Shaft size question

[Greg Ruggles]

Is there a rule of thumb for what size shaft to use for a specific range of motors? At what size do you use a .250 shaft? Is it anything size above a .60 engine you would use a .250" shaft? Also, when would you use a square drive?

 

[RaceMechaniX]

Generally as follows:

.12 .125-.150" cable or .062" wire
.21 .150-.187 cable or .098" wire
45 .187 cable or .098" wire
60/80/90/101 .25 cable or .125" wire

The decision to run a collet or square drive depends a lot on the setup and boat. Lots of arguments for both.

 

[Greg Ruggles]

Generally as follows:

.12 .125-.150" cable or .062" wire
.21 .150-.187 cable or .098" wire
45 .187 cable or .098" wire
60/80/90/101 .25 cable or .125" wire

The decision to run a collet or square drive depends a lot on the setup and boat. Lots of arguments for both.

The boat is a 46" twin craft mono and is going to have a picco 90 with a surface drive. So use the .250 cable? With or without the square drive? Thanks for your reply.

 

[the german]

Greg
You'll find thousands of answers. In my opinion is the square drive the way to go. I would use a .250 cable with a square on one end and a soldering ferrule on the other end . You can take a look at the website of Dave Rippe / Hyperformance Products to see what you'll need.
http://hyperprod.bizhosting.com/index.html

Alex

 

[Greg Ruggles]

Greg
You'll find thousands of answers. In my opinion is the square drive the way to go. I would use a .250 cable with a square on one end and a soldering ferrule on the other end . You can take a look at the website of Dave Rippe / Hyperformance Products to see what you'll need.
http://hyperprod.bizhosting.com/index.html

Alex

Thanks for the input Alex. I'm a newbie and just got my 2nd boat, I have a lot to learn.
Thanks again.

 

[RaceMechaniX]

Greg,

1/4" flex cable is the way to go. Square drive is preferred for engine longevity as it places the thrust forces on the strut instead of the engine bearings. Looking at the plain plastic washer on the strut versus the ball bearing in the motor you would assume the ball bearing is superior, but I will attest to the fact that engine bearings will last significantly longer if using a square drive and just replacing the thrust washer once a season.

Setting up a square drive usually takes some skilled soldering/brazing of a ferrule to the flex shaft. This is not a beginner task! There are ways to use double squared cables or ferrules with squares broached but finding the right combination of parts can be frustrating. As a newbie, let me just recommend going with a traditional pinch collet and welded cable. Save the square drive for a later build.

 

[Greg Ruggles]

Greg,

1/4" flex cable is the way to go. Square drive is preferred for engine longevity as it places the thrust forces on the strut instead of the engine bearings. Looking at the plain plastic washer on the strut versus the ball bearing in the motor you would assume the ball bearing is superior, but I will attest to the fact that engine bearings will last significantly longer if using a square drive and just replacing the thrust washer once a season.

Setting up a square drive usually takes some skilled soldering/brazing of a ferrule to the flex shaft. This is not a beginner task! There are ways to use double squared cables or ferrules with squares broached but finding the right combination of parts can be frustrating. As a newbie, let me just recommend going with a traditional pinch collet and welded cable. Save the square drive for a later build.

Ok, good advice. Maybe I'll ask one of the seasoned vets in the club. Thanks again for your input.
Greg

 

[Stephan Peterson]

 

[Stephan Peterson]

One piece. No need to soldering ferrule

 

[Greg Ruggles]

One piece. No need to soldering ferrule

I talked with Harry from speedmaster rc and he hooked me up with the stinger drive that has the 1/4 inch square cable. Thanks for the pictures.

 

[Rich Junker]

One piece. No need to soldering ferrule

Who did the one square end of the cable for you? Thanks

 

[John Beardslee]

Who did the one square end of the cable for you? Thanks

If I remember right, Steve built his own system using 2 60 ton hydraulic jacks in a frame and Tom Kelly built the dies from D2 tool steel.

 

[Rich Junker]

If I remember right, Steve built his own system using 2 60 ton hydraulic jacks in a frame and Tom Kelly built the dies from D2 tool steel.

Thanks John. I like what he did. I always thought it could be done pretty easy without using a ferrule. Just need to get the length correct.

 

[tnrcboatracer]

View attachment 333742

Stephan Peterson. Question: what keeps that square drove cable from coming out of the tube? Is the a shaft collar at the motor end?

 

[John Beardslee]

Thanks John. I like what he did. I always thought it could be done pretty easy without using a ferrule. Just need to get the length correct.

We refer to this type of set up as a hybrid. Most use a collar on the engine side to keep the cable from exiting the rear.

 

[Stephan Peterson]

I use a quarter inch collar. I have never lost a shaft. just one 50 ton bottle jack in a heavy duty frame. does 3/16 and quarter inch cable. It takes all of the 50 ton to do 1/4 inch.

 

[Greg Ruggles]

Stephan Peterson. Question: what keeps that square drove cable from coming out of the tube? Is the a shaft collar at the motor end?

Stephan Peterson. Question: what keeps that square drove cable from coming out of the tube? Is the a shaft collar at the motor end?

Tnrc, the stinger drive I'm getting from speedmaster has a round 1/4" cable that goes into the collet on the motor and the square cable is in the stinger drive, so it's the collet that prevents the cable from coming out. Contact Harry at speedmaster rc for a better explanation.

 

[timothy johnson]

Harry has a great many quality products including the stinger you are buying. However as a new boater the best advice you got was to keep it simple with a single collect at the engine.
The vast majority of boaters are still using the single collet at the engine with good success. Can this method add to bearing wear, yes, but so can many other things which at this point you probably don't need to be concerned with.
Best of luck with your boats and keep asking the questions.

 

[Greg Ruggles]

Harry has a great many quality products including the stinger you are buying. However as a new boater the best advice you got was to keep it simple with a single collect at the engine.
The vast majority of boaters are still using the single collet at the engine with good success. Can this method add to bearing wear, yes, but so can many other things which at this point you probably don't need to be concerned with.
Best of luck with your boats and keep asking the questions.

Thanks Timothy, and you can bet the farm yhat I'll be asking questions for a long time to come.
Greg