In August 2001, the Delamar Company received a call from the Engineering Officer aboard the 270-ft. (82.2-m) USCG Cutter Bear. He described an oil leakage problem from the #1 (starboard) reduction gearbox. The stern outdrive shaft's stuffing box could not maintain a good seal for any length of time, and would allow the leaking gear oil to sling off the rotating shaft onto adjacent clutches. Different types of compression packing had been tried, including graphite-impregnated, but none proved successful against the frictional heat and oil pressure. Additionally, the shaft was suspected to be skewed and misaligned in relation to the gearbox. Bear was scheduled to leave port in just a couple of days for duty, and this leakage wasn't acceptable during operation; it had to be fixed immediately.