need E35-II prop shaft length

Hi all,
My E35-II has the companionway mounted A4 engine (3/4" shaft). I took the shaft/coupling to a local prop shop for a once over and have been told it needs replacing. Being a boat the shaft replacement price came in higher than I expected but the kicker is that they are wanting to charge twice the on-line price for a new coupling -the machining is then added on to that! I want to get a price comparison before I commit to getting the work done. Unfortunately I didn't record the shaft length before I dropped it off. I hopped someone might have that detail recorded and save me the 1.3/4h round trip to retrieve my old shaft.

Thanks
Rob

PS; my guestimate is 32" long.

I cannot help you with the shaft length but I can tell you I had a new shaft built for my Pearson 28(A4)at Brackett Machine in Westbrook, Maine. Ask for Steve.

I have had Steve do some other custom work for me and it has all come out to spec and reasonably priced.

I had mine replaced about 4 years ago. cannot help with the specs, but I thought the $600 price for one was high (engine under dinette) but watched it being made and after seeing the amount of work done to hand craft one, it was very reasonable. they are made to very close tolerances and cutting the taper and key-way and threads does take a few hours!

New Prop Shaft

I ordered a new one for Commotion (an Atomic 4, also under the dinette) and measured exact. It came in about 3/8" short because of the way they cut the taper on the replacement. I added a spacer at the coupler to extend the shaft 1/2' past the cutlass.

Also, I am told, 3/4" shafts are a little on the small side and it might be a good time to upgrade to 1". I believe I would have gone with the upgrade. Oh well... next time.

Moyer sells 3/4" couplings, bored and broached, for $97. (Reversing Gear and Drive Train section of the store.) Three-hole couplings are a pain in the neck to find, even unbored (blank), and unless your time is worth literally nothing you aren't going to find a better solution than Moyer's.

If you shop around you should be able to find somebody who can match a shaft at a competitive price. Taking somebody else's shaft's measurements is just asking for a problem down the road.

3/4" shaft diameter is plenty for a yardlong run out of an engine putting out less than 20HP. Upgrading a shaft diameter just for the sake of upgrading is pure folly. You'll need to replace the strut, too. Finding one of those that will fit your engine setup will be worse than looking for a needle in a haystack, and never mind all the complexity of installing it.