Very stiff steering

[tigeky]

Ended up taking my boat to Skipper's Marine in Cadiz, KY. Lucky I did, my cable was fished through a stringer under the gast tank. They could not pull the new one through the hole or even get a fish tape through it. They had to pull the gas tank. Mike at Skipper's is great. Service the way it should be.

[MoneyPity]

SIlly question but why do these cable corrode so quickly. Posts exisit for 3 year old boats and that seems just way too early. I think it laying in bilge is a culprit but like vinyl why is it a common issue.

Curious eamble rousing. Sorry.

[kbunch]

There are threads covering this subject and the suggested culprit is the cable laying the bilge where it gets wet and corrosion begins. There is a couple threads I have read that suggest injecting anti-freeze into the line to lube and block the corrosion. All I am going to say is when I tried it, things went back to normal, at least for now.

[embo]

How stiff is stiff with regard to the steering wheel? Should I be able to "one finger it" around easily or are most a more stiff than that? How do you know when the cable needs to be replaced?

[d60nil@gmail.com]

I replaced cables and helm steering still very stiff. Greased zerk on rudder box which did not help. Dropped rudder and applied .05 cents of marine grease to shaft and steering was back to one finger steering. Do not replace cables until you try this!!!!

[IDBoating]

Odds are you need a cable, but lots of people overlook greasing the rudder box. It has a std grease nipple on it. This will help the life span of a cable IMO.

Speaking of the zerk fitting on the rudder - how hard should it be to inject grease in there? I have done it every winterization and it's the hardest lube I've ever done. And I own a backhoe, which has LOTS of zerks that take quite a bit of effort. Does it help to turn the rudder while using the grease gun?

[fav321]

Can you explain how you "dropped" the rudder? Mine appears to be bonded to the hull with 5200 or something similar.

[fav321]

I replaced cables and helm steering still very stiff. Greased zerk on rudder box which did not help. Dropped rudder and applied .05 cents of marine grease to shaft and steering was back to one finger steering. Do not replace cables until you try this!!!!

Can you explain how you "dropped" the rudder? Mine appears to be bonded to the hull with 5200 or something similar.

[JTs-rz2]

Can you explain how you "dropped" the rudder? Mine appears to be bonded to the hull with 5200 or something similar.

Bump... also curious

[tigeunrest]

Ended up taking my boat to Skipper's Marine in Cadiz, KY. Lucky I did, my cable was fished through a stringer under the gast tank. They could not pull the new one through the hole or even get a fish tape through it. They had to pull the gas tank. Mike at Skipper's is great. Service the way it should be.

Not sure on your year but on my 2007 I pulled my cable over the gas tank to prevent it from sitting in the bilge water, this may help in preventing it from corroding prematurely. I also had to make the hole where it is pulled through a little bigger to get the cable angle correct.

[ChrisSnow]

Rudder removal is easy. Inside the boat on the arm on the rudder there is a bolt or two and it slides out the bottom. The bonded housing says on the boat and the rudder just slides out on the shaft. Will need to grease it up when refitting.

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