Replacing the cutlass bearing on the Aloha 28 should be fairly straightforward, following these steps described by Perry Basden:

• You should find that the prop shaft is offset to one side of the skeg and rudder.  After you remove the propeller and the shaft engine coupling you should be able to remove the shaft by sliding it aft.  

• The cutlass bearing is usually held in place in the strut with a couple of small set screws at each end of the housing, and these need to be slackened or removed. 

• Use a pulling tool to remove the cutlass bearing if you can.  You can make a simple one out of a bolt or threaded rod that is more than twice the length of the bearing.  You will also need a piece of pipe that has it's inside diameter slightly larger than the cutlass bearing and a couple of nuts and flat washers.  One washer will be slightly smaller than the outside diameter of the cutlass bearing and the other washer will be bigger than the outside diameter of the pipe.  Put the threaded rod through the pipe and cutlass bearing.  Put a nut and washer on each end and begin to tighten.  The bearing should pull out of the strut and into the pipe.  

• Definitely avoid excess hammering when removing the bearing as strut mountings have been known to fail where they are glassed into the hull.

• To make re-installing the shaft easier, remove the packing from the stuffing box and reinstall it once the shaft is in place.  Since removing the packing will probably render it useless and this is a good opportunity to replace it in any case, have a supply of the correct packing available before you start. While it is out, also check the shaft for wear or damage where it rides on the packing. (See more information on Stuffing Box maintenance)

• You can use the pulling tool to reinstall the bearing - just eliminate the pipe and use the threaded rod or bolt to squeeze the bearing into place.  Usually the bearing is a light press fit into the strut. (If not, David Wharam suggests you leave the bearing in the freezer overnight to shrink it).