Therapy needed....stuffing box flax change in water

[gonesail]

what he said. i wrapped it with plastic saran wrap. maybe a few drops of water got in. make sure you put a coating of grease on the bronze threads .. will make your life easier in the future. you might want 2 wrenches .. one to hold the box when turning the nut .. so as not to stress the tube.

[Irish rambler]

Lancerbye's advice is spot on. If you can get hold of a piece of brass welding rod, file one end to a point and bend it to 90 degs with a pair of pliers to make a small sharp 'hook', bend the other end to form a handle, use this tool to extract the old stuffing.
When I'm doing this job I lighten the boat by emptying fresh water tanks, then borrowing/loaning plastics drums(45 gall are best) place them on the front deck and fill with water, this will lift the stern up and reduce the pressure of water at the stern tube. You can then work on the stern tube assembly in (relative) comfort as the water intake will only be a slight trickle. When you done, simply empty the plastic water drums over the side. Test and double check your work and then take yourself off to the pub for a cold beer.

[cappy208]

Here's what the pros use. Go to the hardware store. Buy a toilet bowl wax ring. (Not the one with the plastic ring, just the simple wax ring). Go for a swim. Take a look at the cutlass bearing. Them go back for another breath. Then go back and take the wax ring with you. Gently shape the wax ring around the shaft, and gently stick it to the cutlass, shaft and seal. Done. Now. Go back topside. Dry off, get ready to get dirty. They sell specific aluminum wrenches just the right size to fit the nuts. Either get two, Or get one and a pipe wrench. You can't usually fit two pipe wrenches on without buggering up the bronze nuts. As mentioned don't twist the rubber hose and ruin it. You may have to 'crack' the lock nut back off with a hammer on the wrench. Carefully inspect the threads. If you have twin screw one will be left handed, one will be right handed. Don't keep whacking everything tighter. Once you get the nuts off follow the other tips about pulling the packing out. Count the rings. It's important to put the same amount in. You cut each ring so it fits snugly, and no gaps at the end. Rotate the joints 3,6,9,12 o'clock so they aren't all in a row. In a pinch I have used 'slightly oversized' packing by beating it flatter with a hammer, and using it sideways.

You never got back, But for others, It is usually enough to just put another row of packing in. If the shaft is spitting packing out, or wearing it out you are either tightening to to much, have a bad cutlass bearing, have an out of aligned engine or an out of aligned intermediate bearing. Packing generally doesn't 'go bad'.

One nice thing about the wax ring is you just leave it on, when you run the engine it flings off. Then you can adjust for drips per minute to your satisfaction.