Water pump - woodruff key removal

[pstephens46]

This key can be tough to remove. Awhile back, one of yooose suggested grinding a slot down the center of key. So I grabbed my Dremel...

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And it worked!

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Remains of key:

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I had a new key to help determine how deep to cut the slot. I kept grinding until I felt the key break when squeezing with a big set of pliers. Once it snaps together, it will come out easily.

[rodbolt17]

dude
at 100 bucks an hour you just bought a gearcase.
an easy way you as.
dull a medium size chisel.
take said dulled device and hold it horizontal on the bottom of the key.
whack it with a 32oz ball peen.
now take said dulled device and come down from the top in a vertical position.
whack again with a 32oz ball peen.
three whacks and the key is out.

[boscoe99]

Knick knack paddy wack the damn key.

Man I sure did like my Mercury water pump drive key. Or the F350 water pump drive key once the heavy lifting of remove the beast of a lower unit was done.

[boscoe99]

Repeat after me. Stress risers.

[pstephens46]

dude
at 100 bucks an hour you just bought a gearcase.
an easy way you as.
dull a medium size chisel.
take said dulled device and hold it horizontal on the bottom of the key.
whack it with a 32oz ball peen.
now take said dulled device and come down from the top in a vertical position.
whack again with a 32oz ball peen.
three whacks and the key is out.

Tried that. Chopped the edge of key off at top. Nothing left to pry on.

Easiest way? Rotary hammer with a dullish bit. Ain't got no rotary hammer...

[pstephens46]

Repeat after me. Stress risers.

Lubrication pathways....

[rodbolt17]

some of those keys are insanely tight.
I have had a few brought to me with the key sheared off to the shaft.
that is when I make it glow.
the key glows a different color red and I know where to whack it.

[99yam40]

Tried that. Chopped the edge of key off at top. Nothing left to pry on.

Easiest way? Rotary hammer with a dullish bit. Ain't got no rotary hammer...

As Rod stated hitting at bottom to get the top to pop out a hair before hitting it out from the top ususally works well

[rodbolt17]

and DULL the chisel blade.
if not you simply shear it.

[pstephens46]

and DULL the chisel blade.
if not you simply shear it.

Oh they are dull. My chisels seem to get used for everything but woodwork. That sorry little key costs $9.

[99yam40]

even a dull wood chisel is too sharp.
most use metal chisels on metal and when a metal chisel is dull it is very dull

[rodbolt17]

dunno
I do 15-20 a month sometimes 4 or 5 in a day.
never had an issue.
UNLESS someone else attempted it.
place the medium chisel on a grinder to make a flat dull surface about 1/16th or so wide.
whack the bottom of the key horizontally.
then the top of the key gets rotated out.
if you will notice the geometry on most chisels use the short side against the shaft and knock the key downward.
it will roll riht out.

[Jason2tpa]

My most recent water pump exchange included freeing a rock-solid seized key. I initially went about removing it my own way, including heat cycling. Didn't budge.

Got on the forum here and rodbolt chimed in with his technique, same one he has detailed in this thread. Luckily the top edge of key hand't been sheared off by previous owner. After about 3 rotations of hitting bottom then top, key popped out intact.

I didn't have a chisel to grind down, or a grinder. But I did have a jumbo 2ft long screwdriver. The blunt end of driver was same width as the top of key. Worked perfectly.

Having only worked on older 2 stroke yam's, is Yam still using a woodruff key on its new models as the method to engage the pump impeller?

[DennisG01]

PS46, looking closely at the picture, it appears there might be some snaggletooths left where the top part of the key will slide in (possibly on the left and right side of the lower cut, too). Created from the spinning cutoff wheel. If that is the case, you'll want to make sure to get rid of all of that and try to smooth it out best you can, otherwise the new key won't insert all the way and it may not allow the impeller to slide over it. Rough areas are also more likely to accumulate corrosion.

[rodbolt17]

I do this for a living.
I am lazy.
I try to find the easy way to do something.
easiest way to do a pump on an F350 is to get someone else to do it .

I hate the V8.

got three boats in this summer with triple F350.