Sabre 28 Cutlass Bearing

[riphonda]

I am going to replace my cutlass bearing on my '76 28 foot sabre but I cannot find the set screw that holds the cutlass bearing in place. Am I missing something? Any info appreciated, i have scraped off the paint on the skeg and still have trouble finding what holds it in the skeg. This is keeping me from reinstalling the shaft and new stuffing box and would love to get the new bearing in so it wouldnt hold up the progress I should be making Thanks in advance.

[pfatyol]

With the shaft out, it may be easier to use a hacksaw blade and cut the cutlass bearing. One slice being cafefull not to go too deep. Then you can use pliers and sort of colaspe and pull out the bearing. Then you should be able to see were the set screws are from the inside. This is how I did my a few years ago. I did not want to scrape off all the barrier coat that I had done the prior year (I also had an Idea where they were).

Best of luck

[riphonda]

Thanks for the idea, I know the hacksaw is a viable option for tough to get out bearings, but hadnt even thought about it the way you suggested. Thats a great idea to avoid the whole screw search and probably not too time consuming, i know i have a few good hacksaw blades around here... somewhere....
Thanks for the thoughts.

[JHJensen]

It is possible that there may be no set screw in the strut. I have seen this many times. When you get the old bearing out, you will be able to see. Just cut the bearing out.

J.

[Capnblu]

Instead of just a hack saw, get, or borrow, or rent a reciprocating saber saw, it will make your life a lot easier. Use a fine blade, be careful. etc.

[riphonda]

Cutlass is out, thanks to a nice new stanley fine toothed hacksaw blade and some elbow grease. Should i have the new one pressed in at a machine shop? Oh i forgot to mention that i removed the strut to make my life easier and will re-bed and reinstall as soon as the new bearing is in. I like to remove and reinstall things on old boats as a preventative measure and most times im happy in the hind sight. Just removed the edson pedestal steering, wow am i glad i did that... all corroded and bolts halfway eaten as well as lots of chalky white buildup inside. Nice cleaning and nice new paint for it, then a re-bed and reinstall for that too. Thanks for the ideas.

[swokrams]

Hello riphonda,
I am about to replace the cutlass on my 1975 Sabre 28. Any tips? I am mechanically included, but I am new to sailboats. Do you have to cut the shaft, or replace it with a new one? Did you have to realign the engine, etc.

Sorry to pester you with questions, but experience is the best teacher and I am wondering what you learned.

Steve

[riphonda]

Hello Steve,

I replaced the cutlass this winter and ended up removing the prop drive shaft from the engine coupler and sliding it out with prop attached. First Id recommend loosening the stuffing box, Next undo the set bolt on the flange that the shaft slides into (the shaft is keyed into the flange). Next the method to remove the shaft is up to you, I sprayed with penetrant and pounded the shaft out using a block of wood and a 5lb sledge on the backside of the prop, working around in a circle with my brother in the bilge to see if we were making progress instead of beating the prop to death. I left the two flanges bolted together so only the shaft slid out.

After the shaft was out, I used a hacksaw blade as suggested above to cut the old cutlass sleeve in two places, then used a flathead screwdriver to "peel" out the brass. There is no set screw. It is a friction fit. The new bearing I ordered from deep blue yacht supply... it is a johnson (duramax) brass APEX which is what they call the 7/8" diameter shaft and 1 3/8" outer diameter sleeve cutlass bearing. I used a block and the same 5 lb sledge to set the new bearing in place as well. The bearing is slightly longer than the strut so you cut the extra off once in place if so desired. After all this, I replaced the 1 5/8" stuffing box hose with the wire reinforced exhaust type, double clamped and also replaced the (if i remember correctly) 1/4" flax packing with ptfe. You can get three rings of packing in there after pulling out the old. You shouldnt have to realign the engine after this procedure but it is always a good idea to anyways in terms of longevity. And afterall once you are crammed in that little space you might as well... Let me know if you have any other questions, I have rebuilt this entire boat bulkheads and all over the winter and am getting ready to repaint the hull. Ill double check on the driveshaft flax size. I do know that the rudder post stuffing box uses 5/16" which i replaced last week. Everything on my boat was original so I opted to rebuild, replace or repack each item and well I guess I got a little carried away as usual... (fortunately Im not married yet...) Stick around, ive found that sailnet is a great place. Best of luck with your boat.

[swokrams]

Thanks for the reply, rip. The marina removed the shaft and cut the bearing out ($150). So the worst is over. I will order a new "APEX." I just bought the boat two Decembers ago, my first. What a great boat she is, very solidly built. I really lucked out not knowing that Sabre is a premium brand. I appreciate your advise on the re-install, which sounds a lot easier than the removal process.

Thanks for the welcome, too. -Steve