Aquadrive from Halyard Marine

[30boat]

I've fitted two Aquadrives and one that I designed and had made by an engineer.It was virtually identical to an Aquadrive except it used two Mini UJs and a double row thrust ballbearing.The most involving part of the installation is the bulkhead for the thrust bearing.I used plywood enclosed in epoxy and glass.It is important to achieve perfect alignment when doing this.The difference in vibration and noise is dramatic when compared with a conventional installation.

 

[Jamesuk]

We have one on the boat, works very well.

 

[Keith-i]

We have a Python Drive which I only recently fitted. Without wanting to thread drift, how have those who've fitted them achieved the alignment? The thrust bearing not only needs to be inline with the shaft but exactly square on. I'm not sure mine is but I'm struggling to find a way of accurately setting it up. Lasers?

 

[Graham_Wright]

I think it is a well engineered unit but accommodating the thrust could have been better thought out. The flange are very short and I have extended them with a substantial stainless plate.

It would have been nice if it had been plated, the thin paint finish doesn't really survive installation!

 

[srp]

We have a Python Drive which I only recently fitted. Without wanting to thread drift, how have those who've fitted them achieved the alignment? The thrust bearing not only needs to be inline with the shaft but exactly square on. I'm not sure mine is but I'm struggling to find a way of accurately setting it up. Lasers?

Never seen a Python, but the Halyard I had was supplied with thick rubber isolating washers that fitted the holes in the plate. The mounting bolts pass through these. I turned up some bushes from nylon to temporarily replace the rubber ones, fitted the coupling onto the shaft, then the plate to the coupling, and then bonded the plate to the hull. When the epoxy had cured I removed the coupling, took out my temporary nylon washers and re-fitted it with the rubber isolating washers.

(By the way, this thread was started quite a long while ago - I'm not sure Halyard still make the model of Aquadrive that I fitted).

 

[30boat]

Never seen a Python, but the Halyard I had was supplied with thick rubber isolating washers that fitted the holes in the plate. The mounting bolts pass through these. I turned up some bushes from nylon to temporarily replace the rubber ones, fitted the coupling onto the shaft, then the plate to the coupling, and then bonded the plate to the hull. When the epoxy had cured I removed the coupling, took out my temporary nylon washers and re-fitted it with the rubber isolating washers.

(By the way, this thread was started quite a long while ago - I'm not sure Halyard still make the model of Aquadrive that I fitted).

I did the same when I fitted mine in 2003.

 

[Keith-i]

Thanks for the comments. Mine is on a 45mm shaft with the thrust bearing weighing in at some 20kg. Gravity starts to interfere once I loosen things, but I like the idea of temporary rigid bushes to help check measurements.!