Tool to remove cutlass/cutless bearing.. Anyone have a tool I could hire/borrow?

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wipe_out

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Hi,

I think the cutlass/cutless bearing need to be replaced on the boat.. There isn't much horizontal play but there is 1-1.5mm play vertically.. Removing the shaft would be a huge mission because the rudder would probably need to be removed so I want to replace the bearing without removing the shaft..

Shaft is 1" diameter, don't know the bearing OD until I get it out.. Does anyone have a tool I could hire/borrow to push the bearing out and push in the new one?

Otherwise I am going to have to get a tool made up to do it which isn't the end of the world just time consuming and might delay us getting the boat into the water so it would be easier to hire/borrow a tool..

Thanks..
 
Is this in the P bracket? Either way, I'd check that the designer/builders weren't kind to you and aimed the shaft (sans prop) to just clear the rudder.

If not, and it's in the P bracket I'm guessing that you thinking of tubes to push it through, but you'll definitely need an accurate OD before you buy it.
 
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I didn't try this trick myself, but I read about a simple trick that apparently worked for a few people: get a diamond cutting wire for cutting ceramics. Run it thru one of the grooves in the bearing and cut it - keep it wire really tight making sure you don't cut into the bracket. The bearing will become loose and it will become easy to be moved forward by pipe and hammer. When out, cut it again in half by angle grinder.
 
Last weekend I helped a friend do his Moody 364? We did the job using this method but I was surprised that the hole through the P bracket had a step at it's forward end causing the split tube to slip inside the cutlass outer bearing when put under load. we ended up packing the split tube off the shaft as much as possible with shims and eventually got the bearing out which was crazy tight.
If it had been my boat I would have removed this step before fitting the new bearing.
If you do make one make sure the outside diameter of the split tube is as large as you can fit in the P bracket.
 
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pete said:
Last weekend I helped a friend do his Moody 364? We did the job using this method but I was surprised that the hole through the P bracket had a step at it's forward end causing the split tube to slip inside the cutlass outer bearing when put under load. we ended up packing the split tube off the shaft as much as possible with shims and eventually got the bearing out which was crazy tight.
If it had been my boat I would have removed this step before fitting the new bearing.
If you do make one make sure the outside diameter of the split tube is as large as you can fit in the P bracket.
Click to expand...

Yes, the Moodys have a lip at the forward end of the p bracket. They also have two grub screw which hold the bearing in place.
 
You can get bearings made to suit a clearance fit in the carrier (the ID is then made smaller)
This way they can be inserted by hand and you can have a dry run installation before bedding them on epoxy.
You can use grub screws as well but epoxy is sufficient, use a low melting point epoxy and it can be softened with heat to aid removal. Still a fiddly job on smaller shafts though.
 
ithet said:
Yes, the Moodys have a lip at the forward end of the p bracket. They also have two grub screw which hold the bearing in place.
Click to expand...

Mine doesn't !! - Moody 33, but does have grub screws which will need cleaning out, use a new hexagon key to unscrew them.
I also have a tool which I made which can be borrowed, but I'm in Suffolk, not sure of the OD though, done it 3 times now - the 3rd time last winter when I re-aligned the P bracket which hopefully will make the bearing last longer. The misalignment had obviously been there since building. pm me if you need the tool.
 
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