I have a stuffing box because it came with the boat.
Was offered a free dripless but knocked it back.
Stuffing box is no problem for me
gary
I had a stuffing box but changed it out for a dripless seal. I like water to remain outside the boat. The dripless seal (a Volvo Penta brand) has been great - no constant adjusting and no wet bilges.
Dripless seal for the same reason as Gary, it came with the boat and I see to reason to change 
I have a steel boat and like to keep a dry bilge so use one of these and it has been good. You can also keep a spare seal on the shaft so if it fails you can replace the old seal without pulling off the shaft. I didn't enjoy the feeling when the dodgy old thing I had before this started leaking pretty hard so it's good having something reliable there...
www.tidesmarine.com/shaftseals/sureseal_overview.php
Volvo dripless on my yacht, that's what it came with. I had a stuffing box on my fishing vessel and they are good on this type of vessel where the vessel is in constant use. Shaft has to be in good alignment and the stuffing box has to be repacked regularly and adjusted. Finding the right packing material is not always easy. With a yacht with small shaft sizes you may have to rely on plumbing packing etc. For a yacht it's more of a choice of what dripless seal!
Stuffing box again what was already installed, mine has had a grease nipple attached, a couple of pumps when done and the drip is gone. A small container underneath to catch drops when steaming, hasn't needed adjusting a thousand engine hours. The engine raw water intake is next to the stuffing box so your there anyway.
Had stuffing boxes on my flybridge cruiser ( l know, l know, a stink boat 
lol )
After repowering it was recommended l change to dripless...so l did,
Apart from initial adjustments haven't had any problems with them in the 6 yrs since,
Thanks for your responses.
I'm expecting the guffaws and 'how long is a piece of string' kind of answers but anyway,here goes
...
For those who have replaced their stuffing boxes with a dripless seal, what kind of $ can I expect? Ballpark figure. The boat is a Mottle 33.
Thanks in advance.
I did it about five years ago on my Santana 28. Battling to remember cost but not that expensive from memory. Really glad I did it.
Not too difficult to fit if access is OK. It coincided with a haul out so I got the pros to fit it.
Select to expand quoteSV Wavesong said..
Thanks for your responses.
I'm expecting the guffaws and 'how long is a piece of string' kind of answers but anyway,here goes...
For those who have replaced their stuffing boxes with a dripless seal, what kind of $ can I expect? Ballpark figure. The boat is a Mottle 33.
Thanks in advance.
It is not so much the cost of the actual seal, but how difficult it is to fit. The boat will need to be on the slip. Details of your current drive, motor coupling, access to the shaft seal area, etc. will all make a difference. It may need the prop shaft to be removed for machining, which brings in the difficulty or otherwise of this removal/replacement. Mottle 33s usually have a P type prop shaft bracket, so that bit should be reasonably easy. Sailboat data says a Volvo engine was original. In that case you may have a volvo dripless seal fitted now?
As Yara has mentioned, this is not so straight forward.
If all goes well (prop shaft disconnects from the coupling easily, . the coupling comes off the shaft easily, The shaft is in good condition, The shaft can be moved far enough back to allow the fitting, the old stuffing box can be removed and the area ground away easily, ) you will be up for between $1000 and $1300 .
That is my ball park guess. In the perfect situation. Which any sailor knows is rare.
If any of the above cause trouble (as in time taken or replacement needed) the cash register will tick over in multiples of hundreds.
The only way you can get a basic quote and I mean basic, is to contact a supplier and then the shipyard that the supplier recommends.
When you have sat yourself down after the quote, read Woko's post again.
I have a dry bilge with a well adjusted stuffing box. Stuffing at about $20 changed every 5 years.
A sponge under the stuffing box and another held under the gearbox with my ever useful lump of wood sees a dry bilge.
I wait to see what others think of my ball park figure.
gary
Select to expand quoteFuturecruiser said..
I have a steel boat and like to keep a dry bilge so use one of these and it has been good. You can also keep a spare seal on the shaft so if it fails you can replace the old seal without pulling off the shaft. I didn't enjoy the feeling when the dodgy old thing I had before this started leaking pretty hard so it's good having something reliable there...
www.tidesmarine.com/shaftseals/sureseal_overview.php
I hated the old stuffing box that I had to adjust to leak otherwise it would overheat - so I always had a wet bilge.
Changed over to a PSS Seal a couple of years ago - no leaks, no alignment necessary, inspect it regularly but never had to do anything.
Only worry is how I would handle a catastrophic failure of the seal.
Can't get my head around your 'spare seal on the shaft' , Future - maybe explain a bit more.
Anyone else have any thoughts on this?
regards to all
allan
Select to expand quoteDatawiz said..Futurecruiser said..
I have a steel boat and like to keep a dry bilge so use one of these and it has been good. You can also keep a spare seal on the shaft so if it fails you can replace the old seal without pulling off the shaft. I didn't enjoy the feeling when the dodgy old thing I had before this started leaking pretty hard so it's good having something reliable there...
www.tidesmarine.com/shaftseals/sureseal_overview.php
I hated the old stuffing box that I had to adjust to leak otherwise it would overheat - so I always had a wet bilge.
Changed over to a PSS Seal a couple of years ago - no leaks, no alignment necessary, inspect it regularly but never had to do anything.
Only worry is how I would handle a catastrophic failure of the seal.
Can't get my head around your 'spare seal on the shaft' , Future - maybe explain a bit more.
Anyone else have any thoughts on this?
regards to all
allan
The sureseals have a split seal driving arrangement that clamps around the shaft for driving the seal into the seal housing.
When you have the prop shaft out of the coupling to change the seal, you slide onto the shaft two new seals. You then clamp the the driver between the seals and drive the first one into the housing and retain it with a circlip. You then remove the seal driver and place it around the spare seal and clamp it up. The spare seal now lives inside the driver on the shaft which protects it.
To use the spare seal, you simply remove the driver, place it in front of the spare seal,, remove the circlip and dig out the old seal from the housing, cut it from the shaft with side cutters then using the driver , drive the spare seal into the housing., Dead simple really.
One problem I have encounted with these and the use of a double lip seal is the housing has a close fit intrigal bearing that maintains the concentricity of the seal and the shaft. As the bearing wears, the seal housing may start to move out of concentricity which can open up one side of the seal lip and start it leaking. More modern versions of this arrangement have replacement bushes/bearings.
When fitting, be sure to have minimal alinement error and if you have a water feed, be sure to have no side loading from the feed hose.
I reckon stuffing box type stern glands are the go.
They are adjustable and repackable. At a pinch I reckon they would seal with a bit of Oakum & Hemp stuffed into one.
Select to expand quoteJolene said..Datawiz said..Futurecruiser said..
I have a steel boat and like to keep a dry bilge so use one of these and it has been good. You can also keep a spare seal on the shaft so if it fails you can replace the old seal without pulling off the shaft. I didn't enjoy the feeling when the dodgy old thing I had before this started leaking pretty hard so it's good having something reliable there...
www.tidesmarine.com/shaftseals/sureseal_overview.php
I hated the old stuffing box that I had to adjust to leak otherwise it would overheat - so I always had a wet bilge.
Changed over to a PSS Seal a couple of years ago - no leaks, no alignment necessary, inspect it regularly but never had to do anything.
Only worry is how I would handle a catastrophic failure of the seal.
Can't get my head around your 'spare seal on the shaft' , Future - maybe explain a bit more.
Anyone else have any thoughts on this?
regards to all
allan
The sureseals have a split seal driving arrangement that clamps around the shaft for driving the seal into the seal housing.
When you have the prop shaft out of the coupling to change the seal, you slide onto the shaft two new seals. You then clamp the the driver between the seals and drive the first one into the housing and retain it with a circlip. You then remove the seal driver and place it around the spare seal and clamp it up. The spare seal now lives inside the driver on the shaft which protects it.
To use the spare seal, you simply remove the driver, place it in front of the spare seal,, remove the circlip and dig out the old seal from the housing, cut it from the shaft with side cutters then using the driver , drive the spare seal into the housing., Dead simple really.
One problem I have encounted with these and the use of a double lip seal is the housing has a close fit intrigal bearing that maintains the concentricity of the seal and the shaft. As the bearing wears, the seal housing may start to move out of concentricity which can open up one side of the seal lip and start it leaking. More modern versions of this arrangement have replacement bushes/bearings.
When fitting, be sure to have minimal alinement error and if you have a water feed, be sure to have no side loading from the feed hose.
Thanks for that Jolene. I have a PSS seal, but they probably have a similar arrangement.
I'll check it out.
regards,
allan
New gear is absolutely fantastic to have ,old gear that is functional is great. The new Teflon based packing is very good. I suppose it depends really on what you use your boat for. I run on " cheap easily found parts " and carry spares. As said before a well adjusted stuffing box with Teflon packing hardly leaks. If it's only the dripping you dislike , try repacking with Teflon based stuffing this year ,and go dripless next year if your not happy . And enjoy the month in the marina with the money you haven't spent , I'm sure your wife ,partner ,friends etc would like that.
Select to expand quotecisco said..
I reckon stuffing box type stern glands are the go.
They are adjustable and repackable. At a pinch I reckon they would seal with a bit of Oakum & Hemp stuffed into one.
Teflon is the go. Just don't use any graphite filled packing, it will wear a stainless shaft down fast! Grease nipple and pump grease into the teflon will stop annoying drips. Eventually fills the tube so the water does not get up there but that's OK. I had a grease gun fixed in place next to the battery box with about 10 feet of plastic hose to the grease nipple. Each day when I shut down the engine and turned off the batteries I would pump the grease gun.
Stuffing boxes are fine as long as they are not overtightened and get hot.
PSS seals are probably the most forgiving with alignment, the seal face basically floats around the face of the stainless steel rotor which is fastened to the shaft. They provide no support to the shaft and this is where you need to be a little careful if you are replacing a stuffing box with one. Stuffing boxes do provide some support and can help dampen vibration and shaft whip,,,so depending on the length and diameter of the shaft you may need to install a support or cuttless bearing in the top of the stern tube. Doing this may then be incompatible or "not ideal" with perticular types of engine mounts.
Select to expand quotecisco said..
I reckon stuffing box type stern glands are the go.
They are adjustable and repackable. At a pinch I reckon they would seal with a bit of Oakum & Hemp stuffed into one.
That's okay if access is good but why not move with the times. Stuffing boxes are old tech, move with the times and go with a PSS seal of some sort. Perfect for small yacht shafts.
Select to expand quoteJolene said..Datawiz said..Futurecruiser said..
I have a steel boat and like to keep a dry bilge so use one of these and it has been good. You can also keep a spare seal on the shaft so if it fails you can replace the old seal without pulling off the shaft. I didn't enjoy the feeling when the dodgy old thing I had before this started leaking pretty hard so it's good having something reliable there...
www.tidesmarine.com/shaftseals/sureseal_overview.php
I hated the old stuffing box that I had to adjust to leak otherwise it would overheat - so I always had a wet bilge.
Changed over to a PSS Seal a couple of years ago - no leaks, no alignment necessary, inspect it regularly but never had to do anything.
Only worry is how I would handle a catastrophic failure of the seal.
Can't get my head around your 'spare seal on the shaft' , Future - maybe explain a bit more.
Anyone else have any thoughts on this?
regards to all
allan
The sureseals have a split seal driving arrangement that clamps around the shaft for driving the seal into the seal housing.
When you have the prop shaft out of the coupling to change the seal, you slide onto the shaft two new seals. You then clamp the the driver between the seals and drive the first one into the housing and retain it with a circlip. You then remove the seal driver and place it around the spare seal and clamp it up. The spare seal now lives inside the driver on the shaft which protects it.
To use the spare seal, you simply remove the driver, place it in front of the spare seal,, remove the circlip and dig out the old seal from the housing, cut it from the shaft with side cutters then using the driver , drive the spare seal into the housing., Dead simple really.
One problem I have encounted with these and the use of a double lip seal is the housing has a close fit intrigal bearing that maintains the concentricity of the seal and the shaft. As the bearing wears, the seal housing may start to move out of concentricity which can open up one side of the seal lip and start it leaking. More modern versions of this arrangement have replacement bushes/bearings.
When fitting, be sure to have minimal alinement error and if you have a water feed, be sure to have no side loading from the feed hose.
Thanks Jolene, I think you explained it better than I could have. I haven't seen any trace of water or wear but will check my water feed to avoid any future issues. The spare seal is definitely handy Data, the thought of installing it with significant water coming in after removing the old seal is a bit daunting but better than the alternative! I had no problems getting mine installed other than a short lift and hold becoming a short stay on the hard stand when the shaft didn't want to come off. So as Gary mentioned be prepared for unexpected additional costs beyond the unit itself.
Thanks so much for everyone's very helpful replies. Has helped enormously to make a decision.
The previous owner of the boat was fastidious in all matters but, nevertheless, the drip-dripping is definitely increasing. It's not a case of the dripping being annoying...I need to do my best to avoid a catastrophic fail!
Access for adjustment is pretty much non-existent so I guess I'll be updating to a dripless seal very soon.
Now to find an HONEST mechanic 
.
Any recommendations for the Scarborough/north side of Brisbane
The other thing about packed gland seals is that the installation usually incorporates a thick rubber hose connecting to the end of the stern tube, with the seal mounted on the other end. These hoses are often very old, and could especially be a concern if the gland is over-tightened and a torque is applied to the hose. The hose can also crack and leak with age.
Access is often over the top of the engine. Slim tiny people have an advantage here.
