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stang67
06-23-2005, 09:42 PM
Anyone know whats cuaseing the stiff steering. We went to the lake last week and all had sore shoulders its so stiff? 03
moomba outback

Buttafewcoe
06-24-2005, 06:52 AM
One boat I owned had a knob under the steering wheel that you could tighten to put some drag on the steering. It was a sterndrive, w/o power steering so it pulled to the left a little at certain speeds. I don't think the Outback has this feature.
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I think the rudder has a grease fitting. If you haven't done so recently, you may want to check that.
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Hope this helps.
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Jim
North Carolina

stang67
06-24-2005, 12:00 PM
Thanks i will check that today when i go out.

MEDIC151
06-24-2005, 12:51 PM
Hate to tell you this but mine was because the steering cable was corroded inside. Felt like a car that has power steering that has gone out. I finally took the plunge and bought a new one and installed it myself. The dealership wanted around 500.00 bones to do it, so I did it myself. Not too hard, just time consuming due to all the flooring that needs to be taken out.

The average life of one is 2-3 seasons according to the service guy I talked too. Water will get in there eventually and since they are not made of stainless anymore, they corrode. I think that you can still get stainless, but they are alot more expensive. Cost me 147.00 for the cable and some time, but it was well worth it.

Medic

Buttafewcoe
06-24-2005, 01:56 PM
Yep, sometimes you just can't get away from replacing things.
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2 to 3 seasons?..that doesn't sound very long. You'd think they'd last longer than that.
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Jim

stang67
06-24-2005, 01:59 PM
Yeah it happens. But that time does seem short. This is going on its third summer. So i guess thats about right. id like to get a stainless one. Ill see and let you all know how it goes. Was replacing this cable hard? Or was it just time consuming?

MEDIC151
06-25-2005, 08:46 AM
It really wasn't that hard, just kinda a pain. When I talked to the service guy at the dealership where I bought, he showed me what to do. When I asked about warranty, since it was only 3 seasons old, he told me they were only warrantied for 1 year. I don't particually like that but there are worse things I guess.

Get your new cable first if you know the length or can find out. I forgot to write mine down but it was a teleflex and I think that it was an 18 ft. If you are a direct drive, this is how to do it. If you are a V-drive, I don't know if the same applies. I took out the clamshell, pulled up the floor that is around the center ski pole, the floor under the back seat, and the walls and floor of the rear ski locker. To disconnect the cable from the rudder, I had to reach thru a hole in the gas tank, about 6 inches in diameter, better than taking out the gas tank I guess. I disconnected the rack from the spline on the steering wheel under the dash(4 bolts). Tied a rope onto the rudder end of the old cable and pulled it out with the rope following. I found that if you take out the kick plate under the dash, it allows you to open the front seat and take the cable out thru there, which is not the way I did it since I didn't know at the time, but that is the way I put it back.

I enticed a friend from work with beer to help with the reinstall since I needed a rope puller and a cable feeder. We pushed the cable back down the hole it came out of and he lifted up on the rope as I pushed(lots of stuff to get hung up on in the hull). It took all of 5 minutes to get it past all the things in the hull. I reattached it at the rudder and under the wheel and started the long process of putting back everything that I took out.

Don't worry about centering the wheel until you are out on the water. Once there, get the boat going straight and kill it. Loosen the 4 bolts on the rack so you can lift it off the steering wheel spline and move the wheel back to center. Put the rack back down and tighten the bolts. Your rudder will not be straight when the wheel is, due to the prop wash when in gear since it has to compensate for the push of the water.

You are now done, if all went well. From start to finish, it took me about 3-4 hours. Saved me lots of cash in the long run. Hope that helps.

Medic