Simple DIY prop puller

Zoran Glozinic devises a way to simplify a tricky job

- 

Removing a propeller from your sail-or motorboat doesn't always translate to smooth sailing, even on a well-maintained yacht. Imagine doing it on an old wooden motor cruiser which was sitting neglected at her mooring for more than 10 years, and then on a hard for almost two years!

I acquired Marabou a few years ago -she'd not had any care or maintenance for more than 10 years and it is only due to the first class materials she was built from that she was still worth saving when I found her at the end of 2022.

In 2023 she was hauled out and I started to work on her. It is a slow-going process, particularly as she's on an island about 400km from my farm. The main goal of my last trip was to remove the propeller and main shaft so they could be inspected and either overhauled or replaced.

Preparation

I had a fairly good idea what I needed to do, but wasn't sure if everything would go as planned. The propeller, shaft and the big nut holding the prop on the shaft were full of calcified marine growth. On my previous trip I cleaned off as much of it as I could to find that the big nut on the propeller shaft had holes drilled through each of its six flat sides, and there was a solid 4mm (diameter) stainless steel pin driven through the prop shaft and the nut.

I knew from experience that when you 'squeeze tight' two parts made from stainless steel (the pin and the shaft), you will often end up with a joint that is impossible to take apart. Keep that in sea water for 10 years, and then bake it in the sun for two more years... good luck with driving that pin out!

So aside from buying a brand new set of pin punches to complement the collection already in my tool box, I also packed some additional tools for plan B.

I took good measurements of the propeller, the shaft diameter and the length of the exposed shaft between the propeller hub and the stern tube bearing.