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wakeflip
04-25-2011, 05:44 PM
Its gotten to the point that I wont take my 05 outback lsv out anymore until I free the steering. I wanna try and free it before replacing it. Ive been doing alot of reading about drilling a hole in the steering cable and spraying wd40 to free it up. But I cant find any detailed pics or good directions on how this is done. Does it have to be taken off at the rudder? If so how is this done? Where do you drill the hole? Any pics or help is appreciated.

c.rix
04-25-2011, 06:14 PM
the cables Ive replaced we pulled them from the housing and they were screwed from rubbing on the housing itself! think of it like a frayed rope thats why it gets hard to steer the fray starts rubbing on the housing wd 40 may be like putting a hello kitty band aid on a compound fracture do the right thing and get a new cable

wakeflip
04-25-2011, 08:05 PM
I understand your concept. But thats not always the case of a stiff steering cable. Alot of times it has to do with water getting into the cable causing it to corrode and rust. Washing it out with wd40 while turning the wheel back and forth often gets the rust and corrosion out. Its worked for several people and frees the cable up like new. Im aware of the process, I just dont know exact details on how its done. Id much rather give it a shot with a $3 can of wd40 before buying a $150 steering cable.

casmith71
04-25-2011, 11:08 PM
i attempted to lube my steering cable like that and i could not drill through the housing. i spent over 30 min just trying to drill. ended up replacing the cable myself and it was only 140 bucks w/shipping. but if you really wanna give lubing a try you need something better than wd-40. the best thing is ship to shore but a good alternate is liquid wrench. drill into the cable under the dash, as close to the end as possible. if you succeed in drilling through the housing, use the straw on the lube can and spray into the hole. Place a towell on the floor underneeth the whole and work the steering from full left to full right several times and repeat untill it is improved. if it improves caulk the hole and tape it. u only need a hole as big as the straw. you may also want to grease the rudder and steering cable shaft that connects to the rudder.

Did i see ur boat for sale on craigslist in atl?

wakeflip
04-26-2011, 12:12 AM
i attempted to lube my steering cable like that and i could not drill through the housing. i spent over 30 min just trying to drill. ended up replacing the cable myself and it was only 140 bucks w/shipping. but if you really wanna give lubing a try you need something better than wd-40. the best thing is ship to shore but a good alternate is liquid wrench. drill into the cable under the dash, as close to the end as possible. if you succeed in drilling through the housing, use the straw on the lube can and spray into the hole. Place a towell on the floor underneeth the whole and work the steering from full left to full right several times and repeat untill it is improved. if it improves caulk the hole and tape it. u only need a hole as big as the straw. you may also want to grease the rudder and steering cable shaft that connects to the rudder.

Did i see ur boat for sale on craigslist in atl?

Do I need to disconnect the other end of the steering cable from the rudder? And yes, that is my boat. Im wanting to upgrade to an XLV but need to sell this one first.

casmith71
04-26-2011, 01:10 AM
No you do not have to disconnect from the rudder. But doing so will tell you if Ur cable is stiff or your rudder needs greasing. You can disconnect the rudder by removing the bolt that goes horizontal through the rudder link and steering cable shaft.

wolfeman131
04-26-2011, 11:00 PM
wakeflip - I was going thru the Overton's catalog that showed up in the mailbox today, saw this kit and thought it might help you out.

http://www.overtons.com/modperl/product/details.cgi?i=26063&pdesc=Cable_Buddy_Steering_Cab le_Lubrication_System

Ian Brantford
07-17-2011, 03:48 PM
I think that I saw an older post that described turning the wheel all the way to either the left or right before detaching it for service, in order to save a lot of trouble later. Comments?

casmith71
07-17-2011, 04:08 PM
I think that I saw an older post that described turning the wheel all the way to either the left or right before detaching it for service, in order to save a lot of trouble later. Comments?

this is only if you plan on removing the cable from the boat. you turn it so that the metal shaft at the end of the cable is all the way in the housing. i believe you turn the wheel all the way rite.

Ian Brantford
07-21-2011, 09:01 AM
After giving up on cable replacement for the time being (cannot get floor panels up), I tried to lubricate the cable. Another roadblock: I too cannot seem to drill through the metal sheath around the cable. Even the plastic-like outer layer was too tough for a conventional drill bit!

Using a cobalt bit, I was able to drill through the plastic and a slightly into the metal sheath. There the bit stopped. What's the secret, please?