Bertram33 User Forum

Frank, His email and phone number are in his picture post.

Thanks Doug.. I missed that!

Paul, Very sharp looking boat! You'll be glad you bought a Bertram. I repowered with 370 Yanmars a few years ago and am very happy with them. I keep the boat in Guilford CT so you're welcome to come down and take a peak for ideas anytime.

Hi Paul, What is the largest size shafts the existing struts can take? Regards Franco

I would think he could at least go to a 1 1/2" shaft. My boat came with 1 3/8" shafts and the struts had to be bored out for the 1 1/2" shafts. I've never heard of a problem boring out Bertram struts from 1 3/8 to 1 1/2. Buzz

Buzz, Was your boat originally powered with Cats?

My boat was gas and converted before I bought her. Originally my boat had 1 3/8" shafts. What is interesting one of my struts was bored out to accept a 1 1/2" shaft and on the other shaft they turned the bearing down so that it would accept a 1 1/2" shaft. I discovered this when I replaced my strut bearings. Intsead of turning down the bearing so that it would go into the strut I removed that strut and had it bored to accept a larger bearing. That's how I know there is plenty of metal in those struts to bore them out to accept 1 1/2" shafts. Buzz

Thanks Brian! I would love to see yours. Guilford is close by. Let me know the best way to contact you. my cell is 860 918 5974 Franco, the mechanic said he could bore the struts out to accept 1 3/4 shafts without a problem. He could do it while they are installed on the boat. But, I am thinking that 1 3/8 should be fine based on Doug's input. This saves about $5K. The boat already has dripless shaft seals so I don't have to invest in those. Does anyone know the current shafts need to be 'professionally' inspected and/or balanced? I wasn't sure if this was a common thing to do with an inboard boat. Or, can you just inspect them in place. A few people have told me that shafts last forever unless you hit something.

After I bought "Phoenix" I had new engine mounts installed, the props scanned, replaced the worn cutless bearings, and had a cracked exhaust manifold replaced (previous owner "doofus" lost a coolant pump belt and overheated the stbd engine). While everything was torn apart I had the shafts checked, even though there was no vibration. As far as I can determine the yard simply laid the shafts on a flat steel plate table and rolled them.. and determined that they were fine. Not a big deal. My surveyor does a rough check when the boat is on the hard by mounting a pointer so it is very near the exposed part of the shaft and rotates the prop by hand to see if the distance between the shaft and pointer tip changes. This is admittedly a crude check but he says he has found a few bent shafts this way. As an aside, if I was to remove the shafts for any reason in the future I would check carefullly around the keyway for any cracks. If the props are not installed properly or if the taper and prop do not match perfectly it has been reported that the keyway can see surprisingly high point loads which have been reported to cause localized stress cracking, which can ultimately result in the shaft breaking and loss of the prop. Most people think the key is what keeps the prop from slipping on the shaft but this is not true.. it is the tight fit of the tapered prop and shaft that keep the two "locked" together.

Since you're spending the money on engines, you should also consider installing dripless shaft seals at this time. It will save you alot of headaches down the road & the bilge is always dry. A careful inspection of the shafts will be required as these seals will not tolerate any corrosion where the seals will ride. I'm very happy with the tides marine seals that I installed 2 years ago. You can also put a spare seal on the shaft & be able to change it should the need arise without pulling the coupling. Joe Tomaini 1988 Sportfish Attitude Adjustment II Fort Lauderdale, FL

I think he said the boat's already got them. If they do, that's another argument not to change shaft size. That being said, since he's going to the trouble of repowering he should send the shafts and props (if he can re-use them) to a reputable prop shop to be checked out.

Well, I looked into the Cummins Recon and I agree with everyone that they are a very good choice. They are really NEW engines, and I was told by the factory rep that they are sold as NEW to other parts of the world except the US because of an emissions issue. In the US they do put some recon parts (injectors) but all the critical stuff (block, pistons, etc.) are all new. So, I would be very comfortable with them. Regarding the props, The RH prop is reconditioned and perfect, but the LH prop has some corrosion issues. Attached are pics. I don't think I would feel comfortable using this. It would make a good spare though. Any thoughts would be appreciated. Both the Cummins and Yanmar each have their own advantages. I think this will come down to which dealer can put down the best total package. The Yanmar dealer is considerting taking my old boat in on trade. This could be a significant advantage, especially in this economy. The trade-in needs an engine and they are a mercruiser dealer too, so I think they can make some good profit on it. Anyone want a 1987 23' Donzi sportfish as a tender for their 33? [:D][:D][:D] It needs a new engine, otherwise the boat is mint. (The oil pan leaked this spring and I didn't catch it until it was too late. Lesson learned.) Anyone going to the Norwalk Boat Show?? I'll be there Saturday and would love to say hello. [img]http://www.bertram33.com/images/uploads/DSCF2432.jpg[/img] [img]http://www.bertram33.com/images/uploads ... 6_full.jpg[/img] [img]http://www.bertram33.com/images/uploads/LH21X26.jpg[/img] Cheers, Paul

Paul, You got learn to down size your pics before posting. When you get to my age you forget what the start of the sentence was by the time you finish scrolling all the way to the end. Al

Sorry! too big again! i'll figure it out. By the way, I learned that the reason the old Cummins engines failed was definately lack of maintenence. I heard that the previous owner never opened the engine hatch to check on them. And, there was a leak in the bilge somewhere and saltwater was getting sprayed around. This makes sense since the genny is such a rust bucket. Salt water will ruin everything, like my old oil pan!!

Paul, I would start with a brand new set of nibral props. Having spun a blade on one re-conditioned prop and had a balde crack on another I'll never buy anything but new again.