How to take off prop????

[john232]

I need to take off the prop on my 30 foot sailboat, its a 2 bladed prop that is driven by a Volvo MD7A engine. I need to know the cheapest way to do it effectively and safely. Thanks for the replies, you Guys are a Godsend.

[Jeff_H]

The best advice is to rent or build a prop puller. The best way to build a prop puller is to use either heavy plate (3/8" or so) or else heavy angle iron. The one side has a hole drilled in it the size of the shaft which is sawn out to a slot that fits over the prop shaft on the engine side of the shaft. (There is often a ''gate'' that keps the puller on the shaft) The other piece will often be flat or else a ''centering stud''that sits against the end of the shaft. On home builts both plates are often ''lined'' with a piece of hardwood to protect the shaft end and propeller. Both plates have a bolt hole at each end through which a largish (1/2" or 5/18") diameter piece of ''all tread'' is passed. The threads are lubed to prevent galling and then the nuts are tightened a bit at a time which should loosen the prop pretty easily since the shaft is typically tapered. If the prop is still tight then carefully heat only the prop hub with a torch so that it will expand relative to the cool prop shaft. Do not over heat the prop.

Jeff.

[geohan]

To remove the propellor only, dive yourself or hire a diver to do the job. Or, put the boat up on a tidal grid if the underbody can take it and the tidal range is sufficient. Another option is if you can find a sandbar with a fairly steep slope (look around at low tide) and adequate tidal range, beach the boat. Finaly, you might be able to careen the boat, down by the bow, enough to reach the prop from the surface either in floatation gear or a dingy. Interestingly, an engineering friend made his 40-foot sloop the center of a timber sandwich and let it dry out on a flat beach. The 8x10 timber under the keel was an old railroad switch tie which was connected to the upper smaller timber with chains and turnbuckles. the upper timber spanned the boat and was supported at the gunnels near the shrouds. Then of course, there is the method in England where struts are rigged at the shrouds to enable the boats to dry out unattended. While a haulout at the boatyard may not be cheap it will get the job done and that''s about all I can think of on this subject.
Regards, George.

[Fstbttms]

John,
Much of what has been written here is good info, but if you need more details on techniques and tools, contact me backchannel. matt@fastbottoms.com