Prop shaft assembly Vetus (I think)

[Sy-Revolution]

Hi Folks,
Took a look at my prop shaft assembly yesturday (boat new(ish) to me) , it's a Vetus water lubricated shaft, as I've been told, and on their drawings I notice there should be a water inlet on the inner seal housing:

Mine however doesn't:

I didn't notice any leaking last year nor any overheating or associated smells, motored at full tilt through the Kiel canal (10 hour trip). The water in the blige you can see was due to leaving hatches on the transom open last week, letting the rain in!

Should I worry or just put her back in the water (when the osmosis treatment is finished) and enjoy or should I pull it apart?

Cheers,

Crispin

 

[chrishelen]

Hi theres some good info online,have you tried googling "lineing up sterngear"?hope this helps.

 

[JasB]

You say Vetus (I think), so I assume that this might NOT be the shaft in the diagram? I know my prop has a grease inlet where the diagram shows a water inlet, and the diagram has no grease inlet. Has your actual prop got a grease inlet? and is it definatly (spell check?) the vetus?
I must admit, while it is out of the water I would be tempted to pull it apart to see how it works more than anything else, what is the worse that could happen?

 

[Anchorite]

Re: Prop shaft assembly Vetus (it is!)

I had an identical setup without the water bleeder thing which is a fairly recent addition on the Vetus assembly: it's role is to eliminate air from the sterntube (i.e. just after launching). I used mine for 2 years with no problems. There are other sterntube setups with a similar bleed tube which is often considered not necessary...it may be a matter of the angle of the propshaft (mine was 10° ) or drying moorings or a very long sterntube...
If you take off the tab washer you can unscrew the inboard piece to reveal a square (about 5mm) of braided/fabric laid into a recess: this is what ensures the seal, it is compressed by the piece you unscrewed, so if it is dripping you can take it up a notch (and replace the tab washer...). It is advised to carry a spare. Don't overtighten it: the prop shaft rotates against it.

 

[Sy-Revolution]

Re: Prop shaft assembly Vetus (it is!)

Thanks for the infos, I'll unscrew the inboard nut and take a look.

Cheers.