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A sailboat was blocked in a marine yard undergoing seasonal maintenance. The owner was replacing zincs and applying new bottom paint. He had received a letter from his insurance company that a survey was needed prior to getting his new policy, so he figured this was a good time since the boat was already out of the water. The surveyor found the cutless bearing excessively worn and recommended replacement prior to re-launching. After receiving a repair estimate, the owner contracted with a local repair facility to perform the task.
The contractor found the propeller shaft flange excessively corroded and after many attempts was unable to remove the shaft. So he cut the shaft in order to get it out. Next, the cutless bearing was also corroded into the strut. In order to remove the bearing required extensive hammering to free it from the strut. While the hammering broke loose the bearing, it also broke all the fiberglass fairing where the strut is fastened to the hull bottom. The repair yard apologized for the damage but stated this often happens and was unavoidable. The repair now required a new propeller shaft and considerable fiberglass repair along with re-alignment of the strut. Total cost: $1,200.00.
Again, this could have been avoided if the repair yard or boat owner had a
Strut Pro® tool. The Cutless® bearing could have been replaced very easily and totally damage free.
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