free play in an old OMC stringer propeller

[RogerBoat]

I am working on a 1972 OMC stringer outdrive and noticed there is free play of the propeller on the shaft. I would expect that there shouldn't be any.

Has anyone had an experience with this outdrive and propeller?

Realize that there is no threaded nut on this assembly. The propeller is simply slid on to the shaft and a shear pin goes through holes in the propeller and through the shaft. This shear pin fits loose going through the shaft as well as through the holes in the propeller and would fall out were it not for the plastic cover that goes on the end of the shaft.

A new shear pin doesn't seem to solve the problem. I am not so concerned about the loose fit forward and back as this is only slight, but with your hands on opposite sides of the propeller you can wobble it on the shaft more than I like.

I have manuals but they don't talk about tollerences of the propeller on the shaft.

Thanks.

 

[Texasmark]

Re: free play in an old OMC stringer propeller

Obviously you have to have manufacturing tolerances. Things are usually +/- something, but with machine fits sometimes it's +0, - whatever since if the pin were too large in diameter you couldn't get it in a hole that was on the - side of it's tolerance.

So, expect some slop. Other thing is that if the prop, with a bronze hub, and prop shaft with a SS shaft have been working together for some time, expect some enlargement of both. Changing the prop and pin would help if you choose.

Back then the propeller hub had a rubber insert which absorbed a lot of the shifting shock so even though they rattled, they would rattle for 10's of years and not fail.

HTH,
Mark