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Old 30-04-2007, 06:58   #1
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Stuffing box help

Is there anyway to control or slow the amount of water dripping in through the stuffing box. I had herd it was supose to be about one drip every 5 sec or so. Lately after I have been motoring I have noticed that It is dripping very fast. It usually slows a bit after I havn't been motoring for a while, but anyway. Should I be worried about the large amount of dripping going on here? and is there a way to adjust the amount of water the suffing box lets in?
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Old 30-04-2007, 08:29   #2
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Did a search on stuffing box in this forum. Here is one result.

http://www.cruisersforum.com/forums/...t=stuffing+box



And here is a Don Casey article.
Servicing Your Stuffing Box by Don Casey



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Old 30-04-2007, 10:19   #3
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your stuffing box should not drip when not motoring. you can adjust the stuffing box carefully with a large wrench ... once the lock nut is loose you should be able to tighten the box enough with your hands to stop the leak. if the stuffing is old and hard then the leak may not stop.

here is an interesting link i found:
Re-Packing A Traditional Stuffing Box Photo Gallery by Maine Sailing at pbase.com
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Old 30-04-2007, 12:46   #4
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Gonesail,
Thanks for that link. Very good.
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Old 30-04-2007, 18:20   #5
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cal40john,

Mahalo for the link to Don Casey's Library. Excellent article.
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Old 30-04-2007, 18:20   #6
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cal40john,

Mahalo for the link to Don Casey's Library. Excellent article.

_____________________________________

Iain,

If you prefer dust in your bilges try the PSS shaft seal. I've used one for years and recommend them without hesitation. I do keep a traditional packing gland on board as a backup if I need to replace it while out cruising.
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Old 30-04-2007, 18:53   #7
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Gonesail..

I think you misread my article on re-packing a stuffing box. I am actually the guy that wrote and hosts that. Yes I go by both Maine Sail and Acoustic depending on the forum but I am one in the same.

Here's the point. All traditional stuffing boxes, including ones packed with Gore GFO, must drip slightly when the shaft is spinning. If water does not drip you WILL ruin the shaft. Gore GFO can drip as little as 1 drop per two minutes and still run cool to the touch but traditional flaxes need to drip more like 3 to 10 drops per minute when the shaft is spinning. The closer you get to three drops per minute, with standard flax, the more shaft wear you will get. Never adjust the stuffing box with a wrench unless you have to! Always hand adjust then lock the nuts agaist each other with wrenches. If you over tighten you run the risk of ruining the packing as it does not have much rebound and does seem to have a memory.

So in short break the large nut from the lock nut with wrenches then adjust by hand a 1/4 turn at a time until you get the minimal drips and still have a cool to the touch stuffing box. Traditional flax boxes should run cool to the touch not warm. GFO can run slightly warm unless you are in a high silt area then more cooling water is necessary. Some folks claim derip free operation with GFO but it is not designed for this and the Gore directions are clear on minimal dripping not NO dripping..

My traditional stuffing box directions:
Re-Packing A Traditional Stuffing Box Photo Gallery by Maine Sailing at pbase.com

If you want totally drip free here's my instructions for a PSS Shaft Seal:
PSS Shaft Seal Installation Photo Gallery by Maine Sailing at pbase.com

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Old 01-05-2007, 00:39   #8
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Thanks for the link to your excellent illustrated tutorial. I don’t think I’ve ever seen a better set of descriptive photo’s!
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Old 01-05-2007, 04:13   #9
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No problem Gord..

I do what I can to help....
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Old 01-05-2007, 04:49   #10
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Acoustic
I think you misread my article on re-packing a stuffing box.
what I wanted to say was that the stuffing box should not drip when the boat is at the dock. it should however drip when motoring. is that correct?
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Old 01-05-2007, 04:56   #11
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Yes that's correct...

It should drip when shaft is spinning but should not while engine is stopped. The caveat however is that if your stuffing is more than a couple of years old it may still drip while at rest even when adjusted properly for running conditions...
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Old 29-05-2007, 07:31   #12
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Two screws stuffing box.....

My boat has a different type stuffing box. It has one that has two screws......one on each side with two nuts each. The shaft is 1 1/8".My first concern is if this is a suitable type of stuffing box?The second is that it seems to get warm when the boat is used...also some kind of green stuff dripped from it....maybe a nickle sized..
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Old 29-05-2007, 12:01   #13
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I've never seen a packing nut that shiny in my life. how'd you do that"
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Old 27-08-2007, 11:36   #14
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On my "new" old boat, I've got a very slow drip on my packing gland with shaft still. Maybe 1 tablespoon a week. The output shaft on the Hurth transmission appears to be something like 1.75" and I noticed that the shaft was turning blue green. Does this imply some copper content? Anyway, I could not budge any of the nuts on this shaft. They are completely frozen. Is it critical that the small drip be fixed immediately?

PS. I already replaced the shaft zinc. It was mostly expired.

PSS. Is there a miracle product for breaking those nuts free? I tried penetrating oil with no luck.
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Old 27-08-2007, 11:43   #15
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Aloha DRH,
It would be good for you to describe the shaft log and packing gland. There are quite a few different styles.
Your leak does not seem to be very significant but if it is from a certain style of gland it could indicate impending problems.
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