Drive Shaft Installation on Swan 40

Dear Professor,

I need to replace the drive shaft and propellor on my Swan 40.  How would you recommend I do this without removing the engine?

Thanks,

Alan

Dear Alan
This is the suggested approach, the actual geometry decides whether the shaft comes out or not.
Remove the propeller, the rubber bearing from the strut, and the flange from the forward end of the shaft. Loosen the stuffing box so the shaft is free to touch the sides of the stern tube.
With the shaft aft end pulled hard to one side so it uses the maximum deviation in the strut and stern tube holes try if the shaft can pass the skeg. It is worthwhile trying both sides as there can be some assymmetry. Would appreciate to hear about the result.
Pls note that the rubber bearing is of a so-called mixed dimension type, it is made for a 30 mm shaft but the outside diameter is 1-3/4".
Kind regards
Lars

Thanks Lars.  I will let you know how it goes.  We should get the new shaft and prop text Tuesday.  By the way, the shaft was severely pitted and the prop was green and severly pitted and the zinc was totally gone.  This happened in a period of 2 months since the boat was launched and was only discovered as a result of having the bottom cleaned.  I am still trying to figure out the cause.  We are planning to put a rubber isolater next to the coupling aft of the transmission to prevent it from happing again.  We have done lots of tests and can't find the leak.  However, last August the engine started cranking on its own when I came down to the boat.  We first thought the enigne was running and repeatedly hit the engine kill switch which may have aggavated the situation.  Finally we shut off the battery selector switch.  We addressed the damage by cutting off and reattaching the engine wiring by the engine bus, which had gone up in smoke.  We also replaced the starter and solenoid, and the shut off solenoid, and the battery switch all of which had gone bad either before or as a result of our attempts to stop the engine.   Any thoughts as to what may have been going on that could have caused the corrosion? 

Thanks again,

Alan

Alan
There is an electrical leak, either from the DC-system, or the shore power if you have that on board. The help of a marine electrician recommended.
Kind regards
Lars