posted 04-08-2008 04:08 PM ET (US)        

Anyways, I'm considering a hydrallic steering system as the replacement. Which one should I get?

posted 04-08-2008 07:03 PM ET (US)            

Try tilting the motor full up and down a dozen times. Many have had success with this technique.

C B O

posted 04-09-2008 03:41 AM ET (US)            

fisherman: Hmm... I've never greased the cable end. Always just the rod end that's accessible externally.

Here's a photo of the starboard cable side.
http://www.jackipphotography.com/whaler/xP4040004.jpg

I remove the nut from the tilt tube, after that I am able to turn the steering wheel.

The part that's between the aluminum nut and the tilt tube threads, what part is that? The cable? Because the diameter is smaller than the main rod on the port side.
This "cable" moves when I turn the steering with the nut off.

Keep the advice coming. If all fails I'll be hacksawing the cable and then taking the tilt tube+stuck rod out.

posted 04-09-2008 08:17 AM ET (US)            

http://www.steersman.com/html/whatitdoes.html

Runs $20 for Anodized Aluminum (Fresh water use) and $30 for Solid Steel.

posted 04-09-2008 02:05 PM ET (US)            

I have been where you are.

I would take off the nut on the opposite side (port) and shoot PB Blaster in BOTH sides. Let sit overnight. Shoot it again. Let sit. Try tilting. Tilting does actually turn the steering rod inside the tube.

If the starboard side nut is off, the cable will slide on the sheath (black part) but the cable inside the tube is still frozen.

If no joy, with both nuts off, bang the cable out from the port side. If you get it to move 6 inches, shoot PB Blaster and then try to get it back in. Work it back and forth.

If you can't get it unstuck, apply medium heat along the tube with a propane torch and remove.

Cutting the cable should be the last resort. You will still need to drive it out.

Regardless of age, if you don't have a steersman nut, you should pull the cable out every fall and re-lubricate it. leaving it out of the tube is also another measure to prevent freezing.

C B O

posted 04-09-2008 03:21 PM ET (US)            

I would also recommend not using grease at all. I installed a special nut which allows lubrication with an oil. Before I installed that, I would use sewing machine oil. I think the special nut and bottle/tubing/oil is available thru Davis and should be in most boat supply catalogs.

posted 04-10-2008 02:43 PM ET (US)         

First see my post here (3rd one down):

http://continuouswave.com/ubb/Forum3/HTML/001901.html

The basic problem is the design of the Mercury tilt tube. It's fine when the engine is new, but it is INCREASINGLY UNSERVICEABLE WITHOUT REMOVING THE STEERING FROM THE ENGINE, WHICH ALSO MEANS UN-BOLTING THE ENGINE FROM THE BOAT. Nobody EVER does that on a routine basis, and the steering eventually freezes. This applies whether your engine has a regular, or SS, tilt tube, is a 1970 model or 2008 model. Re-greasing regularly also does not work, as explained below.

The problem is that Mercury places the O-ring seal inside the port end of the tilt tube, making it IMPOSSIBLE to replace without pulling the steering ram out of the tube.
With that O-ring in there, the purpose of which is to KEEP THE ORIGINAL GREASE IN, which it does quite well when not worn, also makes it impossible to add new grease. You cannot work it in from the outside. As the O-ring wears out, which it will do in a few years, crud, water, corrosion, etc gets in and the ram freezes or works very hard.

This is why the 1" thread size STEERSMAN grease zerk nut is needed. You can order it directly from thier website. The MAIN thing it does is put the O-ring gasket out on the end of the nut where IT CAN BE EASILY REPLACED. But for it to work properly,

*YOU MUST-MUST-MUST REMOVE THE ORIGINAL MERCURY O-RING JUST INSIDE THE END OF THE TILT TUBE*

Then, by simply disconnecting the link arm, you can remove the Steersman from the engine, slide it off the steering ram, clean it, and put in a new O-ring. And with the nut off, now you have some play in the ram where it exits the tilt tube, so you can extend it all the way out, keep it clean, and by turning the wheel back and forth many times, bring new CLEAN GREASE back into the tilt tube. Then re-install the Steersman, and use the zerk to create the grease plug behind it. Now you have a steering tilt tube that will last forever if serviced as needed, which will only take 15 minutes or so.

If you are already frozen, I recommend starting fresh with a new SS tilt tube and steering cable.

This works so well, and so smoothly, that I am able to steer my ribside Outrage, with 150 Merc, up to 47 MPH, with standard Teleflx QC steering, the cheapest product they make, with 3.0 turns and without the No-feedback feature. Steering is very easy, with no pull, as long as the engine is the trimmed to the "neutral steering pull" position while running.

This post should become a FAQ here.

posted 04-10-2008 10:15 PM ET (US)            

As I am a fellow owner of a 170 Montauk and was the one who
stated the engine needed removal, let me qualify my comments. I have changed the height of my engine a few times in order to find the perfect mounting height for various props I tried. I once raised the engine up to the fourth hole (one hole down from the uppermost hole). Because of the way the rigging tunnel is situated on the 170 Montauk in relationship to the steering tube on Mercury 4-strokes, if you go any higher than the middle hole with the outboard, it will cuase an unnnatural bend in the steering cable. In my case, it caused wear on the steering cable and eventually harder steering. Due to this, I had to replace the steering cable and lower the engine back down one set of holes (to the middle holes).

posted 04-13-2008 12:35 AM ET (US)            

If I went with a cable steering, how much in parts would it cost me? Does anyone have the right part numbers for

posted 05-01-2008 11:01 PM ET (US)            

I'll make it easier for you.

Q: If I install a Steersman nut, will do no good unless I remove the existing original factory O-ring?
A: _______

Q: Can I do this myself?
A: _______

posted 05-01-2008 11:35 PM ET (US)            

You can do it yourself.

posted 05-02-2008 09:05 AM ET (US)            

In my case, I had my engine height lowered to the middle hole because mounting it in either of the top two holes causes the steering cable to be bent at an un-natural angle. This extreme angle (in my case) caused accelerated cable wear and eventual sticky steering. Since the engine was getting unbolted anyway, I had the dealer install a new cable at the same time but had him leave the o-ring off. I then installed the steersman nut at home myself.

I suppose if you were determined to try this with the engine attached, you could unbolt the helm, remove the cable from the helm, and pull the cable out from the console. It is still going to be a two-man pain in the butt job and may or may not work ultimately. Since most of us do no have overhead hoists in our garages, its much more practical (and safe) to simply have your dealer remove the engine and start with a new cable, leaving the o-ring off the new cable. I think the labor in my case for the steering cable replacement/engine lowering was $95. If the labor cost was $300-$400, perhaps I would have tried it myself.