Hard to steer

[FSH4EYZ]

I have a 93 Crestliner 160. It has a 40 Merc on it. The steering wheel is tough to turn . I wonder if I need to take the cables loose and clean and grease them. I've owned the boat for over 8 years and haven't touched the steering. What do you guys ,and gals, Think. I sure apreciate all the great advice I get on this site thanks........

[Big Bob]

I would grease the fittings if you have them and lube everything up good and see if that helps. I had an issue with very hard steering with the teleflex steering cable system on my old starcraft and just replaced the whole thing and it was a very easy job and was around $100 [10 years ago] or so from what I remember. It only took an hour or so, but if you can lube it all may help a lot. Good luck!

[REW]

Fish,
If you haven't greased it before, it is quite likely that the steering tube will be gone.
The steering system is a tube within a tube system.
Most of the systems really have no way to grease the system but rely on the tubes being lubricated when new and then staying sealed up.

If you have wd-40 or the equivalent of bolt loose, you can try spraying all of the moving surfaces, waiting a bit and then moving the steering from stop to stop if you can.

Also tilt up the motor and grease the zerks that are on the underside of the motor where the motor pivots on the mount. There should be a zerk on each side of the pivot where the motor is bolted to the transom.

I suspect that all of these things might not make much difference.
If they do - great, then wipe off all of the grease etc, and lay a light layer of grease on the steering tube as it goes in and out of the mechanism.

If not, then you likely have rust in the tube. If so, you will need to replace the steering tube. The problem is that rust occupies 8 times more volume than unrusted metal. As a result, if moisture gets into the tube and rusts, it expands and jams the steering tube within a tube system.

The way to change the tube is to unbolt the motor, lift the motor aside, disconnect the steering tube from the rack underneath the steering wheel. Make sure that all of the clamps in the boats gunnel are loose. Remove the boot at the back of the boat where the steering tube comes out of the boats gunnel and makes the turn to go to the motor.

Began to remove the tube from the rack. As soon as it is clear, tie an 1/8th inch rope on the end of the steering tube connection. The reason for the rope is to use it as a pull rope to pull the steering tube back into the boat. Continue to pull out the tube, until it is entirely out of the boat.

Once the tube is out, compare the old tube to the new tube and make sure that the new tube is identical in size, brand and length. Tie the rope onto the end of the steering tube, and pull it back into the boat following the same path as the exit path of the old tube.

Reconnect the tube at the steering end. Direct the steering tube back into the motor as you lower the motor back into position on the boat.
Bolt the motor back to the boat, insuring that all of the holes are sealed and you use new nylon locking nuts. As you slid the steering tube through the gunnel and around the corner, I assume that you put the tube through a new boot or a boot that was in good shape.

Now, the last thing you need to do is to reattach the boot on the splash pan as it seals the area where the steering tube exist the splash pan to make the corner to the motor.

Put away your tools and go enjoy your boat with new steering.

Take care
REW

[REW]

p.s.
A good quick initial check of your steering problem is to disconnect the single nut that attaches the steering tube to the motor.

Now, attempt to move the motor from side to side. It should be effortless to move the motor from side to side. If you find that it is at all difficult to move, check your pivot bearings and be sure to use a liberal amount of grease on the zerks on each side of the motor support pivot mounts that are under the motor.

Now, with the motor still disconnected, try spinning the steering wheel to note the movement of the steering tube. Again, this movement should be effortless as well and you should linear easy movement of the steering tube in and out of the tube within a tube system. If you find that the steering wheel does not spin effortless with a pinky finger, this is when you need to investigate the possible issue with the tube within a tube system and its potential replacement.

Also, - do NOT drive the boat, until you get it fixed. If the steering is tough to turn, it is not going to get better with out maintenance and or replacement. No fun to be in the middle of a big body of water and have the steering locked up and be unable to turn your motor.

Take care
REW