Replacing Dripless on a 90s vintage 330DA

[rondds]

Posting this question for a friend with a '99 330DA who is convinced that the reason his aft bilge pump clicks on every couple of hours is b/c his dripless shaft logs are original and need replacement.

IF this is the cause, what kinda job is this? Does it require pulling the engines and what is a typical price tag, assuming $100/hour labor rate?

Thanks

 

[wingless]

Why is he convinced? Is there visible leaking?

My dripless seals have a spare set of seals, ready to put into action. The spares are in a carrier, between the seal and the transmission.

The spares may be made active while floating.

That floating replacement process is a pain-in-the-butt.

Removing the active seal is the hard part. It is retained by a flat spiral spring, pried out of the internal seal housing groove.

Then self-tapping screws are driven into the active seal face. Those screws are used to pry the active seal out of the housing.

Wire cutters are used to remove the active seal from the shaft.

Water enters the boat at this point. It is restricted flow. The shaft fits into the housing bearing, with multiple fore-aft spiral groves around the circumference.

The spare seal is removed from the clam-shell housing and pushed into the housing.

The spiral retainer is replaced.

Ensure the alignment is spot-on to minimize seal bearing wear.

Ensure the water flow is good from the pump and from the nipple.

*** When pulling the shafts use seal protectors so the threads and the keyway does not cut the seal! ***

 

[rondds]

Wingless
Thanks for the info. Not sure if this is the cause of water in the bilge but what's coming out of the overboard is salt water.

Let's assume for a moment that the shaft logs are the cause. The problem in this era 330 is access. I've heard about spare sets of seals ready to slip into place but these are original seals so I dont know that SR gave it that much fore-thought. Wondering if any 330 owners faced this problem and could confirm/deny the rumor that the engines need to come out.

FrankC, you listening?

 

[J Levine]

Ron you know I am in the middle of a full replacement of the seals on my 370 and knowing how tite the motors are in a 330 I dont think you can do this without a least pulling on engine and using the access gained to get to both seals.

 

[osd9]

The 330 will have the spare seals on the shafts as explained above by wingless. The problem IS going to be access. I agree with Jon...an engine is most likely coming out.

I couldn't even stand between the motors on my 98 330DA and on my 93 330DA someone had to hold my ankles while I went 'in' just to repack or tighten the seals.....the NON dripless type.

 

[tobnpr]

Gotta luv those v-drives...

 

[douglee25]

Whenever I upgrade, I'm skipping the 330/340 DA because of the engine access and going right towards something bigger. I've read too many stories about how bad the access is. For someone my size, it makes it just that much worse.

Doug

 

[fc3]

Mine don't leak, so I never looked into replacing them. I have replaced the hose clamps on the seals. The originals weren't holding up. Access was OK as long as the engines are cool. Removing the exhaust tubes, elbows, and manifolds will substantially increase working room.


Best regards,
Frank

 

[SeaHarley]

I had mine replaced last year while my engines were out. Easy!

Unless you like hanging upside-down in small confined spaces, unable to move in any direction - while someone else hands you the necessary tools........ I can not sea how this would be done with the engines in???

 

[trebbel]

Mine were replaced about 2 years ago. My mechanic told me that he most likely would have to remove an engine to gain access. When he got in there he was able to replace the seals without removing a motor. I would guess that this job stinks but he was able to get it done. The boat was out of the water when he did this.

Access is not great on the 330 in the engine compartment for some components, probably most. While I would prefer a spacious area for my mechanic to have room to work, I believe this comes with the territory AND for the limited amount of time he is in there, I don't think it is that big of a deal. BTW, my next boat will have straight drives since I like him...

 

[fwebster]

Even if you have extra seals in seal carriers, I think replacing the lip seal with extra on a 330DA is impossible unless you are the size of a spider monkey and have elbows that articulate both directions. What wasn't said above is that the extra seal carrier is a driver or press for the new seal after you cut and remove t he old one. That means to drive it in place means you must have room for a happer and room to strike the carrier.

Diagnosing a leaking seal is easy and should not require your friend to employ guess work. Run the boat, then look at the seal as soon as you get back to the dock. If it is leaking you will see water dripping under it, the lip seal will be wet, and itf it has been leaking a while, there will be light rust stains where the drip has fallen on the hull.

This isn't a terribly expensive job if someone who has done it before is doing the work, but it does take 2 people. The shaft has to be polished where the new seal is to run......you may need to trim the blue hose on the shaft log off a little to move the seal location if the shaft is scored......and the shaft has to be moved aft enough to allow the seal to be removed from the blue hose. Sometimes the rudder must be removed to clear the shaft. Figure between 1.5 and 4 hours per side plus 50% for guy # 2 depending upon the variables. as a reference point, we did both on my 450 in about 1.5 hours, but the rudders were clear and it wasn't the first rodeo for either of us.

 

[LMBoat]

It can be done with the engines in place, but most mechanics will want to pull an engine. There won't be a spare seal carrier as there is not enough room on the shaft with this Vdrive set up. I did it without disassembling anything, but pulling the outward exhaust elbow and manifold would make things alot easier. The boat has to be hauled, prop removed, coupler unbolted, shaft pulled out about 2 feet <it will clear the rudder>, remove the seal carrier, replace seal, then re-assemble. The hardest part was putting the coupler back together. The seals were about $30 each.

 

[JamieH]

Just had one replaced, engine did not have to be moved, but
boat has to be hauled. Total bill ended up about $2K.

 

[douglee25]

Ouch.

Doug

 

[go-hokies]

After reading this thread, I have a few questions I could use some input on:
---1999 310 DA, V Drives, Dripless Shaft Seals ---
- I noticed a small leak at the base of the blue tube while sitting in the slip ( the lip seal seemed to be dry, but I need to recheck)
Does this means shaft seal is OK and just need to tighten hose clamp, or am I missing something?

- I noticed a "rubber donut" between the shaft seal. It is not in any type of "carrier" but is this the spare seal everyone is taking about. This thing has been sitting there for 10 + years, do I really want this to be my spare ( rubber dried out, spinning with saft. etc)

- Where can I find replacement seals ( have 1.5" shafts)?

I am getting ready to pull Port engine to repair transmission, so while I have the engine / shaft loose, think its best to replace a $30 seal.

Starboard seems fine, depending on how hard it is to get shaft coupler off (have already horror story thread on this) I will also do starboard while port engine is out.

Thanks,

Mike

 

[SeaHarley]

If you are going to have the engines / shafts out, replace the seals.
Much easier to access at this time.

 

[sbw1]

Figure between 1.5 and 4 hours per side plus 50% for guy # 2 depending upon the variables. as a reference point, we did both on my 450 in about 1.5 hours, but the rudders were clear and it wasn't the first rodeo for either of us.

My storage marina charged about $1,500 to replace the factory origanal packing glands with dripless shaft logs on my 37 Express. It had great access with the straight inboard set up and I'm sure he made out very well on the job. Still, the labor sounds about right.

 

[rondds]

Yeah, what sea harley said. I have heard that in your boat the engine needs to be pulled for access. If you're going to have one out, replace them at that point. You should be able to get to the other one w/o pulling that engine too due to the access provided by one engine being out.

 

[go-hokies]

It can be done with the engines in place, but most mechanics will want to pull an engine. There won't be a spare seal carrier as there is not enough room on the shaft with this Vdrive set up. I did it without disassembling anything, but pulling the outward exhaust elbow and manifold would make things alot easier. The boat has to be hauled, prop removed, coupler unbolted, shaft pulled out about 2 feet <it will clear the rudder>, remove the seal carrier, replace seal, then re-assemble. The hardest part was putting the coupler back together. The seals were about $30 each.

OK... So I am going to replace my seals while I am doing the port tranny work. Where can I get these $30 seals? Neither the Sea Ray part manual nor the Mercruiser V Drive has them listed. Who made the dripless seals on a 1998 310?

Mike

 

[tobnpr]

You most probably have the Tides Strong Seal. Tides re-designed them in '01 and renamed it the Sure-Seal.

Confirm which seal you have:

http://www.tidesmarine.com/pdf/strong-vs-sure.pdf

Then just call Tides to get the parts you need.

And yes, just check and tighten all the hose clamps. If there is any surface rust on the clamp, replace it.