Steering Question

[cjac2879]

1988 Force 85/1988 Bayliner Capri Cuddy 17'

How tight should the steering be on this boat.. We took it out last week for the 1st time, and the steering was REALLY tight.. I had to work to get the wheel to turn...

Today we added grease to the tube under the motor.. We added grease till the gun wouldnt push anymore in.. Tried to turn the wheel, and it wouldnt turn in one direction.. So we removed most of the grease, and only added a little bit..

It seems better then it was, but it still does seem tougher than it should be, but I really dont have anything to base my opinion off of.

Would it be any different trying to turn it on land as opposed to in the water?

How hard is it to remove the tube and clean it out, and what would be involved in that?

Thanks (as usual)
Cjac

 

[Frank Acampora]

Re: Steering Question

That is a winter project! The engine should turn freely when on the trailer and about the same in the water--if it is trimmed all the way in, it will tend to steer very heavy but this improves as you trim it out.

The usual culprit for heavy steering is corrosion.The engine is carried on a 1 1/8 diameter kingpin. This kingpin rides in two plastic bushings inside the yoke. Usually, the yoke corrodes and since aluminum oxide is about ten times the volume of mass aluminum, it squeezes the plastic bushings. They in turn, squeeze the kingpin and steering gets tight. No amount of grease will help this.

The only solution is to dismount the engine and remove the kingpin and yoke assembly. Drive out the kingpin and remove the plastic bushings. Clean the yoke and coat the hole with anti-seize. Now, you must ream the bushings back to size, clean and coat the kingpin with grease, and reassemble everything. Remember to replace the thrust washer on top of the yokePump grease into the assembly until it flows out hopefully both bottom and top.
It is not a particularly difficult job, but it is nasty and time consuming---thus winter project.

 

[cjac2879]

Re: Steering Question

Would be a great winter project if I had a garage below zero is a little chilly to work outside.

Thanks Frank, its good to know.. Do I need any special tools to do this.. I am pretty mechanically inclined, and it doesnt seem to difficult, so I might tackle it this fall or next spring... Can I do anymore damage buy using the boat with it like this

 

[further]

Re: Steering Question

Cjac,
I had a similar issue last year. Try disconnecting the steering cable from the steering link arm and try to move the motor by hand (at the motor) with it disconnected. If no change then yuo'll need to do what frank suggested. If it moves easily then you know it's an issue with your cable or tube. The tube might be filled with junk (old grease) like mine was. Ideally to clean out the tube you would need to remove the cable but that typically can't be done without sliding the motor over to make room and is a pain in the ***. I disconnected mine moved it to one side, cleaned out the best I could then went to the other side. After cleaning I sprayed pb blaster in the tube and let it sit. After all that I used white lithium grease on the cable end and sprayed the grease in the tube. I don't use marine grease there anymore. It's been good and I can turn the motor with one finger.
Hope this helps

 

[cjac2879]

Re: Steering Question

Yes it does thank you further...

Am I correct in assuming, I remove the nut on the Starboard side of the bar, then loosen up the spring loaded nut on the port side? Should that remove the bar once I loosen the 2 locknuts?

 

[jerryjerry05]

Re: Steering Question

Loosen the steering arm and turn the motor.If it moves freely then LOTS of WD-40 on the steering ram.In and out with lots of WD.Then you might have to remove the steering cable and clean out the steering tube.No hammers on the end of the cable!!
Then white lithium grease and lots of it.J

 

[further]

Re: Steering Question

Yes, loosen the big nut on the starboard side all the way off, then remove the spring loaded nut on the port side to disconnect the steering cable. Once disconnected move the steering wheel to move the cable through the tube or use a dowel sized to fit through the tube to get the cable out as far as it goes. Like jerry said, don't use a hammer or you'll damage the end of the cable.
Good luck