I need help!

Guys,

My boat is for sale and during the haulout the surveyor found a slight bit of movement in the prop. He diagnosed it as needing a cutlass bearing.

Now myself and the potential buyer are trying to figure out how much it would cost to get it done.

The shaft is 1.5 inches and goes into the keel. How involved a process is this?

Is it a $500 job or a $5K job!? Other than that my boat surveys came back with flying colors. The buyer even had a separate engine done.

Thanks so much ! Please feel free to call or text me. We're trying to get this sorted out ASAP (like today). Im gonna call some local marinas today but I think they may be closed.

Jason 617.817.1136

A little play, like 1/16" is completely ok. Surveyors flag these all the time and replacement is not necessary.

The cost to replace bearing will likely be higher on that boat as rudder may need to be dropped to pull shaft. It is something I would schedule for a normal maintenance haulout, no need to panic and rush a change. Even if play is 1/8".

In the yard, I'd figure $1k wild guess.

I suspect you really can't argue with the surveyor's opinion, but I agree with Ski. I have lived with cutlass bearing play of 1/16" or maybe a bit more just fine.


I also think $1,000 is in the ball park.


David

Offer the buyer $500 credit on the sale and move on.

I know your original question concerned cost. I had a similar situation on a prepurchase survey for a boat I was selling. The buyers surveyor found about 0.075" movement in the strut bearing and flagged it as needing replacement. I asked the buyer what the surveyor used as his criteria. I had a USCG inspection document that stated the following:

Check and Record Strut and Hull Cutless Bearing Clearances: MaximumAllowableClearances

1"Shaftdiameter -.070"
1-1/2"Shaftdiameter-.081"
1-3/4"Shaftdiameter -.086"
2"Shaftdiameter -.091"
2-1/2"Shaftdiameter -.100"


When I presented that info to the buyer the issue went away.

Just did this. Figure about $1k.

Gordon

Thanks everyone. I called about 5 different marinas, diesel boat repair places and independent guys this afternoon. Nothing. Crickets. I'll be waiting til Tuesday now to get a quote.

Since the shaft has to come out, this one gets a little more time. I would say 1K is fair.

One of my cutlass bearings was also "flagged" by the surveyor in December. In March, I had my good boat tech replace it. He did pull the shaft (wing engine) but it was not more than a couple of hours' labor and a standard off-the-shelf part. My job included drilling out a seized screw from the drip less packing. As mentioned, I suspect $500 should more than cover it.

Good Luck

Greetings,
Mr. SoH. If the buyer really wants your boat, he/she shouldn't mind the slight delay. YOU want the fairest and best price on both sides, I'm sure, AND eliminating the "coulda, woulda, shoulda's" won't cause you any sleepless nights.

I'm in the defer camp. Ask the buyer if they'll take a few bucks and let them watch and see.

If you weren't selling the boat you may have run it another ten years without knowing the cutlass bearing clearance.


The old guys used to say: "If it ain't leaking, it's burning up." "The shaft doesn't ride on the bearing, it rides on the water anyways". (sic)

The more it's worn, the faster it wears.

If it's too tight it will wear too fast too.

I think you should break out a feeler gauge and find out for sure what the gap is before you start breaking out the boat bucks, the bearing just might be in spe.

Hi there. Yes, we got a solid response from a reputable shop nearby. The shaft definitely has to be pulled out and the rudder disconnected. The parts costs are minimal and the labor is the bulk of the bill. We were ballpark quoted $1750-2000k.

NOW THE CRAZY PART! The buyer was hospitalized last weekend for 2 days with chest pains and I allowed him to back out of the deal. He even showed me a picture of his hospital chart with the date on it. It's totally legitimate and just very bad luck (for both of us!).


Fast forward to today. I'm willing to sell the boat for $79k OBO. I have the 2 good surveys in my hand and am also willing to pay for winter storage. I want to sell before winter! If anyone knows anyone looking for a well equipped Camano then send them my listing. THIS IS A BARGAIN AND A HALF.... No survey costs, haulout fees or winter storage fees! That's about another $5k of savings!!

https://www.yachtworld.com/boats/2000/camano-troll-3246166/?refSource=standard listing#.W8CGsddKgdU

South of Heaven said:

Please feel free to call or text me.

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Please keep discussions in the forum for the benefit to other and the contribution from a variety of sources. Soliciting discussions out of the forum goes against the nature and intention of a forum.

I'd call a few marine service providers and get an estimate of cost. Cutlass bearings are commonly serviced items.

I am going through this very expensive process right now. The chute in which the shaft rotates needs to be replaced as it was severely corroded and was leaking water into the keel. Then, when they removed the shaft it turns out it was scored by the cutlass bearing and will need to be replaced as well. It is a 10 foot long 1 1/2 diameter ss shaft. The bearing housing was made of bronze but the chute of stainless steel. After 30 years, electrolysis took its toll on the threads so it also needs replacement. My bill, once all set and done, will be over 10 grand. I am told by the boat yard (Sausalito, CA $$$$) that most Taiwan-built boats have or will have this problem in due time. That includes Grand Banks, CHB and all other similar hulls including our Fu Hwa.

Boat said:

If it's too tight it will wear too fast too.

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Why would anyone install a bearing that is "too tight" ?

FWIW, not much as I can`t specify the process,a yard I used replaced a cutlass bearing on the IG using a tool which one of the shipwrights who was also a metal fabricator had made,apparently it made for a quick easy job. Don`t know how,don`t use them anymore so can`t find out, but he was proud of what he was doing, the tool he`d made, and the time it saved.
He made me a great tool for deck fill caps,and an ss cover for a Perkins/Holset turbo on another boat, smart at making metal things.

The bearing was likely installed by the previous owner. He had the boat in the Sea of Cortez, Mexico for a while. Who knows what they did over there.
I have had our boat for 13 years so it finally caught up.
I will send some pictures of the shaft, the corroded chute and bearing housing when the job is done.