Please let it not be the gearbox!

[zeehag]

if you cannot redo the prop in the water, you dont have correct diver. dont need haulout to fix prop.

as for engine room ease of access--all ericsons are good for engine access--is just the tranny, shaft, and packing gland one cannot easily access....one needs to see prop shaft to know what this problem is in your boat, and in others like it. is why i am sailing a garden design ketch and not my ericson.

good luck and happy sails....

[skipmac]

Originally Posted by JETTEST

Affirm. I found that by taking off the air filter and the fire bottle I have a nice clean birds eye view of the shaft as it enters the hull. (no q-berth bending required).

I'm not going under there myself. My bottom guy is also a mechanic and salvage diver. He's gonna go down there next tuesday and he a look. That said, he seemed a bit perplexed when I first described the issue but mentioned a few possibilities that it could be.

So confirmed the shaft is spinning and prop not (or not spinning at the same speed as the shaft). Then the only possibility I can think of is the prop is spinning on the shaft.

If the prop is loose enough to spin that should be very easy to check in the water. Mark1977 mentioned losing the key. Sounds likely to me.

[JETTEST]

Yep. I'm thinking that's going to be the issue...

Diver goes underneath on tues... Will advise result!

[skipmac]

Originally Posted by JETTEST

Yep. I'm thinking that's going to be the issue...

Diver goes underneath on tues... Will advise result!

You better advise the result or you will have a lot of curious and annoyed people reading this thread.

[JETTEST]

Prop key sheared!

[skipmac]

Originally Posted by JETTEST

Prop key sheared!

OK. In an odd sense, that's good news. A lot cheaper to replace a key than to rebuild the transmission.

Plus it shows that CF was right, again. Mark1977 gets a gold star and a one year free membership to the forum for being the first one with the correct answer.

[JETTEST]

As it turns out I had a plastic spacer on there that was pretty degraded too... I opted to get a new prop (sans spacer) put on and am fixing the spacer and using the old prop as a spare!

Boat should be ready to sail by weeks end..

[sanibel sailor]

Hate to say it when something is not working, but... you are a relatively lucky dog. Cheap fix even hiring a diver.

Sounds like someone used a bushing. The only ones I know are made by Anchor Bushings, Inc, they come in plastic and bronze, designed to make a too big prop fit a smaller shaft. It makes sense that there would be a bushing. Usually, the forward thrust of the prop pretty well sticks it to the shaft from the Morse taper. A plastic bushing prevents metal/metal contact, probably allows a hint of wiggle. The key for one I have seen was stepped for a smaller shaft keyway and a larger prop keyway. Probably a weak spot/stress riser as the transition cannot have a radiused corner.

[JETTEST]

Totally lucky.... I know it. Diver recommended new prop that fits because the bushing is a "weak link"... Common he says, but less preferred over a prop mounted directly to the shaft.

All in all I'm gonna be out maybe a couple hundred bucks... Not bad

[janice142]

Originally Posted by JETTEST

I'm kind of in a panic about the potential scope of this problem. Anyone else have similar?

'74 Ericson E-32 with Yanmar 2GM20 installed ~15 years ago.

Hello Jettest... the same thing happened to me a couple days ago -- and the solution wasn't killer co$tly! I was running down the Gulf coast ICW when the engine revved, yet no forward momentum. Yes, I can see my shaft (great access to engine components) however though the shaft was spinning I wasn't moving.

I was hoping for a sheared keyway -- that's a small square chunk of stainless (or bronze) that holds the propeller to the shaft so they spin together. It's a minor (so to speak) fix (remove prop, replace key, and put it all back together)

Anyway, I had a spare chunk of 5/16" square stainless and cut the appropriate length piece off from ship's stores so it was ready by the time the diver showed up. I wasn't that "lucky" -- it turned out the key that is in the coupler was both sheared (lenthwise!) and broken (vertically)
Yes, I managed to do both. (sigh) Probably why the shaft spun then stopped when in gear -- the dual break thing. Argh.

However, it wasn't terribly expensive and I was up and running within 2 and a half hours (including consult, dive, loosen coupling, replace keyway, mount coupling, re-set PSS (shifted when sliding back coupling) -- and I wish now I'd bought a split coupling but...

Good luck -- I hope yours is not too costly. Having accessible engine components helps a great deal.

[rtbates]

Glad it was a simple fix. I was going to suggest that maybe your prop fell off.

[HappyMdRSailor]

JET....

I think I speak for all of us when I say as politely as I can....


THANK YOU FOR POSTING YOUR FINDINGS AND END RESULT!!!!!!

While I didn't contribute here as others had it completely handled... I can most assuredly say that the majority of folks asking for help who don't give us a resolution after our efforts are beyond frustrating...

Glad your resolution was the easy road we all dream about!

Cheers!

[Mark1977]

Originally Posted by skipmac

OK. In an odd sense, that's good news. A lot cheaper to replace a key than to rebuild the transmission.

Plus it shows that CF was right, again. Mark1977 gets a gold star and a one year free membership to the forum for being the first one with the correct answer.

Yeah for me.... I will have to let my wife know I was right once.

[sailr69]

you didn't mention what tranny you have, but; I would think the trans is fine. you may have a broken coupling plate. bolts to the fly-wheel, splined to the trans. looks like a clutch plate center piece. with the circle of springs to absorb the shifting shocks. these do not last forever. good luck!

[SkiprJohn]

Glad it all worked out and congratulations on the troubleshooting and repair. You got lots of help here on the forum. Way to go Mark.

I've had similar things happen. One was a loose bolt holding down the control cable to the transmission. Very easy fix. One other was on a British Seagull outboard where the engine would rev but the prop was barely moving. That was the spring keeper on the prop and an easy fix. That was a problem similar to yours. The other was a prop shaft that back out of the coupler and the prop backed into the rudder (it didn't come all the way out TG). That required a snorkel and fins and a small crescent wrench (adjustable spanner) and seizing wire to fix. Snorkel and fins allowed me to push the prop and shaft back in place and the crescent wrench to allow me to get in a tight spot to tighten the bolt on the coupling enough to hold the shaft in.
kind regards,