dripping packing

[FF]

In the past with grease and flax packing the grease fitting would be relocated with a long suitable hose and a grease cup installed.

When the trip is over a quick turn on the cup is enough to stop drips till the next trip.

Duramax packing is a far better modern solution.

 

[jleonard]

IF you have to repack it I would use Teflon impregnated steam packing available from an industrial suppliers.
I was tortured with dripping packing for years, I got fed up with the constant adjustment, the worry in case the bilge pump failed and water in the keel so I took the bull by the horns and fitted a PSS seal, if you are handy with your hands its possible to fit it while the boat is in the water.
I've cruised probably around 8/10 thousands miles with never a problem.
However its your boat and your choice, whatever you do enjoy your cruising.

I also made the decision to go dripless and never looked back.
I chose a different style as I went with the "Tides Marine" lip seal style.
Put it in my old Mainship when i did the repower and that was in for 6 seasons without a single drop of water in the boat.
Then I installed the same in my Albin and that was in for 14 seasons totally dry.

 

[C lectric]

Leoka,
If you are running out of bolt thread then maybe another ring will be needed.
However I found the setup took some time. I still have a tiny bit of dripping sometimes while running. Once stopped the dips stop soon after. So you may need to keep adjusting a bit at a time. I don't mind the little dripping.
Gore warned about NOT tightening too much to soon so try a few more adjustments.
If you run out of bolt thread then yes add another ring but that is unusual to need that many rings. However it is what it is and your box is somewhat different from mine.

 

[LeoKa]

Leoka,
If you are running out of bolt thread then maybe another ring will be needed.
However I found the setup took some time. I still have a tiny bit of dripping sometimes while running. Once stopped the dips stop soon after. So you may need to keep adjusting a bit at a time. I don't mind the little dripping.
Gore warned about NOT tightening too much to soon so try a few more adjustments.
If you run out of bolt thread then yes add another ring but that is unusual to need that many rings. However it is what it is and your box is somewhat different from mine.

Yes, it seems that the 7th ring did the trick. It is not dripping now. I have not sailed yet, since I put in the 7th. I plan to go out this weekend. The bolts are just barely on now. I did not tight them much. After the run, I will do adjusting, but not like before. We will see. It is already good news that no dripping while stationary. If it starts again, but not too much, I can live with that. I just did not like a half a gallon accumulation each day.

 

[FF]

IF the stuffing box has a 1/8 inch fitting on it a cup greaser can be installed , just turn the cup after the days run and it will not leak a drop.

If tour wallet is thicker a copper tube can be hooked to the stuffing box and the grease fitting located where it is easy to access & use.

 

[LeoKa]

IF the stuffing box has a 1/8 inch fitting on it a cup greaser can be installed , just turn the cup after the days run and it will not leak a drop.

If tour wallet is thicker a copper tube can be hooked to the stuffing box and the grease fitting located where it is easy to access & use.

I’ll be honest with you, I am not understanding your solution clearly. Where would you put the greaser and how? Do you have a photo of this solution?

 

[FF]

"Where would you put the greaser and how?"

The simple solution is to purchase a SS grease nipple from an outboard shop and pump some grease in when the trip is over. Called a zerk fitting.

If only a tiny squirt of grease from gun stops the dripping, a grease cup can be installed instead of the SS zerk (grease) fitting.

A grease cup can be operated from 5-10ft away if hooked to the stuffing box with copper tubing.
Put it where its easy to get to .

 

[LeoKa]

I went out for sailing last Friday. I had the engine running for about 4 hours. When I returned the collecting bucket was full, about a gallon of water.
Since Friday, staying in the marina, it had about the same amount of water accumulated. Let’s say about half a gallon a day.
So, I am back to square one. Even the 7th ring of filament did not do the job. Although, I did not tighten the nuts on the box, I still hoped that it would slow down the dripping. The filament is 3/8 size and I could barely squeeze it in. I doubt any larger size of filament could be used.
Let me try to tighten the nuts again. I have about an 1 1/2 inch available on the thread.

 

[Portage_Bay]

Old style stuffing boxes like yours can be very fussy. They may never perform the way you would like them to. Especially if the shaft is scored from previous overtightening or running in water with heavy sediment. Or if the stuffing box is not perfectly aligned to the shaft.

When dealing with that kind of thing patience is key. I tighten the nuts one flat at a time. Run for a while. Do it again. If the stuffing box gets warm to the touch its too tight.

Sometimes it's not possible to get them to stop dropping. Then it's time to get creative with stumps and pumps.

 

[kapnd]

At this point, I’d start over again, do it yourself, so that you know it’s done correctly.
Cut the rings to fit tight, and cut at an angle.
Install with plenty of silicone grease swabbed all over.
Tap the rings lightly in place as you go.
Just snug the cap, and gradually tighten it as it gets some use.
You should never have to use force on the adjustment bolts.
Don’t forget to inspect the shaft, if it’s scored or pitted, you’re never going to get it sealed.
If you’re in saltwater, always flush the motors with fresh water after use, this flushes the packing gland as well.
Edit:
If the packing gland doesn’t have a raw water feed, you might consider to add that feature, it helps keep the packing cool and the stern bearing lubricated.

 

[rgano]

I was taught that a conventional shaft packing is OK to be warm to the touch at cruising speed and that until it become uncomfortable to grab and hold it with your hand, it's ok.

 

[koliver]

If you’re in saltwater, always flush the motors with fresh water after use, this flushes the packing gland as well.

To paraphrase your signature line, You won't be able to make us ski.

I used to flush with fresh after running in salt, when all I had was an outboard or an outdrive on a trailer. An inboard that lives in salt water, never. I don't know of any owners of inboards that live in salt water that ever flush with fresh. Other than here on TF, I have never heard of anyone having flush facilities on their boat.
So my conclusion is that flushing with fresh, though desirable if your outboard or outdrive is customarily stowed dry, is not necessary if your engines are kept wet, cooled with raw water or through a heat exchanger that is itself stored full of salt water. The only benefit I can see for those engines, is a longer time between using barnacle buster or physically ramming out the tubes.

 

[rgano]

Keith I think you have not seen enough boats or outboards yet, because people do freshwater rinse their engines, admittedly few, but they do.

I had a 2.5 HP Nissan outboard I never freshwater rinsed after use, in part because I was living aboard at a mooring and used it daily. Fast forward a few years to find me at a covered slip deciding to finally rinse the poor thing after years of neglect. Shortly after it got running, pow, off came a quarter of the head. Autopsy revealed cooling passages in the head caked with salt.

I did not rinse my GB42s Lehmans once in 29 years and had no real regular program for cooler maintenance, more or less at whim. Barnacle Buster was also more or less at whim too. Never had an overheat. I think my brother now has a rinse capability on his GB42s Lehman 120s.

My MS came to me with rinse connections on both main engine and generator, and the PO showed me their use and said he did it every time the boat came out of the water and into the boat barn. Thinking the 315 HP Yanmar is a bit more sensitive to any scale or clogging of its coolers, I have kept to the same regimen.

Looking back, I think I should have installed a rinse capability for my Lehmans, but other things on a wooden boat always got too busy.

 

[LeoKa]

Old style stuffing boxes like yours can
Sometimes it's not possible to get them to stop dropping. Then it's time to get creative with stumps and pumps.

Sounds good. I will follow this routine.
The shaft looked fine, when we did the job out on dry.
I could live with some water, but not a gallon every second day.

 

[LeoKa]

In the past with grease and flax packing the
Duramax packing is a far better modern solution.

I used Duramax.

 

[LeoKa]

At this point, I’d start over again, do it
If the packing gland doesn’t have a raw water feed, you might consider to add that feature, it helps keep the packing cool and the stern bearing lubricated.

The packing has salt water.

I plan to pull it out again next year, so I will redo the whole thing myself. We used Duramax, but I might follow your advice and add lots of silicon grease.