Steering Seized
Hi Guys,
Went to take the boat out on the weekend and realised I can no longer steer. Trying to work out if its the cable that has seized or something else.
Took steering arm off outboard motor and can move motor easily by hand so its not that.
Then unscrewed the streering cable from motor (see photo below)
Steering wheel now turns until nut on cable hits the motor.
Now I'm trying to move just the steering arm without the cable connected and it wont budge. Should it move freely once I've unscrewed that nut above? (The one with caution on it?
The bar I'm trying to move is this one:
Could it just be this bar that is jammed or is it weird the sterring cable is not moving either when screwed onto motor. Any help would be very much appreciated
Thanks
3/5/2014
Still trying, put up a few more photos to try and help
sstevee
Posts: 472
Date Joined: 15/11/11
Hey mate. Unfortunately I
Hey mate.
Unfortunately I can't see your second pic for some reason but I assume its the rod end of the cable where the outboard steering arm bolts in to.
My suggestion. There should be a grease nipple on the motor where the steering arm goes through. Remove this grease nipple and slowly spray tiny bits of inox/lanox into where you removed the grease nipple. This may take a while and be tedious but it should allow some lubricant to penetrate the old grease.
Leave it for a while whilst it does it's thing. Then you may be able to gently tap the other end with a rubber mallet to un seize the rod.
Basically the first pic shows the inner tube. The tube on the other side is the outer tube. You need to clean and lubricate that inner tube to allow the outer tube to slide over it. That outer tube then also needs to slide in/out of where it he round housing is on the outboard.
See how that goes and I'll have a look I see if I can see the other pic tonight on my laptop
cheers
steve
sstevee
Posts: 472
Date Joined: 15/11/11
Ah, your second pic just
Ah, your second pic just popped up. Undo the bolt/nut at the end. Then you will be able to undo the plastic retainer at the outboard end and slide that off (it should have an o-ring in the retainer). Now liberally spray as much inox/lanox as you can at both ends of the outboard housing.
Then somehow you can try tap the end in the second pic toward the outboard with a rubber mallet to get it moving.
Patience, a ton of inox, and a ton of rags should free it up
joel88
Posts: 51
Date Joined: 02/04/12
Thanks so much for the
Thanks so much for the response Steve, I've tried reuploading that second picture. Not sure what happened.
So on the first picture the inside cable should move within the outer? At the moment if I disconnect it and steer the wheel they move as one.
Will try that grease nipple as I think I know what you're talking about. You can see it on the second picture?
Thanks again mate
joel88
Posts: 51
Date Joined: 02/04/12
Awesome, I will give it a go
Awesome, I will give it a go when I get home. Was looking forward to having a fish this long weekend so hope I can get it fixed.
Just to clarify what do you mean by the plastic retainer? I undid both nut either side of the motor the other day and started to slide that rod out but the whole motor moved so I figured that must also double as a pivot pin to hold the motor in place as well as having the steering rod running inside it?
Would that be correct in thinking that?
sstevee
Posts: 472
Date Joined: 15/11/11
No not that one. If you get
No not that one. If you get on the boat and look at the front of the motor there should be another nipple on the round housing which will be looking at you
joel88
Posts: 51
Date Joined: 02/04/12
Ah I see. I think I know the
Ah I see. I think I know the one you're talking about. Will have a look as soon as I get home and give it a go. So that steering arm should move freely back and forward when the cable nut is not connected? Will let you know how I go.
Thanks again
sstevee
Posts: 472
Date Joined: 15/11/11
Ok so the rod you can see in
Ok so the rod you can see in the first pic will slide into the rod you see in the second pic. So yes the rod in the first pic moves with the cable because when it is re-connected this will push/pull the rod in the second pic.
For the plastic retainer. If you look at your second pic, follow the rod toward the outboard the first thing it goes into is the plastic retainer/seal. This will unscrew. You can leave the goldy coloured nuts tightened up. I'm not 100% on what they hold but when I did mine I didn't touch them.
sstevee
Posts: 472
Date Joined: 15/11/11
Oh and you should also clean
Oh and you should also clean all that black crap off the rod you can see in the first pic. That's grease that has gone hard. It's no doubt what's causing the rod in the second pic to be seized.
joel88
Posts: 51
Date Joined: 02/04/12
Ok cool will give it a wipe
Ok cool will give it a wipe and remove all that stuff. Only trouble I can tell I'm going to have is to get a hammer in to knock that steering arm. As you can see in the second picture it's gone inside the boat into a sealed compartment I cant get into. Tried forcing it with a crow bar the other day but no luck.
Is WD40 ok to use for this? I don't have any inox
sstevee
Posts: 472
Date Joined: 15/11/11
I'm not sure mate... I'm
I'm not sure mate... I'm sure it'll still be ok as a lubricant to get things moving. Thing to remember is that once you free everything you will need to clean it all down and then try to get some good quality grease back into it to stop it from doing it again. I used the inox mx6 which you can get from the big greedy chain tackle store. I just grabbed a 30ml tube and squeezed it all over the rods and then as much as possible bit by bit into where I removed the grease nipple whilst turning the motor back and forth.
Paul H
Posts: 2104
Date Joined: 18/01/07
Once you get it moving if you
Once you get it moving if you only have half steering (to one side) you can be sure all that hardened grease has been compacted (rammed) up one side of the rod, its hard to get out but if you persist with the above it can be done.
Good Luck
Youtube Channel - FishOnLine Productions
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCbUVNa-ViyGm_FTDSv4Nqzg/videos
lame
Posts: 315
Date Joined: 20/01/10
had the same drama with mine
had the same drama with mine a while back , first of was the grease had dried up and was seized/sticking too much , then when i greased it , it got an air lock and/or too much grease in the arm which made the steering too stiff now i just back that nut that you have off all the way but just alittle bit after graesing and steer left and right a few times and untill all the air bubbles have stopped crackling and get a bit of grease coming out both ends ( worked for me but may check mine again as per above as may have some hardend grease up one end )
joel88
Posts: 51
Date Joined: 02/04/12
Was already dark when I got
Was already dark when I got home tonight so will give it a go tommorow or on my day off Friday. Would much rather be fishing than sitting in the boat in the driveway so hopefully I can get this bastard fixed.
holth
Posts: 812
Date Joined: 09/10/06
Stop using grease for
Stop using grease for starters. Once throughly clean Get some moly lube. Doesnt dry hard. Or use gear oil.
Been through this process before. Steering was alway stiff even after cleaning due to cable being old and stuffed. I Started again and got a new steering kit. I just fitted a NFB cable kit and its awsome.
paulbazza
Posts: 158
Date Joined: 24/11/10
agreed
i have had the same problem. If you can, remove the steering cable/rod from the motor all together, and give the rod a good clean, and clean out the hollow on the motor where the rod goes through.
I cant remove my cable without taking the motor off, so i have cleaned it best i can with inox, you will be surprised how much gung builds up. And also i give it a clean and more inox every 2 weeks if i remember, or when ever i feel the steering starting to stick again.
sstevee
Posts: 472
Date Joined: 15/11/11
How'd you go?
How'd you go?
joel88
Posts: 51
Date Joined: 02/04/12
Gave it a quick shot
Gave it a quick shot yesterday with no luck yet but was too busy to give it the time it needs. Hopefully will get a chance to give it a good crack this week. Thanks everyone for your suggestions. I work across the road from Whitworths so may go in and see if they sell inox and do it properly.
Will report back soon
joel88
Posts: 51
Date Joined: 02/04/12
Still trying
Put some new pics up of what I'm doing. Is this right?
lame
Posts: 315
Date Joined: 20/01/10
in the pic of undone nuts
in the pic of undone nuts here , i only undid the far left one and more so sprayed the arm on the right a bloody big yank on the steering wheel wasn't sure if it was the steering wheel unscrewing/breaking at first (but had nothing to loss at that stage ) or if it was actually moving the arm after a full turn to the right it was easy as turning the steering wheel back to the left
holth
Posts: 812
Date Joined: 09/10/06
The grease nipple when
The grease nipple when greased doesnt go into the tilt tube where the steering cable goes through. It only greases the motors tilt brackets that the pivot tube gies theough if that makes sense.
You shouldn't need to undo the nut on the motor pivot tube.
Take the steering arm off and keep spraying in the tube whilst pulling back and forth on the steering cable. It should just slide out after time .
Dont use steering wheel. Grab the steering cable at motor and just pull it out.
joel88
Posts: 51
Date Joined: 02/04/12
A little success
After many weeks of failed attempts to free the steering rod we finally had some luck today. Ended up removing the motor off the back of the boat so we could get a nylon hammer straight onto the steering rod. A few hard hits and it started to free up. Put the motor back on the boat and using pressure on the outboard / turning the wheel at the same time it started to free up. Then out of nowhere the steering wheel just stopped working and started spinning freely. I think the cable itself has disconnected from that threaded cable at the end of the steering cable. From what I can tell the regular cable joins onto a threaded cable that must be used for the steering (Must have a little gear inside the steering unit that can bite into the threaded cable and move it back and forward) The threaded bit of the cable is still moving with the wheel so I'm thinking it has broken where those 2 cables connect. Is that something that I can take apart and reconnect the 2 myself? Was unable to pull apart the steering compartment so I havent had a chance to see how it works exactly. Anyone have any advice? Thanks in advance
joel88
Posts: 51
Date Joined: 02/04/12
From what I can see online
From what I can see online it is all one single cable. Hope I can repair the one I've got because it is not an easy cable to get to if I need to replace the entire thing.
carnarvonite
Posts: 8669
Date Joined: 24/07/07
New
Buy a new one, that way you will have a clear mind that its not going to snap when you are out at sea
joel88
Posts: 51
Date Joined: 02/04/12
Just the thought of trying
Just the thought of trying to get in some of the spots where the old one is running is annoying haha but yes I think you are totally right. Do things right once and save myself the headache later. Will I have to remove the old one first to find the actual length so I can go buy a new one?
Rob H
Posts: 5801
Date Joined: 18/01/12
it may be printed on the
it may be printed on the cable near the ends
Give a man a mask, and he'll show you his true face...
The older you get the more you realize that no one has a f++king clue what they're doing.
Everyone's just winging it.
joel88
Posts: 51
Date Joined: 02/04/12
Awesome. Will have a look
Awesome. Will have a look when I get home. Thanks!
joel88
Posts: 51
Date Joined: 02/04/12
No luck. Was hoping to pull
No luck. Was hoping to pull new cable through with it attatched to the old cable but going to have to remove old cable first to measure it.
sstevee
Posts: 472
Date Joined: 15/11/11
you can still do that...
you can still do that... Attach a piece of rope or similar to existing cable, pull through... Remove old cable leaving rope in its place... Attach rope to new cable and pull through... easier said than done though
joel88
Posts: 51
Date Joined: 02/04/12
Of course! Didn't even think
Of course! Didn't even think of that. It's still gonna be a total bitch trying to do it but there seems to be no rain forecast for tomorrow morning so will have a good crack at it for a few hours. Really wishing I hadn't of built a speaker box around the cable now haha Thanks for everyones help. Will report on how it goes tomorrow
joel88
Posts: 51
Date Joined: 02/04/12
Finally Success!!
Ripped out the old cable and in with a new one. I've never been able to steer as easy as I can now so think it must have been a bit stuck since I bought the boat.
After almost 6 months of being unable to take the boat out, it's all ready to go finally.
Thanks to everyone for the advice and help. It's much appreciated.
Rick
Posts: 1112
Date Joined: 22/12/06
Well Done
Glad to see you have it sorted mate, has been a bit of a mission
PGFC Member
joel88
Posts: 51
Date Joined: 02/04/12
You're telling me haha Time
You're telling me haha Time to enjoy some fishing!