halyard marine propshaft seal , life expectancy ?

[dunkelly]

Anyone got a clue as to the life expectancy of these shaft seals . it was on the boat when i bought it 4 years ago and have no idea how long its been on there . not giving any trouble but planning to go cruising in her for a couple of years and would like to think what i would do if it failed or needed replacement (dont think anyone is making these anymore ? ) . thoughts please .

 

[pvb]

I fitted one on my previous boat, and ran it for around another 10 years before I sold it. The Halyard Seal still seemed to be working OK. The product is discontinued, but it's basically only a couple of lip seals inside a casing, so it ought to be possible to recondition it, using jubilee clips perhaps rather than the fancy stainless clamps Halyard used.

 

[dunkelly]

Do you know what would be involved in the reconditioning? , have you any idea what failure might mean , are we talking drips or major water ingress ?

 

[pvb]

Do you know what would be involved in the reconditioning? , have you any idea what failure might mean , are we talking drips or major water ingress ?

Initially, drips, which would alert you to a problem if the seal closer to the engine failed. Alternatively, if the seal closer to the propellor fails, you'd see the oil level in the reservoir falling.

Reconditioning would involve removing the Halyard Seal, dismantling it, buying replacement seals, and reassembling. Replacement seals should be readily available, as I'm sure Halyard didn't buy custom-made seals.

If I now had a Halyard Seal which was failing, I'd simply replace it with a Volvo Penta or Radice rubber seal.

 

[Laysula]

If you do replace the lipped seals, make sure you get ones with stainless steel springs.

 

[dunkelly]

thanks guys , appreciate the info .

 

[donm]

Anyone got a clue as to the life expectancy of these shaft seals . it was on the boat when i bought it 4 years ago and have no idea how long its been on there . not giving any trouble but planning to go cruising in her for a couple of years and would like to think what i would do if it failed or needed replacement (dont think anyone is making these anymore ? ) . thoughts please .

thanks guys , appreciate the info .

 

[donm]

I replaced my deep seal last year. It was 24 years old and had started to leak only at certain revs but not otherwise, so caused me to chase around before I found it but when I did it was quite spectacular - like a waterwheel!