Reply To: Prop shaft off centre

[Nicholas Muir]

Had response below from Roderick Barry outside this thread.
Hi Nicholas, More than likely the shaft would have started life centred in the tube as this allows for movement. The shaft and cutlass bearing would have been lined up true when the boat was built. With the shaft off centre will mean they are no longer aligned and wear will be induced in the cutlass bearing/shaft. Firstly is the prop shaft running true if you rotate it by hand. By this I mean if you rotate it does it stay as in the position shown in your picture or does it move relative to the hole. If it moves relative to the hole something is wrong. Possibly the coupling to the gear box or the shaft is bent but this needs investigating. I hope both these are long shots. If it stays in the same place relative to the hole it is most likely your engine mounts have gone soft / settled over time and shaft realignment is required, this is quite normal. Don’t just jack up the back of the engine to bring the shaft back to the centre a full realignment is necessary and there are NO shortcuts. Hope this helps best regards, Rod.”