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Old 01-04-2016, 09:14 PM   #16
kapnd
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City: hawaii
Vessel Name: #31
Vessel Model: ex-Navy MUB 50 fish/cruise
Join Date: Aug 2013
Posts: 873
[QUOTE

Yes I am focused on the top bushing because I already re-machined a new lower suport bushing last year. (See my thread "rudder stuffing" of last April).


Overgill,
I am concerned that the shaft could be worn down where it passes through your brand new lower bushing.
Wear on rudder shafts is usually limited to a small but critical area, you won't find wear clear around it like a propeller shaft, as it only rotates through about 70 degrees. Depending on how much room you have available, the top bearing and seal can sometimes be moved to a "clean" area of shaft for a fresh start, but the bottom is less forgiving. If it's worn, you might find a machine shop that would build it back up, then machine it round again, but personally, I'd replace the whole works if it got to that point.

Boating in Hawaii is boating in the middle of the ocean, can be idyllic or brutal, sometimes in very close order, usually leaning to the latter.
There's precious little protected water, definately no ICW type cruising.
Marinas are few and far between, and anchoring off a windward shore is always iffy, as, like today, the swell is 20', and the shoreline is unapproachable on north and east shores.
Warm water year round, so the marine growth battle never ends, no winter rest period.
Other than that, I love it, maybe the fact that it's not easy makes it more enticing?
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