[C320-list] Fw: Fw: stuffing box packing

[Bill Culbertson]

I've changed it several times on the hard and I wouldn't have enough nerve yet to change it in the water.  My first experience was almost as bad as Scott's.  It got better with practice and probably because the 1st year I tighted down too much probably making it harder to remove that year.  

I'm in the midwest and haul out every winter so it is a no-brainer to wait and change on the hard for me.

 -bill


----- Original Message ----
From: Jerry Clayton <jsea at prodigy.net>
To: C320-List <C320-List at catalina320.org>
Sent: Wednesday, November 1, 2006 11:03:44 AM
Subject: [C320-list] Fw: Fw: stuffing box packing


This has been my concern all along, a 20 minute job that turns into a 
nightmare.  Anyone else have experiences, good or bad about getting the old 
fiber out?

Regards,

Jerry Clayton

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Scott Thompson" <sthompson at toad.net>
To: "C320-List" <c320-list at catalina320.com>
Sent: Tuesday, October 31, 2006 3:18 PM
Subject: Re: [C320-list] Fw: stuffing box packing


>I did it on the hard and thought it WAS a big deal, primarily because I had 
>so much trouble getting the old stuff out.  It was unbelievably compressed 
>and tended to disintegrate as I removed it, which meant that even if you 
>got a few strands loose they just broke off instead of providing a means to 
>remove the rest.  In fact it took me at least several hours and two trips 
>to the store before I had tools that worked. The dental pick method didn't 
>work for me.  (The picks bent.)  The special tools for removing packing 
>that are sold in marine supply stores also failed.  The method recommended 
>here using drywall screws also didn't work for me.  In the end, a set of 
>Stanley picks -- which are much stiffer than dental tools -- worked for me. 
>I'd be nervous about taking this apart unless I had a reliable way to stop 
>the flow to no more than a slow trickle while the stuffing box is open. 
>Mine was open for several days once I started the project.
>
> Scott Thompson
>
> amshd2 at aol.com wrote:
>> I did it in the water not a big deal...   need to have everything ready 
>> and the packing material cut.   a couple of towels to stuff around the 
>> box helps keep teh amount of water down.......   -----Original 
>> Message-----
>> From: jsea at prodigy.net
>> To: C320-List at catalina320.com
>> Sent: Tue, 31 Oct 2006 1:53 PM
>> Subject: [C320-list] Fw: stuffing box packing
>>
>>
>> Bob, Did you do this with the boat in the water, or on the hard? I have 
>> been wanting to do this, but haven't yet, do to concerns over controlling 
>> the water intake during the installation process. Any suggestions anyone? 
>> Regards, Jerry Clayton Tropo #988 ----- Original Message ----- From: 
>> "Robert E. Sloat" <resloat at comcast.net> To: "C320-List" 
>> <c320-list at catalina320.org> Sent: Tuesday, October 31, 2006 6:20 AM 
>> Subject: Re: [C320-list] stuffing box packing
>>> I have hull 894 (2002) and the same situation with the owner's manual 
>>>  >saying 3/16 inch packing dimension. When measured using drills the 
>>> packing >was 1/4 inch. I used the 1/4 inch Gortex packing from emarine 
>>> mentioned in >an earlier string and basically eliminated any leakage to 
>>> the bilge. I >readjust once or twice during the season. This is the best 
>>> $15 investment >made on the boat and it only takes about 20 boat minutes 
>>> to replace the >packing. The hardest part was getting the old packing 
>>> out and cleaning >packing off of the threads on the packing fitting so 
>>> it could screw tight.
>>> This is the 3rd season on the packing. On thing I noticed is that I 
>>> could > only get 2 layers of packing in the fitting and the instructions 
>>> say use 3 > layers. I think there were only 2 layers of the original 
>>> stuff in the > fitting. Bob Sloat Savannah ----- Original Message -----  
>>>  > From: "Bill Culbertson" <billculb_a2 at yahoo.com> To: 
>>> <catalina at thehares.com>; "C320-List" <c320-list at catalina320.com> Sent: 
>>> Monday, October 30, 2006 10:10 PM Subject: Re: [C320-list] stuffing box 
>>> packing
>>>
>>> Bert,
>>> Jeff describes my situation. My manual says 3/16" just like yours. But > 
>>> my stuffing box takes 1/4".
>>> The dealer had put 1/4" when I took delivery. It leaked by season end so 
>>>  > when I replaced, I replaced with 3/16" per the manual. When I changed 
>>>  > that out after the 2nd season, I could see that the rings had a > 
>>> rectangular cross-section - not square. One dimension was about 1/4" - > 
>>> the other much skinnier than the original 3/16".
>>> So I used the drill bit technique, found that 1/4" drill bit fit fine 
>>> and > snugly, and switched back to 1/4".
>>> -bill
>>> ----- Original Message ---- 
>>> From: Jeffrey Hare <catalina at thehares.com> To: C320-List 
>>> <c320-list at catalina320.com> Sent: Monday, October 30, 2006 6:55:33 PM 
>>> Subject: Re: [C320-list] stuffing box packing
>>>
>>> Bert,
>>> I believe most people have reported that 1/4" is what actually fits on 
>>> our boats, even though the manual says 3/16". If you've actually used > 
>>> 3/16" and had it work, then you're boat is seems to be an exception to 
>>> the norm. :)
>>> Many folks have switched over to GFO packing material for dripless 
>>> operation.
>>> -Jeff
>>> -----Original Message----- 
>>> From: BAdams3491 at aol.com [mailto:BAdams3491 at aol.com] Sent: Monday, 
>>> October 30, 2006 6:27 PM To: c320-list at catalina320.org Subject: Re: 
>>> [C320-list] stuffing box packing
>>> Don't know what people are saying, but the owner's manual for my 1997 > 
>>> model says 3/16".
>>> Bert At Ease #442
>>>
>>>
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