f30 shaft seal

[EffectiveZen]

Hey Mike,
Your post on the shaft seal was excellent timing. My wife and I just bought a 1987 Freedom 30 and we're working thru a host of issues.
Principle among them is a very leaky shaft seal. The boat is going to be hauled and painted middle of June, and I'd like to replace the shaft seal (along with the cutless bearing and a couple of seacocks) at that time.
Would you mind sharing the DrySeal part number (numbers?) you ordered?

While she's out of the water, we're going to remove and sandblast the Tx & prop flanges and do some engine work, including cleaning the compartment, also. (Nothing like buying a "good condition" used boat... )

Thanks for any help you can offer,
Grant

[mike cunningham]

Grant, late evening here so I will get some info for you tomorrow. I will also take a few pics or maybe a video so you can see my set up which may or may not be the same as yours. I imagine it will be close.

What hull number is your boat? Mine is #3 so there were a lot of tweaks and mods after mine was built.

[mike cunningham]

Here is a short video describing my installation

https://youtu.be/Yr2B1ThStGU

With regard to the exact parts

https://lasdrop.com/index.php/dryseal/

this is the type of seal I have installed, however, there is only one barb on my seal. This is per mfg. recommendation due to low shaft speed. It is a dead simple plumb job as described in the video.

Disclaimer: Some folks have had good luck with the tides marine seal as modified (cut down to reduce length) by Paul Dennis. I opted to go with the lasdrop after speaking directly to tides marine who were a little hesitant on the modification that Paul does. I just concluded I would like to have an unmodified seal on the boat.

Having said that, Paul Dennis is a respected Freedom Yachts expert so I doubt he would be selling anything that he did not think was reliable. The modified Tides seal deserves a look as you make your decision. Below find a link to the product. Paul apparently buys these and then does the mods in his shop.

https://www.tidesmarine.com/sureseal/overview

[SunnyIsleMark]

Thanks for taking the time to video your setup Mike. It looks like a very clean and effective replacement. I will very likely replace mine at the end of this season when I haul out.

[EffectiveZen]

Thanks Mike.
I dropped a note to Paul to ask about his seal. Thanks also for the video and the links.
Here's hoping I can get the seal before the boat goes back in the water. We're in Puerto Vallarta and Shipping/Customs can be delayed.
Oh, we have hull #21. Not as early as yours, but early enough to make things, "interesting".

[mike cunningham]

Yes, the boats changed quite a bit as they came up with new/different fittings, etc. I look at some pics of later hulls and often think "why didn't I get that cool thing".

They did not seem to make much progress on opening up space for shaft seals though. Another two inches would make a big difference.