vibration, martec refurb?

Hi, I'm experiencing some mild vibration when motoring. How much vibration is too much and does anyone on this list have experience with having their martec elliptec props refurbished by martec? I'm hopefull that the mild vibration I'm experiencing is prop-related and that a $300ish refurb will take care of my mild vibration. thanks, mike

Vibration can come from a lot causes, worn cutlass bearing, shaft bent, bent or damaged blades a blade loose or out of pitch. You may benifit from a prop overhaul by Martec. Check the prop yourself, Does it extend out all the way? Is it loose on the pins thaat hold the blades, worn, erroded? Start with the motor mounts and make sure the shaf is aligned properly with the drive flange from your gearbox. This is a major factor in wear and vibration/harshness. Good Hunting, My Best, Mike From: r_michael_taylor <r_… [at] yahoo.com> To: Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com Sent: Wed, April 28, 2010 11:45:03 PM Subject: [Cal_Boats] vibration, martec refurb? Hi, I'm experiencing some mild vibration when motoring. How much vibration is too much and does anyone on this list have experience with having their martec elliptec props refurbished by martec? I'm hopefull that the mild vibration I'm experiencing is prop-related and that a $300ish refurb will take care of my mild vibration. thanks, mike ------------------------------------ Yahoo! Groups Links http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/

Thanks, Does anyone have insight into how much vibration is too much? The mechanic who knows my boat well essentially says that any vibration is too much. Yes the cutlass bearing is another potential source. Surveyor told me it should be replaced at next haul out. I can't easily inspect the prop because it's in the water. I guess I can rent some SCUBA gear and go down and have a good look.... In this case I've been told there's a known issue with the prop (prev owner and mechanic), Martec website recommends refurb every 4-10 years and I think this is a ~20 year old prop (I haven't yet asked prev owner if he ever had the prop refurbed). --- In Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com, mike farrell <vectormenow@...> wrote: > > Vibration can come from a lot causes, worn cutlass bearing, shaft bent, bent or damaged blades a blade loose or out of pitch. You may benifit from a prop overhaul by Martec. Check the prop yourself, Does it extend out all the way? Is it loose on the pins thaat hold the blades, worn, erroded? Start with the motor mounts and make sure the shaf is aligned properly with the drive flange from your gearbox. This is a major factor in wear and vibration/harshness. > Good Hunting, > My Best, Mike > > > > > ________________________________ > From: r_michael_taylor <r_michael_taylor@...> > To: Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com > Sent: Wed, April 28, 2010 11:45:03 PM > Subject: [Cal_Boats] vibration, martec refurb? > > Hi, I'm experiencing some mild vibration when motoring. How much vibration is too much and does anyone on this list have experience with having their martec elliptec props refurbished by martec? I'm hopefull that the mild vibration I'm experiencing is prop-related and that a $300ish refurb will take care of the vibration. > > thanks, > mike > > > > > ------------------------------------ > > Yahoo! Groups Links > > > > http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/ >

It's not clear to me if you have the folding or feathering Martec. I have had both, with diesel and gas engines. All boats vibrate under fossil fuel engine power (maybe not the case in electric or turbine powered?). My first question is the vibration the "same" or getting worse? The source of vibration can come from different sources, bent, loose, or misaligned. The racy Martec folding prop is full of vibration by nature, a sort of chunky repeating type, changing at different engine rpm frequencies, I pick the harmonic RPMs that give the least amount of vibration on the Cal 9.2. The folding prop tends to get loose on the blade ears and pin holes enlarge causing blade wobble. I usually (2x in 30 years) just replace the unit.. so 10 years apiece of mostly sailing time. The feathering Martec unit I found to not be very robust on the Cal 40, and the blades easily got bent and out of balance. After a $1,400 "rebuild", I replaced it with a MaxProp and have been wildly satisfied with MaxProp performance and robustness. If the vibration is "worse" then I would take the time to watch the drive system while underway and inspect at the dock. Cals with the V-Drives can easily get out of alignment. Watch each piece of the drive system for bent, loose or misaligned, to evaluate what you think is causing the vibration. Have a diver check your prop for sloppiness Dittos on the play in a shaft strut (if you have one) Dittos on the cutlass bearing Watch the V-Drive while under power Watch the universal joint while under power Watch the engine and its mounts while under power. Watch the engine bed while under power Correct each item as you find it, starting with the most obvious. (prop?) From: Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com [mailto:Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com] On Behalf Of r_michael_taylor Sent: Wednesday, April 28, 2010 11:45 PM To: Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com Subject: [Cal_Boats] vibration, martec refurb? Hi, I'm experiencing some mild vibration when motoring. How much vibration is too much and does anyone on this list have experience with having their martec elliptec props refurbished by martec? I'm hopefull that the mild vibration I'm experiencing is prop-related and that a $300ish refurb will take care of my mild vibration. thanks, mike

Thanks, Tim, for the great debug tips. Also I'm pretty sure I have the non-geared Elliptec folding prop; definitely not feathering prop. Visually it looked good during inspection. Prev owner said occasionally it doesn't fully deploy and to just hit reverse and then hit forward again to remediate. I find that vibration changes with RPM which matches your 9.2 experience. Per my other response on this thread, I think I'll just go get some gear and have a look myself. --- In Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com, <timmothy.lessley@...> wrote: > > It's not clear to me if you have the folding or feathering Martec. > > I have had both, with diesel and gas engines. > > All boats vibrate under fossil fuel engine power (maybe not the case in electric or turbine powered?). > > My first question is the vibration the "same" or getting worse? > > The source of vibration can come from different sources, bent, loose, or misaligned. > > The racy Martec folding prop is full of vibration by nature, a sort of chunky repeating type, changing at different engine rpm frequencies, I pick the harmonic RPMs that give the least amount of vibration on the Cal 9.2. > > The folding prop tends to get loose on the blade ears and pin holes enlarge causing blade wobble. I usually (2x in 30 years) just replace the unit.. so 10 years apiece of mostly sailing time. > > The feathering Martec unit I found to not be very robust on the Cal 40, and the blades easily got bent and out of balance. > > After a $1,400 "rebuild", I replaced it with a MaxProp and have been wildly satisfied with MaxProp performance and robustness. > > If the vibration is "worse" then I would take the time to watch the drive system while underway and inspect at the dock. > > Cals with the V-Drives can easily get out of alignment. > > Watch each piece of the drive system for bent, loose or misaligned, to evaluate what you think is causing the vibration. > > Have a diver check your prop for sloppiness > Dittos on the play in a shaft strut (if you have one) > Dittos on the cutlass bearing > Watch the V-Drive while under power > Watch the universal joint while under power > Watch the engine and its mounts while under power. > Watch the engine bed while under power > > Correct each item as you find it, starting with the most obvious. (prop?) > > > > From: Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com [mailto:Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com] On Behalf Of r_michael_taylor > Sent: Wednesday, April 28, 2010 11:45 PM > To: Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com > Subject: [Cal_Boats] vibration, martec refurb? > > > > Hi, I'm experiencing some mild vibration when motoring. How much vibration is too much and does anyone on this list have experience with having their martec elliptec props refurbished by martec? I'm hopefull that the mild vibration I'm experiencing is prop-related and that a $300ish refurb will take care of my mild vibration. > > thanks, > mike >