bent prop and prob strut..ideas?????

[Wesjxxx]

well......heading in yesterday from a nice day out and didn't really feel a hit, but a sudden vibration....
knew prop was hit or something was wrapped around it...limped in at 5mp. soon as it was on trailer I saw that prop had a couple bends....I was on cedar creek, which is a huge lake, but is riddled with sand bars and floating debris...never again..... I had noticed after purchasing boat strut was set to left and had read that shaft was supposed to be offset to left and thought nothing about it. once I pulled prop I noticed shaft wasn't really centered in bushing...small gap on left of shaft and squished to right of bushing....found a place to exchange prop and they sell struts......im guessing to replace strut I can just unbolt and slide off? correct? I had noticed no vibration before but could never easily turn prop by hand
(guessing because of slight bind) so im pretty sure shaft is fine. any input would be appreciated and thanks in advance.

links to pics.....I guess just click them

[Wesjxxx]

also I have been having to tighten stuffing box often...guess that would explain that too....dripping kinda steady.
gonna repack this week

[Boonejeepin]

Been there, done that. Pull the prop, strut, and shaft. Take them to a prop shop and have the prop and strut repaired and the shaft checked. Make sure to do a shaft alignment after everything is back together.

And... Check for damage to the hull. I doubt that though.

I found that pulling the v-drive is the easiest way to remove the shaft. At least on my boat.

Sorry!!!

[Wesjxxx]

not bent to bad.....
hopefully shop that im getting prop exchanged at has struts.
I think shaft is fine..coupler looks straight....ran 3ft aluminum straight edge along\around shaft and it appears to be good.

[Wesjxxx]

well....bolted strut to a block of 2x4..put in vice...wrapped in rags and took a big pipe wrench and cheater to it.....frkn perfect...it is now dead center on shaft......shaft spinning free with zero bind and is turning true....saved some dough there and taught myself a few things...ordering bushings today and exchanging prop tomorrow......back on the lake by the weekend......booom!!!!!!

[Boonejeepin]

Make sure to check your alignment. You would not want to start burning up anything in the v-drive.

[motosno963]

you should have seen my shaft and strut.. tagged something nice a few summers ago..

[Wesjxxx]

if shaft is still bolted to vdrive...centered in hole in boat...and centered in strut...how would it be out of alignment? I would think surely this setup would allow for small play if shaft itself is true...new seal rope should kind of seal itself and seat to slight correction I have made right?

[Boonejeepin]

The allowed tolerance for shaft alignment is 0.002". If the strut is not exactly where it was before being bent then it is possible that the shaft could be held in one direction or the other, even if it is just a very small amount it could have an effect.

Checking alignment never hurts since it can move out of alignment over time with settling of engine mounts, etc.

Shaft alignment is really an easy task but can take some patience if adjustment is needed.

Hoping that everything is true and straight for you.

[Wesjxxx]

thanks for the info..guess it sure wouldn't hurt to check...ill read up on the procedure this morning. driving to get prop today and my bushings and sealants should be in by Thursday. guessing you install everything first then loosen coupler? looks like that would show gap bigger on one side if there was binding. thanks again for yalls info