MJ Sailingvideo

Installing Our Prop Shaft & Building the Skeg (MJ Sailing - Ep 292)

8 July 2023 · 18 min · 66K views · Kent Island

What this video covers

Installing a Vetus stainless duplex steel prop shaft and fiberglass stern tube requires precise alignment through the hull’s deadwood to maintain a 7.5-degree shaft angle.1:32 After drilling a pilot hole, the process involves using a hole saw and die grinder to enlarge the opening through thick fiberglass bulkheads.0:57 To ensure proper clearance for 16-inch feathering props—chosen over folding props to improve regeneration efficiency—the installation requires approximately 30 millimeters of clearance from the taper.8:30 The structural support for the stern tube consists of high-density foam panels bonded to the hull, shaped into a foil-like deadwood, and reinforced with three layers of 1708 fiberglass cloth.7:47 The foam core is sanded to a streamlined profile before the final glassing stage.10:33 Proper compression strength for the stern tube is achieved by backfilling the structure with thickened resin and glassing it directly to the hull.17:26

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