This customer had a little “Uh Oh” in the Fort Pierce City Marina channel. Here’s some local knowledge… favor the up-current channel markers and don’t turn out of the channel until you are in the middle of the ICW.
We pulled the props and sent them out for repair. The PORT side took the worst of it. We inspected the Cutless bearings and found that the STBD bearing was in much worse shape than the PORT side bearing. The cause of this soon became clear.
On closer inspection we found that the FWD end of the STBD bearing shell was badly damaged… Someone had obviously tried (and failed) to remove this bearing in the past. When they failed to remove the bearing they simply left it alone and proceeded to replace only the PORT bearing. Amateurs!
The rear of the bearing shell was in good shape, so we pushed the STBD bearing FOREWARD on the shaft and then cut it off.
The moral of the story is that if your running gear technicians don’t have a 20 ton Strut Pro (a specialized hydraulic press specifically designed for removing & installing Cutless bearings) then you’re NOT working with Yacht-HQ and “your mileage may vary”. We had no trouble removing the offending bearing and installing a new one.
Yacht-HQ can replace Cutless bearings without removing the shafts – even on boats that have two struts on each side. Let’s talk before you hire the wrong people to work on your boat.
We remove and install props using our set of PropSmith tools – which are the ONLY prop tools that are designed to properly remove AND re-install propellers. Here, Alan is torquing the PropSmith to spec in order to fully seat the prop on the shaft prior to installing the prop nuts.
Yes, the CORRECT way to install props & nuts is to fully seat the prop on the shaft and then install the smaller nut against the prop. Then you torque the small nut before installing and torquing the larger nut. Then (importantly) install a NEW cotter pin for safety.
That PropSpeed sure is pretty! If you’re not using PropSpeed then you’re just short-changing yourself.
This customer was so pleased with Yacht-HQ’s work that he brought the boat back to Fort Pierce three months later so that we could take care of a few other repair & maintenance items.