I posted this to the sailnet list earlier. Here it is for 'our' .ORG archives. 
Chris
-------------------
Our cutless bearing was starting to wear very thin and play had increased beyond my comfort zone (which is admittedly tight), and we thus embarked on a complete clean-up of the drive train. Here are my notes that might come in handy for anyone else with an E34 or similar.
Disassembly:
I removed our 15" MaxProp for the annual cleanup and re-greasing. We had never removed the inner-most hub but I was amazed that after a little nudging, the pin came out just fine and the hub unscrewed from the tapered thread of the shaft. Our stuffing box was quite 'green', and it took some contortions to remove the two large nuts completely. Note to self: Should be grounded/zinc-ed and maintained more often than I did (once annually since 1999). We tried to remove the shaft coupling by inserting the spacer and then working up with longer and longer screws (no room on transmission side) but the thing didn't budge, and I was concerned about bending the transmission coupling. Not sure how real that risk is, though. We finally ended up taking an intermediate step by torching the coupling while disconnected and giving it a few good taps with a hammer from astern to break the bond. Going back to the spacer approach, the coupling finally came off. The coupling was unpainted (Note to self: Paint!) and quite pitted, even on the flange side. We had a someone press out the cutless bearing with a special tool. No setscrews, just a press fit. I would strongly recommend this approach and not bang around on the strut. The shaft has a total length of 45 1/8" and fits FINE inside the rudder without dropping it! Here is the answer! We had minor scoring on the shaft at the packing and none at the cutless bearing. I still have to take the shaft to check for trueness.
Measurements and replacements/sources:
- We will replace the shaft coupling with a new one since this is an obvious time to do it. Will be painted, too. Source: Local shaft shop. This is the standard 4" Hurth coupling, the dimensions of which can be found e.g., at the PYIINC site or at the Hurth-follow-up distributor/reseller here in the US. I can find their name if someone is interested.
- I bought a new stuffing box made by Buck Algonquin (00PB100; 1" shaft). Note: The log OD is 1 3/4" which is different from the E34 manual. Note: Measure carefully before you buy. The price was around $60 +S/H, and the box looks great. Much more sturdy than the original with bigger nuts and a bit of a grounding point. The hose looks excellent, too. The new packing will be 1/4", a little thicker than the 1/8" we had on the old (I believe).
- I also bought a new cutless bearing from PYI (Caravel 03-100-114-400) with 1" ID, 1 1/4" OD and 4" length. Price around $110 +S/H. Made in Italy and looks great. I liked it (not because of the Old Europe thing) but because its body is made of bronze. The length needs to brought down to 3 25/32" which should be no problem.
- I also bought a PYI R&D Flexible Shaft Coupling. 910014 (I believe. The 910001 is also recommended but overkill per PYI.) The coupling, inserted between the two coupling halves, adds about 1.25" to the length of the drivetrain. I am planning on having the shaft shortened by that length. We already have 7/8" of shaft unsupported past the strut. The flex coupling comes with all the bolts but I believe that the retail price of the piece of conducting rubber to bond shaft and transmission is way too high. This should be easier to accomplish and without excessive imbalance of the moment of inertia of the coupling (I would think).
The things all fit together nicely, and all I have left to do is check the shaft for trueness and have it shortened. Just FYI, the price of a finished new Aquamet22 shaft with coupling, taper, keyways etc. can run over $400. Ouch! I hope there is no reason to go to those extremes.
I am still pondering the immediate area of the log inside the boat. It seems that trim ballast has been placed on both sides with gaps underneath, creating two voids. I am considering cleaning up the whole area with filler etc. and then giving it a good few coats of Bilgecoat...and then forget about it for another 10 years.
Chris
-------------------
Our cutless bearing was starting to wear very thin and play had increased beyond my comfort zone (which is admittedly tight), and we thus embarked on a complete clean-up of the drive train. Here are my notes that might come in handy for anyone else with an E34 or similar.
Disassembly:
I removed our 15" MaxProp for the annual cleanup and re-greasing. We had never removed the inner-most hub but I was amazed that after a little nudging, the pin came out just fine and the hub unscrewed from the tapered thread of the shaft. Our stuffing box was quite 'green', and it took some contortions to remove the two large nuts completely. Note to self: Should be grounded/zinc-ed and maintained more often than I did (once annually since 1999). We tried to remove the shaft coupling by inserting the spacer and then working up with longer and longer screws (no room on transmission side) but the thing didn't budge, and I was concerned about bending the transmission coupling. Not sure how real that risk is, though. We finally ended up taking an intermediate step by torching the coupling while disconnected and giving it a few good taps with a hammer from astern to break the bond. Going back to the spacer approach, the coupling finally came off. The coupling was unpainted (Note to self: Paint!) and quite pitted, even on the flange side. We had a someone press out the cutless bearing with a special tool. No setscrews, just a press fit. I would strongly recommend this approach and not bang around on the strut. The shaft has a total length of 45 1/8" and fits FINE inside the rudder without dropping it! Here is the answer! We had minor scoring on the shaft at the packing and none at the cutless bearing. I still have to take the shaft to check for trueness.
Measurements and replacements/sources:
- We will replace the shaft coupling with a new one since this is an obvious time to do it. Will be painted, too. Source: Local shaft shop. This is the standard 4" Hurth coupling, the dimensions of which can be found e.g., at the PYIINC site or at the Hurth-follow-up distributor/reseller here in the US. I can find their name if someone is interested.
- I bought a new stuffing box made by Buck Algonquin (00PB100; 1" shaft). Note: The log OD is 1 3/4" which is different from the E34 manual. Note: Measure carefully before you buy. The price was around $60 +S/H, and the box looks great. Much more sturdy than the original with bigger nuts and a bit of a grounding point. The hose looks excellent, too. The new packing will be 1/4", a little thicker than the 1/8" we had on the old (I believe).
- I also bought a new cutless bearing from PYI (Caravel 03-100-114-400) with 1" ID, 1 1/4" OD and 4" length. Price around $110 +S/H. Made in Italy and looks great. I liked it (not because of the Old Europe thing) but because its body is made of bronze. The length needs to brought down to 3 25/32" which should be no problem.
- I also bought a PYI R&D Flexible Shaft Coupling. 910014 (I believe. The 910001 is also recommended but overkill per PYI.) The coupling, inserted between the two coupling halves, adds about 1.25" to the length of the drivetrain. I am planning on having the shaft shortened by that length. We already have 7/8" of shaft unsupported past the strut. The flex coupling comes with all the bolts but I believe that the retail price of the piece of conducting rubber to bond shaft and transmission is way too high. This should be easier to accomplish and without excessive imbalance of the moment of inertia of the coupling (I would think).
The things all fit together nicely, and all I have left to do is check the shaft for trueness and have it shortened. Just FYI, the price of a finished new Aquamet22 shaft with coupling, taper, keyways etc. can run over $400. Ouch! I hope there is no reason to go to those extremes.
I am still pondering the immediate area of the log inside the boat. It seems that trim ballast has been placed on both sides with gaps underneath, creating two voids. I am considering cleaning up the whole area with filler etc. and then giving it a good few coats of Bilgecoat...and then forget about it for another 10 years.
.