[C320-list] ? Add packing in the water?

[Chris Burti]

"Adding" packing is highly discouraged, it is simply a bad practice.

Replacing the packing while in the water is a bit intimidating the first time, but is done salely all the time. 

Cut your three rings before you remove the old packing. Overlap the ends of a ring on the shaft and cut through both ends at one time on the diagonal with a razor. This creates a perfectly fitting, self sealing ring, where the diagonal faces meet. 

Get some rags to slow down the water and make sure your bilge pump is working properly.

Remove the nut and dig out the old packing by drilling in a sheetrock screw and pulling it out with vise grips. Use a dental pick to clean out the stray strands. The water that comes in around the rags is perfectly managable.

Put two rings on with the joint at 90 degrees apart, snug the nut down hand tight. Back off the nut again and put in the third ring at 90 degees. If you are using the Gore product, snug down slowly until the drip just stops. Start the engine and run in gear. No drips at rest and a drip every minute while running is the considered by many to be the ideal adjustment in practice. The stuffing box will stay cool and your bilge will stay dry. If it doesn't drip at all when running, I would worry that it was too to tight and and that undue friction would dammage the packing.

If you use traditional flax, 1-2 drips per minute at rest is the recommended rate. The water is the lubricant. Insufficient water will result in friction caused overheating that will destroy the packing and could result in scoring the shaft which would prevent proper sealing.

 
Chris Burti
"Commitment"
Catalina 320, #867, 
Farmville, NC


----- Original Message ----
From: "sholdr at aol.com" <sholdr at aol.com>
To: c320-list at catalina320.org
Sent: Thursday, February 22, 2007 9:56:18 AM
Subject: [C320-list] ? Add packing in the water?


Have Hull #322 with original shaft packing which is near the end of it's adjustment but leaking a little more than recommended.  Bought the boat and brought it to a lake with no lift large enough to handle this size boat -- can I back off the nut, add packing and re-seat the nut, or is this asking for trouble?

When I have to have the bottom re-done (Just completed last year by prior owner) will switch to the dripless type.

Thanks

Phil Hansen
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