busted seacock

[jstafford]

Re: busted seacock

Interesting. Think I could simulate the same thing by stacking nuts? I had already taken out the drain plugs and squirted in some stuff. I have stayed away from the effort of pulling the hoses off and spraying in from the top.

Penetrating oil is good stuff...
Give it some time.
(I like Kroil)
Edit; A custom large diameter blind nut that you can hammer on used to be an industry standard to knock apart tapered axles from the hub. (Which were really, really tight!) The "nut" must thread on almost all the way and tighened to bottom out solidly on the end of the stud. In your case if the washer was removed and the "nut" could seat at the bottom it may be more powerful. The hammer blows are transfered directly to the part with this method.
This one is for a model T Ford, but you can see the practicality of not mushrooming the threads.
I have a good collection of these in various sizes, some of original manufacturer and some home made. I still occasionally see them at the fleamarket, maybe in an old box of car tools, no one knows what they are, 25¢
"Homemade" can be a tapped out slug of steel with an opposing bolt (short, with the threaded end squared in the lathe) tightened against the work, so you can hammer on it with impunity.

[navydog]

Re: busted seacock

Staking nuts will probably work as long as they are very tight against each other. You can buy a capnut for the top.

I looked a the picture of the valve posted again. The wear in the middle is significant and I expect a similar amount inside the body of the seacock. My suspicion is there is a ring of hard corrosion and muck acting like a locking ring.

I would definitely pull the hoses and lube them from the top. Gravity will be your friend in this case. The other reason to pull the hoses is to examine them. They are probably as old and in poor shape as the seacocks. If not great but best to know for certain.

[Canoeyawl]

Re: busted seacock

I don't think stacking nuts will be the same as they will be working against each other. (Two nuts tightened against each other is a spreading force, basically how you broke the first one)
The idea is to get the thing to bottom out on the end of the thread. Then share the load on the entire threaded shaft. I have screwed up a lot of parts over the years. The more care you take with the fixture the better off you will be. Usually...

What size is the thread? You can buy over the counter extra long nuts for coupling threaded rod together.
Google>coupling nut>images

You could screw that onto the threaded part until it bottoms on the shoulder then a screw a bolt into the coupling nut that stops at the end of the shaft and tighten it snug. The coupling nut and the "bolt" or capscrew should be faced off square as the upset and rolled end of those threads will not be kind to your original shaft. The harder the bolt the better. Grade 8
I guess if you ground the ends off square it might be good enough, or maybe face it square in the mill?
(The idea is to make the original part large enough and solid enough to strike without damage)

[Garret]

Re: busted seacock

My last post on this (I promise). While I'm a guy who will fix all kinds of crazy stuff (I do own a 78 YO boat & have owned & worked on lots of old British cars) & I fully understand a limited budget, I just cannot see taking chances with something that, if it breaks, will just about guarantee your boat will sink. *

I replaced 4 seacocks on my boat with used Wilcox Crittenden ones like yours - but I carefully checked all 4 by taking them apart (in the shop, with nothing but an adjustable to undo the nut & the handle of the adjustable to lightly tap the olive out) & making sure they were in good, lappable condition & came apart easily. Total cost was $150: 2 1.5" & 2 1" **. I then took 'em home, cleaned them, lapped them, & then lubed them. They've been in the boat 18 years & get cleaned, inspected & lubed every year. I also operate them at least once a week - unless I'm away from the boat longer. Before I pull the boat in the fall, I close them, remove the hoses & check to make sure they don't leak.

I do not see how one will be able to lap the one in the OP to where it'll seal. Sure - it may not leak when the hose is hooked up - but it'll fill the hose. I like seacocks that shut off water, not ones that slow the inflow.

I don't mean to come across as a know-it-all! I'm just concerned about the possible ramifications of skimping on something so important.

* I was able to buy my boat because she "got wet". The former owner hit something that popped off the single (!!!) hose clamp on the 1.5" head discharge seacock. Water was shooting 6' up in the air (so he said, but I believe it) & he had never exercised the seacocks & this one was frozen open. He didn't have any plugs either. Thank goodness for the USCG, they boarded with a 3" discharge gas powered pump & got her pumped out enough to tow her back to a travelift. Damage because of the incident meant replacing all wiring & the engine - as the engine had sat for a few months full of salt water & $3K to rebuild a 4-107 Perkins made no sense.

** eBay prices are high, but any decent used marine hardware shop will cut a deal on buying a bunch of seacocks.

[navydog]

Re: busted seacock

My last post on this (I promise). While I'm a guy who will fix all kinds of crazy stuff (I do own a 78 YO boat & have owned & worked on lots of old British cars) & I fully understand a limited budget, I just cannot see taking chances with something that, if it breaks, will just about guarantee your boat will sink. *

The above, plus when you insure the boat will underwriters take the risk. When I insured my 42 year old sailboat the insurance co wanted pictures of my through hulls, standing rigging, electrical wiring and a few other things. I'm making an assumption that reallyy crapy looking parts get a vote of no confidence by the underwriters.

[Canoeyawl]

Re: busted seacock

As long as they are still "bronze" I wouldn't worry much about it. A cast bronze bolt has very little tensile strength, and the seacock is not supposed to have that stud tightened much. It is pretty common for an amatuer to tighten every bolt he sees like it was a headbolt on a Chevy.
I didn't see any "pink" metal on the first image, so perhaps those you have are as good as new, except seized from
non-use.

[jstafford]

Re: busted seacock

I got my latest stuck seacock apart the other day. Now I understand the previous pink comment. This one is going to go out of service as it is the overboard for the waste tank. Not sure how the previous owner got away with not having them disconnected. With two heads and the tank I have three that will get shut off.20190312_180216ed.jpg

[jstafford]

Re: busted seacock

Working on more seacocks i found them to be loose and leaking. So instead of trying to take them apart in place to get them freed up i just removed them. Surprised at how easy that was. Also surprised there was no bedding compound on the thru hull side outside the boat. Only bedding/sealant was between the back up block and the hull. That looked to be dolphinite. What should I be using and where when I reinstall these?

[Breakaway]

Re: busted seacock

Well, if they weren't leaking, you know that Dolpinite, applied as you described, worked for years. Hard to get a better recco than that.

Me, when I install a through hull, I consider it, " permanent," and will use (gasp!) 5200 or Sika 291 or some other polyurethane. In the rare instance when one needs to remove the actual through hull, as opposed to the valve, the bead can be broken with fishing wire held between two dowels, a sharpened putty knife, etc.

Kevin

[Garret]

Re: busted seacock

Yep - it's the only place on the boat that I use 5200 for. Well - cutless bearing & hawses in the bulwarks also. It's great for "I don't ever want it to come loose". I do seal the outside of the through-hull though.

That said & as Kevin says - seems as though you have a good recommendation for Dolphinite.

[jstafford]

Re: busted seacock

Used the lapping compound today to clean up the two I removed and brought home. That stuff works great.

From the stains and rot they have both been leaking. They wiggled pretty good.

[jstafford]

Re: busted seacock

They both have flanged fittings with hex nuts on top where the hoses hook on. There was a nasty dried up washer in them. I need to find sheet rubber and cut replacements?

[Canoeyawl]

Re: busted seacock

Are they BSP?
sizes here; (McMaster Carr can probably get pretty close)

http://www.rubberwashers.co.uk/BSP_Pipe_Washers/BSP_Pipe_Washers_Female

https://www.mcmaster.com/rubber-sealing-washers

[coelcanth]

Re: busted seacock

pretty sure the original washers on these were leather

[jstafford]

Re: busted seacock

I picked up some 1/8" sheet stock to cut them out of. Figured it was a good thing to have on the boat anyway.