Trojan Boat Forum

Does anyone know where I can get the set screws that hold the prop shaft in the coupler? They are a square head with little hole drilled in the head for safety wire.

Contact these folks.

http://www.deepblueyachtsupply.com/Default.aspx

I wanted to use new ones and found them at Fastenal, the problem they do not have the hole for safety wire. They are made out of very hard steel and I could not drill them. All this leads to another bad mechanic story. When installing the new engines he only put one in each coupler and one of those was not tite, now I need two of them with the holes again. If you find them let us know.

Larry, what type of drill bit did you use? I have had good luck drilling hardened steel with cobalt bits.

At the time I did not have cobalts now have a complete set of Irwins. They go through stainless like hot butter and probably would do those set screws. I have been looking for the undrilled ones that I have so I can put the second one back in coupler that the "expert" mechanic left out.

Glad to hear about cobalt working, anykind of other tool steel bits just dulled.

Cobalts are the stuff, spendy but very good.

I found my set screws and gonna try the cobalt bit on them.

On the subject of shaft couplers... I was getting some pretty severe vibration from one shaft, so bad I thought the shaft was bent. There was also a film of black dust appearing in the bilge below the coupler. I suspected the old 38 year old solid coupler might be part of the problem, so I decided to change it before hauling the boat to pull the shaft. I did have to swim under the boat to slide the shaft zinc forward to provide clearance to slide the shaft back far enough to change the coupler.

Old solid coupler changed changed to new split coupler. Vibration GONE. Now I'm gonna change the other one.