E28+ strut loose

[Gary G]

With my 1983 E28+ is on the hard again until next Spring I noticed that the strut that holds the cutlass bearing (through which the prop shaft passes) is ever so slightly loose. The shaft does not move in the bearing, the entire strut moves a bit if I push back and forth. There are some fine cracks in the area immediately where the strut attaches to the hull. Sometime before I launch next Spring I would like to get that strut strengthened up as it can only get worse with vibration over time. Has anyone ever removed and remounted (or even reinforced) this strut? Is it screwed into the hull or just glassed in? Any ideas as to how best to approach this? Thanks in advance for your thoughts.

Gary

 

[rssailor]

Strut

The strut should be thru bolted to the boat. I belive they use flat head bronze bolts to hold the strut to the boat. You will need to just tighten the bolts, which is harder said than done. First ascertain the location of the nuts and washers inside the lazerette. After you do that, look for signs that the bolts may be leaking. If no leaking, then get someone to hold a large screwdriver on the outside, while you crank down on the nuts very carefully. Good luck. Ryan Ericson 25+ Moonglow