Packing Box Info and Source

[bob mitchell]

        All of the above is available from www.deepblueyachtsupply.com . From left to right, the engine coupling for the shaft (4", but yours may be different) is $57. Do not confuse this coupling that goes on the propeller shaft (o.d. 1 1/4) with it's splined mate that goes on the transmission shaft. The Packing box (aka stuffing box, or packing gland) is $102 (although mine is ok) and the Flax Packing (3/8" I think - HMM, NOT SO SURE NOW THAT I HAVE 3/8 IN HAND - LOOKS MORE LIKE 1/4 UNLESS IT REALLY COMPRESSES) is $7 per 24" roll - but in my stuffing box therre were 6 circles at 6" per circle, so I ordered two rolls. My Packing Box Hose (i.d. 2 1/2", o.d. 31/4", approx. 4" long), which was shot, cost $29 for a 12" section, giving me a couple of spares. The hose is double clamped at each end, so four clamps. An excellent reference if you are not up to speed on packing boxes, or packing glands, or stuffing boxes, is Boatowners Mechanical and Electrical Manual by Nigel Calder, page 312-315. This is an expensive book, my bible, but I am finding used copies fairly frequently for $6 to $10.

[Hans Petrie]

I have the exact same packing box on hull number 24.  Looks identical to every detail including the rusty spots.  Also, the Nigel Calder book is well worth the money.  They keep "updating" it but older versions are just as good.  Mine got damp though and the pages stuck together.  You have to keep the book dry.  The ink they used is like glue when the pages get wet.