Anyone ever re-done their rudder stuffing box packing? I had never seen one up close before last night, but since my rudder is off, I got a good look at mine.
The 3 rings of flax add up to about 7/8" of width so I'm guessing it's 3 layers of 5/16" or 3/8" wide flax that's been compressed from use. I never had leaks from my rudder gland and still had some room left to compress the existing flax. I'm wondering if I should re-pack it while it's out, or just reinstall as-is since it was working so well.
<----Stuffing box before removal.
Also, I only see flax sold in varying widths. Is the thickness standard on flax?
How would one ever repack the gland without dropping the rudder?
The 3 rings of flax add up to about 7/8" of width so I'm guessing it's 3 layers of 5/16" or 3/8" wide flax that's been compressed from use. I never had leaks from my rudder gland and still had some room left to compress the existing flax. I'm wondering if I should re-pack it while it's out, or just reinstall as-is since it was working so well.
<----Stuffing box before removal.
Also, I only see flax sold in varying widths. Is the thickness standard on flax?
How would one ever repack the gland without dropping the rudder?
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