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Should the prop shaft be in line with the rudder on a Wakesetter?


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A friend of mine has a Wakesetter, not sure of the exact model as I'm more of a DD person but it's about a 2008 and one of the smaller ones, 20ft maybe? Anyway I was having a look at it yesterday and noticed that when the boat is on the trailer and you look from the back of the boat along a line from the rudder to the tracking fins, the prop shaft is slightly to the left of that line ie its not directly behind the rudder. You can clearly see the prop retaining nut on the left of the rudder.

On my Response the prop shaft appears in line with the rudder and tracking fins, is this a V drive thing or do you think there is an issue?

The owner has been complaining that the steering is not as light and direct as it used to be (the steering cable is OK). No vibrations or any other issues.

Any thoughts appreciated.

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Bent skeg, sounds exactly how mine looked after hitting a submerged log, virtually no damage to prop but pushed skeg to one side.

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My strut was bent (just noticed recently), and bought a new strut. Problem solved.

Take the prop off and look to see if the shaft is closer to one side of the strut, then check on the other side of the strut as best you can to see if it looks different.

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Call me a crazy, but mine appears to be offset to port about 3/4 to 1" of the centerline of the rudder and the rudder looks to be curved to the starboard side. I haven't run over anything with it so it is most likely attributable to manufacturing variables, it was made on Monday or Friday. :)

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Call me a crazy, but mine appears to be offset to port about 3/4 to 1" of the centerline of the rudder and the rudder looks to be curved to the starboard side. I haven't run over anything with it so it is most likely attributable to manufacturing variables, it was made on Monday or Friday. :)

Your description sounds exactly the same as I am seeing. Is this actually a problem? Does your boat steer and handle OK?
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Timmo, smooth as glass! No issues with the engine alignment (shaft coupler), no vibrations, no steering issues, no cavitation, no cutlass bearing issues and the prop shaft appears to be straight. I'm sure the posts will start piling up because its not in line, but I'm not having any problems its running like a Rolex! :dontknow:

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Mine is offset to (I'm pretty sure) about that same amount. I assumed it had something to do with the direction of prop rotation, or allows the prop to sneak by the rudder for repair work. Mines a DD too though.

Steve B.

Edited by Steve B.
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A 3/4 to 1" runout would of been an a$$ wippen of epic proportion to bend a prop shaft off center that much. I'm of the mind that if mine somehow got bent before I bought it that there would be other signs of damage no matter how good the fix was. And I'm pretty sure I would of noticed the event no matter how distracted I was. I am also reading in the other forums that the prop shafts are offset to: aid in the removal of the prop and shaft, to counter act the effects of the prop wash on steering... So I guess it depends on which boat/manufacturer you have and the manufacturing process to some degree.

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I'm almost 100% sure that they designed some models like that to make it easier to remove the prop shaft. I can't explain why some models have the offset shaft and some don't (maybe DD vs V Drive), but i know that this is normal.

If the prop shaft was bent that much (inch to inch and a half to one side of the rudder) there is no way that boat would drive smooth and the shaft would probably bind in the strut so much that you wouldn't even want to put it in gear because you would mostly likely damage your transmission. That being said, the offset is done at the factory and it is supposed to be that way.

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Thanks for the input form everyone. I ended up speaking to the guys at Bakes and they confirmed that this is not necessarily a problem. Some V drives were produced with the prop shaft slightly offset which allowed the shaft to be removed without dropping the rudder, it varied boat to boat. Obviously if it was as a result of blunt force trauma it would be a different matter. You live and learn!!

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