Strut Toque Specs

[Juice75]

It looks like a bent strut was the cause for my prop shaft snapping. Does anybody know the torque specs for the strut bolts? It's for an '89 Comp, if that matters.

[DKJBama92Mariah]

I'm calling Anthony Cooper at Supra this afternoon about a new strut for mine. I'll ask him and let you know.

Cheers,
DKJ

[DKJBama92Mariah]

I talked to Mr. Cooper this afternoon. He told me there really isnt a stated torque spec. Just use your judgment, and get it tight enough to the new sealant squeezes out from between the strut and hull. I wouldnt go too tight though. You really dont want to crack the hull. Good luck, i'll be starting on mine on friday when the parts get here. I already pulled the shaft, if you havent got yours out yet, good luck. It took a c-clamp, a big hammer, and a lot of profanity to get the coupler off the end of my shaft.

Cheers,
DKJ

[Juice75]

Thanks for the info. How much did your strut cost? And what kind of sealant do you use? I'm planning on taking out my shaft tomorrow night. Well, the half that's still in the boat, anyway.

[DKJBama92Mariah]

The strut was $123.60 directly from Skier's Choice. Cooper said any good marine sealant would do. 3M's 5200 sealant is supposed to be really good, but beware, if you think you might want to ever remove it (i.e., if you ever bent it again), that stuff is next to impossible to to remove and will rip off your gelcoat if you're not careful. Cooper also recommended boatmate sealant, thats probably what i'm gonna use.

Good luck with the driveshaft. Email me if the coupler gives you any problems and i'll see if i can give you some pointers. [email protected] Just remember to soak the joint with plenty of penetrating oil. I'd have a hammer and 6" c-clamp on hand. Unfortunately, according to my prop guy, nobody makes a puller for this particular procedure.

Cheers,
DKJ

[Salty87]

i'm doing some driveshaft work too, my coupler was on good. you can try heat on it too but a big hammer did the trick for me.

[Juice75]

I must have gotten lucky. My coupler came right off. Once I removed the retaining nut, the couple wiggled right off. Ok, I say that was lucky. It actually looks like the coupler is worn, so I have to replace that as well as my prop shaft. Add up a $300 shaft and coupling, $125 strut, and the cost of getting everything aligned, and this just turned into an expensive summer. Oh well, I guess better safe than sorry.

[KenG]

DKJ, Salty87, Juice75,

DKJ is correct, I have not seen a puller for this task, but I do not think you need one. There is a simple method to remove the coupling half from the drive shaft that does not require a hammer or c-clamp or torch.

1. Remove the prop. Now you do not have to worry about dinging it against the rudder.

2. Unbolt the coupling halves and remove the bolts.

3. Separate the drive coupling halves to access the drive shaft coupling nut.

4. Loosen the coupling nut several turns but do not remove the coupling retaining nut from the drive shaft.

5. Insert a spacer between the transmission output shaft and the end of the drive shaft. The spacer has to be small enough to fit through the coupling nut.

6. Reinstall all of the coupling bolts. If the spacer you inserted is too long, you may need to use some longer coupling bolts or a shorter spacer.

7. Now slowly start tightening each coupling bolt using a cross-pattern. Tighten each bolt just a little and tighten each bolt evenly.

8. Eventually and with enough pressure, the coupling half on the drive shaft will pop loose from the drive shaft’s taper.

9. Leaving the drive shaft coupling nut on, but loose, will prevent the drive shaft from sliding completely out of the boat when the coupling half pops loose. However, you may find it easier to remove the coupling nut especially if you need to use larger diameter spacer. You just have to watch for the drive shaft sliding out when the coupling comes off.

--KG--

[DKJBama92Mariah]

Good call Ken,
I wish i had thought of this two days ago... It will definitely get filed away for later use though.

Thanks,
DKJ