Propshaft packing nuts - any tricks?

[msquito]

2000 SAN - Any tips/tricks for breaking loose that jamnut? Mechanic and I both leaning into opposing wrenches this afternoon and still couldn't break it free. Obviously the *access is sub-optimal, but it's gotta be easier than I'm making it...
TIA

[JayG80]

There is a stainless steel safety wire on the packing nut. Maybe it is on the underside and you missed seeing/removing?

your owner’s manual states “This packing box has left hand threads”

[JayG80]

There is a stainless steel safety wire on the packing nut. Maybe it is on the underside and you missed seeing/removing?

your owner’s manual states “This packing box has left hand threads”

[msquito]

good callout, but yeah, that's been clipped/removed. Will double-check on the direction when I go out this AM...
thx for the ideas!

[msquito]

well....
I own it. Left hand thread beat us. RTFM.
Embarrassing, but for full transparency, in case it saves anyone else frustration in trying to break loose the jamnut on their shaft-packing assy. It was indeed reverse-threaded, so while our mechanic and I were putting our all into it yesterday afternoon, we were, in actuality, just cranking the two against each other. Thx, JayG80 for calling attention to the fine print, and offering some ideas. Much appreciated.

[charlesml3]

What problem are you after with the packing assembly?

[msquito]

Pretty steady water ingress. We keep the boat in the water all summer, no lift. Have had to pivot to leaving the bilge pump on full time to keep up with it.
Our mechanic said with the amount of exposed threads and the factory-looking lock wire/tag remnants, he was guessing it has never been tightened up before.
I got it turned down and the jam nut snugged up. Do folks typically reinstall a lock wire after adjusting the packing, or is the jamnut sufficient?
Thx!

[bturner]

It's been a long time since I repacked stuffing box but I believe the last time I did I used this stuff or something very similar. If I remember correctly I was only able to get 2 rows in the box without using the nut to set the packing in the box. I was able to get the box down to a drip a second and it didn't leak at all while the shaft wasn't turning. What you really want to watch for is getting it too tight and having the box get hot. Mine ran super hot when I first put it back together when the nut was snugged with the wrenches. I had to back it off to where it was just a hair more than hand tight, it shouldn't take much pressure to get it adjusted correctly.

[charlesml3]

You need to be VERY careful here. That packing is SUPPOSED to leak. It HAS to leak. If you overtighten it and "stop the leak" you'll also stop the cooling and it'll overheat the driveshaft and packing.

This is really simple. If it's pouring out in a steady stream, tighten it a little. If it's not dripping at all, loosen it a little. Anything else, leave it alone.

-Charles

[msquito]

Thx both. To be clear, I'm not repacking (yet - maybe this winter). I'm just tightening it up to deal with the steady stream. So, it did take a wrench to tighten it, but that may have been more an issue with the oily residue throughout the bilge (that's another story). I tightened it to the point where I was getting a drop every 30-40 seconds. I then jumped in the water and make sure I was able to turn the prop by hand (later rear something about being able to turn with one finger, it was definitely tighter than that, but loose enough to turn by hand). I took it out and drove it around a bit to see the results. It is still dripping, which is good, I get a drop every 4-5 seconds, which is fine by me. Here's a video showing drip rate: https://photos.app.goo.gl/NifunEKnXRgWEZZE9 However, after driving around at low speeds for 10-15 min, I went back to put my hand on the packing box, to check temperature. It's hot. Almost too hot to keep a hand to it.

What to do? I'm getting a drop rate higher than the prescribed 2-3 drops a min, but also getting hot. It's this a sign the packing is going and needs to be replaced? I was planning on pulling the boat out for the season in a few weeks, but hoping to get a few more surfs in first. I'd obviously rather not damage the shaft, but am starting to think that repacking is feeling inevitable here once we pull the boat anyways...

Appreciate any insight

[JayG80]

If you replace the packing, I recommend the Gortex type, it runs cooler and drips less.

https://nautiqueparts.com/packing-go...-1-4-per-foot/

https://skidim.com/shaft-packing-dripless-1-4-x-2ft/

skidim.com sells packing nut wrenches with etching 0on them “1 drop every 10 seconds”

[charlesml3]

TIt is still dripping, which is good, I get a drop every 4-5 seconds, which is fine by me. Here's a video showing drip rate: https://photos.app.goo.gl/NifunEKnXRgWEZZE9 However, after driving around at low speeds for 10-15 min, I went back to put my hand on the packing box, to check temperature. It's hot. Almost too hot to keep a hand to it.

What to do?

If it's too hot to keep your hand on it, loosen it some more. FAR better to bilge some more out than burn up the shaft/stuffing box.

-Charles

[bturner]

I'm pretty sure I adjusted for a drip every 10 second or something close to that and I recall mine running cool. I used the Gortex stuff as well. There was zero leakage when the shaft wasn't turning.

[msquito]

That sounds like the ballpark target as I understand it, what's strange (to me) is that I'm getting a higher drip rate, and it's running hot, which seems like one is not having the expected effect on the other. This isn't new packing though, so that may be the issue here. At this point I'm 100% planning to redo the packing once the boat is out of the water. Trying to wrap my head around the urgency of that. I'll back it off as Charles suggests and see if that's manageable, but the bilge firing off every few minutes is what got me here to start...
Thx all, appreciate the discussion, and I'll definitely plan on using the gore-tex packing when I redo it...

[Tom_H]

If you're still leaking and running hot, I'd venture your alignment is off. Specifically if the shaft isn't roughly centered in the shaft log, you're likely compressing one side of your packing a bunch (causing the heat), but at the same time, not sealing well on the other side causing the higher drip rate. A lot of engines can settle on the motor mounts and result in the shaft generally being low in the shaft log which can unevenly load the packing and can also cause uneven wear on your strut bushing.

[msquito]

Thx, Tom_H. I raised that possibility to our mechanic - will explore this a bit more.

On a potentially related note, while I had the floor up last week I was taking the opportunity to do some cleaning, which inevitable leads to new discoveries... One thing I found, that has me wondering a bit is related to the aluminum angles mounted to either side of the v-drive. These are pretty hefty, and run out to the sidewalls of the bilge. On the starboard side, the angle has a couple lags through into the bilge sidewall, but they're backed out +/- 1cm. The angle in the port has no fasteners at all, though there are holes that appear they'd serve a similar purpose. Does anybody know, are these angles just providing left-right spacing/centering of the v-drive drive, or are they supposed to be providing some vertical load bearing capacity???
TIA