Should we be worried? (Post-Survey advice)

[Pete7]

Originally Posted by fstbttms

I don’t think it’s grease (there shouldn’t be grease on the shaft or cutless in any event.) It looks more like a line wrap that got sucked into the cutless.

Not sure, I think its grease. Someone has recently fitted new seacocks to this boat and I wonder if they thought it was a good idea to slap some grease into the cutlass in at the same time Easy enough to find out and remove before she goes back into the water.

[IslandHopper]

I'd call it grease...

[Searles]

I would agree the red stuff is rope wound into the bearing,this may have caused the stern tube extension to fail ,which may allow the shaft to flop around and cause more damage ,get it fixed ,the keel bolts check them all ,how old are they,Beneteau recommend replacement at 10 yrs ,how old is the standing rigging,and chain plates ,like it or not this is an ocean voyage .⚓️⛵️

[Pete7]

Originally Posted by Searles

I would agree the red stuff is rope wound into the bearing,this may have caused the stern tube extension to fail ,which may allow the shaft to flop around and cause more damage ,get it fixed ,the keel bolts check them all ,how old are they,Beneteau recommend replacement at 10 yrs ,how old is the standing rigging,and chain plates ,like it or not this is an ocean voyage .⚓️⛵️

Surely the surveyor would have commented if it was rope or plastic?

Depends were in Spain, but from Spain to the Netherlands could be a canal trip, or a series of short hops.

[NBs]

Hi,

it seems that the keel bolt/plate has crevice corrosion.

I recommend to open (always use lubricant on the bolts) and check the condition of the bolt under the plate.

crevice corrosion can even eat a bolt across, over time, out of your sight. The water doesn't necessarily come from the outside and crevice corrosion doesn't need more than a little moisture, e.g. condensation.

NBs

[Davidasailor]

I agree whatever the red stuff is shouldn’t be there. If someone just got carried away with grease it’s probably no big deal as long as the rubber is compatible with the grease.

On newer Beneteau hulls that joint between the shaft log and skeg is sealed with a more flexible compound, like 5200. It may be that yours had 5200 there and it’s just cracked, or it may be possible to fix just by cleaning it up and adding some. It’s hard to tell exactly what’s going on from the picture because the bottom growth is obscuring the joint a bit.

[SailFastTri]

Whether the red stuff is rope or grease, either should come out. You need to find out if the grease is a type that’s compatible with rubber, and if you can’t find out you should assume it’s not and try to negotiate the cost of cutless bearing replacement. Even just removing the grease means pulling the shaft and that might take an hour or a day depending on how easily the shaft comes out.
For a worst case labor estimate: In one of my prior boats we were unable to pull the shaft without removing the engine because it wouldn’t come out of the shaft coupling, so we pulled it out by removing the prop and pulling it through the inside. It required a hydraulic press with ~20,000# of pressure to remove the shaft from the coupling in the shop. (The engine had been submerged and the coupling was badly rusted, so we were pulling the engine anyway to rebuild it).
While the shaft is out you should bring it to a machine shop and ask them to verify it is still true (straight) within specs. You should also bring the coupling and ask them to verify the face is true, and if not have them true it. Replace or repair the shaft if needed.
As for the stern tube delaminating, it might have been caused by engine misalignment, bent shaft (shaft whip) or perhaps from someone banging on the cutless bearing with a mallet during replacement (my guess the last is most likely). Repair would require grinding the fiberglass enough to remove stern tube and re-glassing the area. Assuming the tube is still in good condition it’s just labor, and you should be able to get an estimate.
I don’t see any of this as a show stopper but it would be worthwhile in your negotiations to know the worst case parts and labor estimates for that boat.
Edit: If you don’t detect excessive vibration during sea trial then the alignment and trueness is not likely a problem.

[MicHughV]

The stern tube being loose or open crack, etc, makes me wonder why ?
I'm very familiar with The Beneteau 423 which has an almost identical setup.
That tube goes quite a way inside the boat, where it is laminated to the hull for most of it's length.
I would certainly check that tube from inside the boat. It's not difficult to get too.

[SailingHarmonie]

Maybe I am just a chicken, but a cracked stern tube that was leaking water into the hull would count as an emergency repair to me. I would go NOWHERE with the boat, and would worry about it sitting at the dock.

You seem to be a short distance away from a very large hole in the boat if that crack gets larger.
But that’s me…

[Sailorman97]

Originally Posted by capt jgw

The keel bolt should be an easy fix. I believe that boat has an iron keel and the the bolts are just regular hex bolts. You should be able to just unscrew them to inspect and replace if needed. It can even be done in the water one at a time. If water comes in through the holes you'll know you have more of a problem, the bedding has failed. There is a slight chance the bolt is compromised so badly that it breaks off instead of unscrewing but that's rare. It did happen to me though, but that bolt had been leaking for years and was very rusty. Yours doesn't look nearly that bad. You can get the torque values from the factory and retorque all the bolts while you're at it.
The shaft problem looks a bit more serious, needs a pro repair I think.

If it is a iron keel the bolts should be galvanized grade 8 hex bolts and should be replaced with same. Those bolts look like stainless steel in the picture

Beneteaus advise on replacing keel bolts was to replace them with stainless steel and check them every year. That is nuts. half of my bolts can not even be gotten at without major work. Galvanized was what they were and they lasted 30+ yrs.

On my boat Beneteau covered the bolts with a fairing compound and where the fairing compound did not crack the bolts were very good underneath. Where it had cracked the bolts were not very good at all.

When we the bolts after they were torqued we covered them in Permatex Ultra Black which will keep any water or fuel oil that finds its way into the bilge away from the tops.

[MicHughV]

Interesting...my Beneteau...2006 model has S/S keel bolts...

[SailFastTri]

Originally Posted by SailingHarmonie

Maybe I am just a chicken, but a cracked stern tube that was leaking water into the hull would count as an emergency repair to me. I would go NOWHERE with the boat, and would worry about it sitting at the dock.

You seem to be a short distance away from a very large hole in the boat if that crack gets larger.
But that’s me…

It all depends on severity and leak rate. I wouldn't worry too much about it unless the surveyor states it's a critical fix. If not it's a probably a nuisance level issue.
The keel bolts might be a more critical issue - again I'd rely on the surveyor's assessment and advice, rather than advice from internet gasbags (like me ) who've never examined it first-hand.

[Sailorman97]

Originally Posted by MicHughV

Interesting...my Beneteau...2006 model has S/S keel bolts...

Isn't it though. My information came from Beneteau US in 2013. They said they no longer sold the galvanized bolts ( DACROMATISED STEEL BOLTS TYPE 8-8. ) only the stainless ones and that they should be checked every year.

That is simply not on for me. Removing 14- 30mm bolts for inspection once a year is a bit over the top. Remove furniture, engine , flooring etc... No thanks.

[MicHughV]

I don't think the keel has ever been removed on my Beneteau for any reason...a peer into the rather shallow bilge reveals little or no concern that would make me want to remove the keel.

When Beneteau sez to check do they mean to remove the keel or just inspect the bolts in the bilge ?

I found a video some time back on Youtube that shows these bolts inserted into the keel for a Beneteau. Root around and you'll find it.

Firstly, the cast iron keel is cast with s/s threaded inserts placed into the casting at each bolt location. The inserts are all welded together in a cage type arrangement, so as to lock them all together in perfect alignment with the holes in the hull. They appear to be about 15" long and are embedded full length.

The keel bolt (a s/s threaded rod) is then smeared with some or other goop and screwed into these inserts. I believe the goop is a permanent thread locker.

Prior to dropping the hull onto the boat, the keel bolts are gooped up again, as is the mating surface of the keep top.... 3M's 5200 I believe...

Once the hull is on the boat, the keel nuts are placed over the threaded rods and are tightened (torqued) in a pre-determined pattern.

That's pretty much it.

All in all, a very satisfactory method in my humble opinion.

[boatpoker]

Red (I think grease) stuff shouldn't be there. It will inhibit cooling of the bearing.

Shaft should be removed, cleaned and inspected. It doesn't look healthy.