Hello. I got my boat a few years ago from a buddy who kept it up well. Only problem was that the steering (dual cable, rack & pinion, no power assist) was stiff. One winter morning I got to the lake and had to jerk the steering wheel because it was so stiff it was stuck. (not in freezing temps, live in Houston, TX) I ended up breaking the rack as I tried to free it. So I went about the exhausting task of replacing it myself. Not easy because you have to take the engine off just a bit to get the rods out of the tilt tubes. New system wasn't perfect but much better and I and my elderly mom could steer fairly easily. Over the last year it has stiffened up again. I've cleaned off and replaced all the grease, inspected the rack, disconnected the rack and the wheel turns easily, and disconnected from the engine and it swivels easily. I am really not looking forward to replacing the whole system again, and don't want this to happen again. No research on the web has helped. The only thing I did that I've heard could have caused the problem was to install a whale tale on the 115 outboard engine to give it a bit more power pulling a skier up. But it got stiff the first time before I had done that so maybe that's not it. Any thoughts?
