bleeding

[cokeman22]

ok im trying to bleed my seastar hydros and i followed the instructions . but its weird it turns fine one way and stops. then it wont turn back the other way unless i crack a bleeder again and vice versa . the wheel turns the engine both way but to move it to the other side it wont go unles i crack the bleeder again i messed around for 2hrs and gave up. does anyone know what i did wrong

 

[seabob4]

Re: bleeding

Did you do it this way? Crack one bleeder fitting, turn the wheel until no more air bubbles are seen in the fluid at the cylinder. Close bleeder. Crack other bleeder, repeat process. Top off helm.

 

[cokeman22]

Re: bleeding

ya exactly like that i did both like that then when i tried to move it back to the first position the wheel spun but the piston wouldnt move unless i cracked the bleeder again

 

[cokeman22]

Re: bleeding

when u say top off the helm i dont understand . at that time i still had the bottle hooked up at the helm should i disconnect it sooner

 

[seabob4]

Re: bleeding

So you are saying that during the bleeding process, when you opened the other bleeder, the motor turned the other direction (doesn't matter which, port or starboard), but when you buttoned up, the motor would turn only one direction?

 

[cokeman22]

Re: bleeding

yes sir that is what im sayin it turns all the way in any direction till wheel stops. but it wont move again till i crack a bleeder. crazy huh!!!

 

[seabob4]

Re: bleeding

yes sir that is what im sayin it turns all the way in any direction till wheel stops. but it wont move again till i crack a bleeder. crazy huh!!!

I will say this, it sounds like a bad check valve in the helm. But let me do this. I have a good friend who is the Seastar guru at Teleflex. Let me link this thread to him and see what he has to say. Won't be until tomorrow, though...

 

[cokeman22]

Re: bleeding

thx its driving me crazy yesterday i couldnt get the fluid to the piston.every time i turned the wheel it just clicked and didnt push the fluid. so today i took it apart blew the lines and got all the old fluid out of the helm. and it then tookk the fluid no problem the engine moved one side at a time. but like i said wont go back

 

[cokeman22]

Re: bleeding

i dont know if this helps or not the helm pump and the lines sat for about 2 years untill i repowered the boat 2 weeks ago. but i must say the helm and lines looked brand new so i didnt replace them. but the fluid i dumped out today was pretty brown. didnt want to drop another 500 on a helm . we ' ll see what ur friend thinks maybe ill have to suck it up and dump some more $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$

 

[seabob4]

Re: bleeding

i dont know if this helps or not the helm pump and the lines sat for about 2 years untill i repowered the boat 2 weeks ago. but i must say the helm and lines looked brand new so i didnt replace them. but the fluid i dumped out today was pretty brown. didnt want to drop another 500 on a helm . we ' ll see what ur friend thinks maybe ill have to suck it up and dump some more $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$

The clicking sounds to me like a check valve...we'll see what Marc has to say. You can rebuild helms at a fraction of the cost. Let you know tomorrow, I've known him for quite some time, he's a good dude...

 

[cokeman22]

Re: bleeding

my last post for u i doesnt click anymore but i still jumped the gun and just ordered one on here for 280 pretty cheep. it comes fri but if ur friend thinks i can rebuild i cool. i can return it also a option once i cleaned it all out and refiled it today the clicks stoped

 

[seabob4]

Re: bleeding

Cokeman,
Here is the email I got back from my buddy at Teleflex:

I agree with your thoughts. There is for sure something buggered in the helm pump. When the user stated that he got all kinds of brownish fluid out of the system that is a sure sign that the shuttle valve is not able to move, this all makes sense with what they have posted.



I did see that he got a new one. Since I cannot get onto the site to post myself, can you pass the following along?



Before you install the new helm pump, suggest that you remove the steering lines from the cylinder, then, using air pressure, blow the lines out free and clear of all the older fluid. Doing this will prevent any contamination for attacking the new helm that you are installing



Thanks

Marc