[Public-list] VOL IT

[Rob Alley]

Don:  I didn't miss it so much as as I was waiting for verification that 
there was a key way of some sort.........

Rob

Don Campbell wrote:

>	Having read some of the replies to Jack's question, I thought I should
>send this to the list since most of you missed that the keyways on the
>couplers could be cracked. 
>Don # 528
>
>-------- Original Message --------
>Subject: VOL IT
>Date: Fri, 07 Jul 2006 21:39:15 -0400
>From: Don Campbell <dk.campbell at sympatico.ca>
>Reply-To: dk.campbell at sympatico.ca
>To: "Walsh, Jack" <jackwalsh3 at verizon.net>
>
>Hi Jack;
>    I have had the same problem. It happened to me in  the  Welland
>Canal a couple of years ago and sailing is not allowed there! I managed
>to get forward motion  from the pressure of the shaft driven forward by
>the prop onto  the end of the tranny shaft!
>    The keyway in the coupling is just a 1/8 x 1/4 slot in both halves.
>However, the amount of metal between the keyway and the edge of the
>coupler, particularly on the half on the  tranny is really thin and this
>often breaks allowing for a lot of play for the key. The original key
>was brass or bronze.  There is no Woodruff keyway  in the shaft either,
>but a 1/8 x 1/4 slot as well, so the key is 1/4 x 1/4. When I took both
>halves of the coupler off, both keyways were broken out. You may need a
>magnifying lens to see it but once you know it is there is is really
>obvious.
>    I went in to the main supplier for Atomic 4 parts in Toronto to get
>new ones and as usual, none were available but used ones were. All were
>in the same state with broken keyways so I brought the boat home 100
>miles  without reverse and   only a very weak forward, still having to
>go through the canal and took both halves to a local machinist. He made
>me a pair for less than the cost of the  used ones. The problem with the
>standard ones is that they have the keyways aligning on both halves
>insead of having them at 180 degrees apart - that is,  the front one
>should be on the bottom while the back one should be on the top to
>balance the shaft properly, so they did that too. (But the shop requires
>both halves to get the balance correct because the three bolts that join
>the couplers are not perfectly symmetical, so not interchangable for
>alignment and would not align at 180 in any event since thay are 120
>degrees apart). Then there is the problem of the nut on the back of the
>tranny shaft that holds the front half of the coupler to the
>transmission shaft. It is held locked on with a lock washer by bending
>the 3 small sections up against the sides of the nut. If or rather when
>this lets go, the threads on the shaft become ruined very easily since
>reverse gear backs the nut off, as mine were, so you need to replace
>both the nut and the shaft. Since no-one wants to sell just the shaft,
>you will probably have to buy the whole transmission or get a shaft
>machined. The nut was about $40 as it is a special half normal
>thickness  one and the lock is another part.
>    This is a nutty system really, as there are so many things that were
>not done correctly the first time. Even finding replacement keystock
>that is bronze is not easy and with the mix of metals there anyway, the
>galvanic action between mild steel and stainless is such that using
>either material for the keyway is probably preferable to using bronze
>and adding a third metal.
>    The other thing that is never easy is the location of this stuff.
>There is only one way to get at it and that is to stand on your head ,
>get over the motor some how,  and take off both sections of the coupler
>without dropping the keys into the bilge. (You can also pull the motor ,
>which I did,  as it was easier to replace the transmission out than in.
>Moyer's manual is quite good for the photos and description of the
>procedure but it is not required if you are able to remember what you
>have done as you take things apart.There is a seal to replace on the
>coupler that affixes to the transmission so you need two pretty rugged
>screwdriver-wedges to start the coupler off and then a gear puller is
>best for the balance of the pull there. That coupler  really needs to be
>checked as the broken keyway scores the seal so oil leaks into the
>bilge. Moyers have the seal.
>    If you need to align things once the coupler is fixed, I have a
>simple and cheap way to do that if you have a coat hanger, some masking
>tape and a grinder. A second person helps a lot too, more for eyes than
>strength.
>I hope this helps.
>Don #528
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