[aksmith]

I'm trying to decide to repack the stuffing box or change over to PSS prop shaft seals on my 1992 33' open while the boat is out of the water. I would be very interested in others thoughts, concerns, experience and advise.
Thanks :flag:

[ReelMagic]

I had a 1997 31 open w/PSS shaft seals..... Worked great. No problems. Sold boat in 2007 and purchased a Tiara 38 w/PSS shaft seals. Again no problems to date..... M2C

[Uhehner]

The PSS seals work quite well. I never saw a failure. But they come at a price. I installed GFO packing (it's some kind of Gortex) on my boat and all my drip and adjustment problems went away. Got it on-line from eBay for about $15 a shaft. I never even check them anymore. Great stuff. Capt. George

[jmk]

My experience is exactly the same as Capt George. I will add that when dripless seals fail, which I have heard of, they can let a lot of water in. I get zero water in from my GFO seals.

[sluggo]

aksmith - 10/27/2014 8:45 AM

I'm trying to decide to repack the stuffing box or change over to PSS prop shaft seals on my 1992 33' open while the boat is out of the water. I would be very interested in others thoughts, concerns, experience and advise.
Thanks :flag:

I had drippless put in on my 87 Trojan, and never ever had a problem, I sold that boat in 2014 to buy a Tiara with the PSS, and never had a problem with these either. PSS has youtube on how they work, if you are numb nutz like me and would have no idea how to change the stuffing, I'd go with PSS, as even I know how to adjust this, if needed.

[sbw1]

Added dripless shafts to my last Sea Ray and liked them. Bought my 2004 Tiara new in 2004 and the dripless shafts are still going strong. They do come with a spare seal on the shaft in case you need to replace them.

[Chris Burkard]

I love dripless shaft seals, but they are not without their issues and they are expensive. Dripless Shaft Seals work great if the engine is perfectly aligned, the shaft is perfectly straight, the props are balanced and the seals are adjusted properly. Even Dripless Seals can allow water misting, especially in choppy sea conditions as the shafts flex. This is more prominent on vessels with longer shafts. I recommend shaft seal covers to keep the misting from corroding the transmission area (straight inboard setups) and oil pan & engine block (V-Drive Configurations). Dripless Seals should be checked for tension and alignment at least once a season. If you run aground or strike an object with the running gear and then run the boat for any significant amount of time with any vibration whatsoever, you will damage the shaft seal! The last issue is suspended solids in the water. Water-cooled shaft seals are raw water cooled. If you operate your boat in water that has a high amount of suspended solids, overtime, this will damage the seal. The suspended solids (silt, sand, organic particulates, etc...) act like sandpaper on the seal faces.

Now for the practical side of your question; A 1992 Tiara 33 has a dollar value that could range between $30,000.00 and $60,000.00 depending on condition, equipment and engine. My guess is the PSS seals are going to cost about $3,500.00 to $5,000.00 installed. This is simply an upgrade that you will never recoup in resale value. Personally, I would find the best packing material you can and repack what you have. There is nothing wrong with packing style seals that are properly packed and adjusted. In many ways they have far less issues than dripless style seals and less prone to problems. I also like to keep things as OEM as possible unless this is a significant benefit to upgrading and I see not significant benefit for a 1992 33 Tiara.

Good Luck!