loosing the driple$$ seal and getting stuffing box

[deniseO30]

The "strongseal" dripless replacement seals are almost the same cost as a new stuffing box! I cannot find any logical reason to not go back to a SB. reliable, simple, cheap to maintain, doesn't steal water from the raw water system. What say the jury?

[sailingdog]

Totally up to you. But, I'd say go back to the old-style stuffing box with a good teflon packing material...

[pigslo]

Is your bilge dry otherwise? If so, keeping a bilge dry is a beautiful thing.
pigslo

[Rockter]

I can speak highly of the orthodox stuffing box.

Let it drip a wee bit to keep it cool, pump the bilge every now and again.

Don't over-tighten it.

I use the old-fashioned packing material.

[pigslo]

Perhaps a good poll question on dripless/ non-dripless to see what the pros and cons are of the dripless since they have been around awile.
pigslo

[SEMIJim]

Our stuffing box needs re-stuffing. I plan to use GFO Fiber Packing.

Jim

[Brezzin]

I'm a fan of the dripless. Had one on my last boat for 8 years never an issue. The new boat also has one. Can't really figure out why stealing the from raw water system is an issue. but I will tell you that I'm not a midget contortionist so I don't really like adjusting the standard stuffing box.

[SailorMitch]

Brezzin brings up the access issue, and that is a valid one. I've been on boats where it's nearly impossible to get to the stuffing box at all, and those are the best bets for a dripless system. (But you still need to burp them, or maintain them in some way.) But if you can get to the stuffing box without having to dislocate body joints, then I'd go with a traditional one. I have kept the standard SB on my P-33-2 because it is so easy to get to. The new teflon or goretex stuffing materials are long lasting, and you can all but make them dripless.

[ehmanta]

I replaced my stuffing box with a PYI dripless and haven't looked back!!! The old stuffing box worked like planned, but the new (6 Yrs old now) is sooooo much nicer........no drips, no problems....Happy Boater

[Valiente]

I have a teflon-packed original (35 years old) stuffing box on my "classic plastic" boat and the same on the 20 year old steel cutter. But my plans are to change the prop, put in a coupler, change the engine mounts, etc., and a stuffing box isn't in that equation, because water has no place in the bilges of a steel boat if it can be avoided.

It hasn't been a huge issue to this point because the previous owners didn't move the boat much, and because we are in fresh water. But I see no good reason to avoid the PSS/dripless bellows style, simply because it keeps that steady ingress out.

Were it a fibreglass boat, I would be more 50/50 on the issue, because I find traditional stuffing boxes no particular mystery.