the weather is still cool. Summer is when you want to be out sailing.

You can pull the shaft and then epoxy/glass up some more onto the existing stern tube for more length, and maybe a straight diameter. As well clean up the bronze to make it easier to adjust so you don't get so much water into the boat.

.

[keyspc]

Scary Stuff!! When i lost tube( idiot, i left oil rags by trans.) floorboards were floating within ten~fifteen minutes.
5200 + PVC sounds good but you'd have to change hose size and packing gland size.
The coupler looks better then many i have gotten off. any way you do it its gonna have to come off.
I love PB blaster! soak it down, Then just whack the bolt heads a few times, take a break, if you can get at it wire brush threads, soak it again, next just put a wrench on both sides on the box ends. holding outside wrench on just stomp on it.
You'd be surprised.
Me? Id haul out and epoxy on a new tube over old. yes, hose and packing gland size will increase.

[Dsanduril]

That looks pretty much identical to our setup. IF your shaft is pretty much centered in the stern tube:

1. Find a piece of PVC pipe that will fit just inside the stern tube and cut it in half length-wise. Irrigation pipe (Class 200 or even Class 100) has much thinner walls than standard Schedule 40 pipe, and so will take up less room in the stern tube/around the shaft (still need to have room for water to come up the tube to the packing). You might also be able to use a piece of HDPE irrigation tubing of the right diameter.
2. Stop up the stern tube from the outside. The Ace bandage idea, or there are various putty options. You don't need to de-couple/move the shaft, so you should be able to make a pretty good seal.
3. Open up your gland assembly and give yourself as much room as possible.
4. Slide a piece of small-diameter tubing down the stern tube and use it to suck out as much water as as possible.
5. Install your internal PVC sleeve. You can glue it together, 5200, or leave it a little long and clamp it.
6. Using the PVC as a form, you can build a new stern tube with fiberglass and fast-setting epoxy. The PVC will stay as a permanent addition. If you have to, use the small tube to pump water out until things cure. If you left the PVC a little long cut it off with a hacksaw blade. To make it really cool you can try to taper the existing tube where you will lap over, but access can be difficult.
7. Replace the packing system.
8. Remove the underwater plug.

Don't ask how I know this can be done in the water. The key is to make your underwater plug pretty tight so you get minimum leakage. I've always used things like plumber's putty, but then you have to get it out of the stern tube. A friend once suggested inserting tampons around the shaft with the strings out. They're designed to swell and stop flow. Have never tried it, but would be interested to hear the results if you do
The hose from your packing gland may not fit over the area where you have the lap joint, but from the pictures it looks like you may have a very little room to move things forward slightly.

[Van_Isle]

I just pulled my shaft today. The top of the end of my stern tube is chewed up ... the engine was rebuilt last summer and the engine went back in slightly further back than it was originally. Alignment was done at the time but I think it had it too close to the upper surface of the tube - I'm concerned with the remaining strength where the 2nd clamp would go (new PSS dripless seal to be installed).

I'm wondering if anyone has tried, instead of a PVC or HDPE inner liner, using thin wall stainless steel tubing? Epoxy a short stub inside the stern tube and then, using it as a form, build-up the stern tube again around it?

[rognvald]

There is only one way to do the repair: properly. Wait until you can haul the boat and do it right. You will never regret it. Delmarrey's advice would be mine as well. Good luck and good sailing.

[Van_Isle]

Originally Posted by rognvald

There is only one way to do the repair: properly. Wait until you can haul the boat and do it right. You will never regret it. Delmarrey's advice would be mine as well. Good luck and good sailing.

Well my bad for resurrecting an old thread .... I trust the OP got his tube repaired ... whether in or out of the water.

But, as I stated my boat is out of the water and the question I posed revolves around how to 'do it right'.

[rognvald]

Originally Posted by Van_Isle

Well my bad for resurrecting an old thread .... I trust the OP got his tube repaired ... whether in or out of the water.

But, as I stated my boat is out of the water and the question I posed revolves around how to 'do it right'.

Van,
Your question and my response must have passed in inter-galactic space. However, a glass tube would be a bullet-proof installation and fairly simple.. On the other hand, a stainless tube would not be a monocoque construction and there would always be an adhesion concern with the stainless and the surrounding glass in an area that has the potential for considerable vibration/stress loads. There is a reason most builders use redundancy in this area. Good luck and good sailing.

[balibob]

I fixed mine by using a small grinder (drimmel)to exposing a bit more of the tube and get a better hold with the clamp (only one though). My tube wasn't damaged as I first thought. Not sure why it isn't long enough (repair, tube just too short, or too much glass when they laid up the boat?) but one clamp seems to be working OK for now. I agree, if you put part or all new tube, use fiberglass..good luck