Clearing a rope around the prop.

Freed a few boats from ropes of various sizes and lengths wrapped round a variety of drives. But always with scuba gear and a wet suit/dry suit. They've been either dead easy, find the end and unwind it, or a complete nightmare of melted rope packed into the gap between prop and drive. Serrated blades are a must, a hacksaw blade is often needed in the tighter spaces. Whilst I've removed a rope from a fishing boat in Strangford Narrows with an interesting swell running as we headed out to sea, for preference I'd prefer to work in calm waters, especially if the rope is round a stern drive rather than a shaft underneath the boat. The stern drive just magnifies the motion too much to comfortable. Always used a safety line when diving solo but you need someone manning the line who understands diving and won't try to pull you up when you don't want it!
 
I've done it. Need full scuba gear and decent weather - I'd hesitate to do it in a big swell or in a shipping lane. FWIW show 2 red lights and a pair of black balls.

I would and did use a big hacksaw. A knife is too slow unless it is surgically sharp, and then the risks to your self outweigh the advantages. A big sized hacksaw won't cut you even if you hold the blade yet it makes quick work of rope

Also I only cut off what I needed to. I left a clump of rope around the prop hub to fix later

I don't like ropecutters and deliberately haven't fitted them to my last three boats, and have no regrets on that decision. IMHO they don't do what they say on the tin and do other things that the tin doesn't mention

I would dive in any marina. Ecoli cocktail
 
I was heading back from W Var to Cannes in a good sea in a outdrive (kad300 -DPG ) boat cruising @eco 3000 rpm
The port rpm started to stutter dropping to 2600 then increasing then dropping to say 2800 etc .
With this the turbo,s loose boost as the rpm drops and the super chargers kick in .
So 1st thoughts fuel issue , ? worn turbo gradually coming on ? Faulty supercharger kicking in etc ?
As it happened we pulled in to a nice sandy cove for lunch and anchored -boat maybe 10 y old so ,I,am thinking its getting time for a big VP overhaul soon -you know new turbos , intercooler clean , etc
Had lunch -time for swim -snorkel on -low and behold wrapped around the port leg props a load of builders baler band
About 1 inch thick jammed between the gap of the fwd prop the rear prop and the end spinner .
In neutral I could not turn it .There were 6 inch tails sticking up but all jammed in .
So I had to get the special VP tools and carefully remove the spinner , the bush/washers ,the end prop (little one ) the rear prop -all the time using a hack saw to carefully dissect out the seemingly welded plastic from the spines .
Then reassemble .
I put the legs up and had a diving kit ,and yes wakes from other boats = banged head and yes terrified I dropped a washer /bush ---- or reassembled it all wrong .
Never removed duo-props before ---- phew it all worked .
Then of course are any seals damaged -milky drive oil --- don,t know ---sold the boat a few weeks later :)
 
jfm said:
I would dive in any marina. Ecoli cocktail
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When you have to dive, you dive. While I never got any pleasure out of diving in our local docks / filthy part of the city water (Recovery), i've never gotten sick from it. Granted it was using a dry-suit, but it was a normal mask, not full face (that has changed now, but I no longer participate in Recovery for obvious reasons) - and that was utterly filthy water, you could smell it from quite a distance.
 
Well yes. But if you have a tangled prop and you're in a marina then by definition you don't have to dive because you ain't in any danger.
 
jfm said:
Well yes. But if you have a tangled prop and you're in a marina then by definition you don't have to dive because you ain't in any danger.
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I'd choose a quick dive over a lift. I'm the local junior frogman on our lake and have lost count of the amount of times i've un-tangled ropes / fouling from props / shafts. It just wouldn't make sense to lift when you can go under and sort it in minutes (and it'll only cost the owner a bottle of wine)

Maybe i'm taking things for granted as I always carry a full set of dive gear on-board. Mind you, most of the time (summer), I just throw on the wetsuit with some weight and a snorkel.
 
On a shaft drive boat at anchor on a nice day is one thing but at sea without a scuba dive kit for get it.

Consider if you got into difficulties whether your family could recover your limp body from the water?
 
Always, always wear sturdy gloves otherwise you will come up,with badly cut hands, either from the knife or more likely barnacles. Your hands quickly become soft underwater and if it's cold you don't feel the cuts and grazes. I'd also use a bread knife but definitely would not go in without a wetsuit, and more importantly, a hood.
 
Quite right re sharp knives. It's asking for trouble, especially if you're not used to being and working underwater, almost inevitably you'll end up cutting or stabbing yourself. Sharp knife in one hand, a bit of swell or surge, clinging on to knife so as not to drop it (strongly suggest putting a lanyard on it and around your wrist) so only one hand left to steady yourself, natural reaction is to hang on with both hands, you can imagine the rest..............

After 35 years of diving and thousands of dives I would still be very wary of using a sharp knife underwater.
 
Had to do it a couple of times, once at sea on passage, both times in warm water.

I used snorkel gear and a big serrated breadknife. Wear at least two layers of clothes to protect against barnacles. A cycle helmet would be a good idea but not something you usually find on a boat.

The on passage one was difficult as I had picked up a deep set pot and had 100s of feet of polyprop line wrapped around the prop and jammed into the P bracket space. Several dives and much sawing required.

I have tried a hacksaw but the breadknife was much better. Maybe the hacksaw would have worked with a very coarse tooth wood blade.
 
Montemar said:
Has anyone jumped off the back of their boat and gone down to cut rope off the prop. and prop. shaft?
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We picked up a mooring line around one of the props on our 46ft shaft drive motorboat in Menorca a few years back. We managed to limp into a nearby bay and drop anchor. I didn't have any diving gear on board so I went overboard with a serrated knife and started hacking away at the rope which was wrapped hard around the shaft. I lost count of the number of times I dived under the boat but it took me the best part of an hour to get the rope off

Yes there was an element of foolhardiness about this and I certainly wouldn't attempt the same thing in the open sea or in colder water
 
Is there a good reason that propeller hatches are not more common? Then any rope or net wrap can be hacked at from safety in side the boat.

Something like this?

prop hatch.jpg

I understand that they are common on canal boats.
 
This was my greatest get out of jail. Long sweep of polyprop from a lobster pot, low tide, gave it wide berth but not wide enough. Chopped the power but still fouled.
One shot before swimming. What if i kill engibe, seslect reverse, pull strangler, and turn over the starter a turn or two? Worth a shot?
It did work for me that day. No use if well wound on, but if you happen to kill the drive just as the rope hits, it might be worth a try?
 
michaelchapman said:
Is there a good reason that propeller hatches are not more common? Then any rope or net wrap can be hacked at from safety in side the boat.

Something like this?

View attachment 56859

I understand that they are common on canal boats.
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totally agree. I knew certain lifeboats are equipped with prop hatches, but had no idea when we initially went to look at buying our Mitchell it had a prop hatch. Once you have a boat with one you do wonder why more boats are not fitted with them. I have only removed the plug a couple of times to check on the prop and later on in the season to give the prop a scrub to ensure it is growth free, but with just 4 bolts to remove the plug and hey presto you are looking at your prop, I reckon our Mitchell is the best defended boat against prop fouling there is, protected skeg, rope cutter & prop hatch..
 
Has anyone used a re breather? basically used in the offshore industry on helicopters.
in the event of a chopper ditching - sinking/capsizing between our lifejacket was a ebs and you put in the mouth piece and nose clips took a deep breath flicked the valve a blew into a bag basically. - as we only used 20% ish of the oxygen we breath this system allows you to stay under water for quite sometime allowing you to escape through a window.

jon
 
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