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Dear all,
I'm writing from Italy, owner of an original 1980 Revenge 22 with a 1980 Mercury 150 V6.
The mercury is in perfect working conditions but I'm facing with a strange problem and I don't understand where is the trick.
Configuration: single Mercury with double steering cable by Teleflex
Problem: for some reasons not able to fully steer on the left side (cables pulling)
Actions already done:
- removed all the levers connecting the two steering cables to the engine: engine moves fully, it is not the problem
- steering cable not fully steering disconnected from engine, problem is there somewhere
- removed the two boxes behind the wheel, opened them , checked the cable and gear inside are fine, everything seems fine
- tried to pull cables with free cables on steering side and not able to pull the one that is inserted in the trim-thru-tube inside the engine, the external one (the secondary) works -> ok at least I know the main going thru the engine is the problem
- try to remove the cable from the engine to see where the problem is:
-removed the locking nut holding the cable to the engine... the cable comes not out, and here the problem!
-applied oil and special unblocking spray to see if something was stuck inside... nothing
-tried to hammer a little bit... nothing
-tried to push, pull... the cable moves fully right, partially left as in the beginning but it comes not OUT, even with the NUT totally loose
-even tried to heat it with flame-torch being carefully to stay at a temperature that cannot ruin aluminium, nothing!
What the hell, why is this cable not coming out?
Is there any special fixing I'm not aware of? Reading manuals it should come...
Ever happened to somebody else?
Have you removed the bolt on the port side of the engine bracket where the steering rod comes out?
Do you have photo from front showing the starboard side of bracket where the cable enters the tilt tube?
Hi Phil,
on the port side, what do you mean with BOLT? I don't have one, just a NUT (at least it seems so from outside) and from the manual it seems the one fixing the tilt tube to the engine (not related with the steering rod). Is this false and do I need to remove this one?
You can see it in the picture attached.
pippolino attached the following image:
[78.41Kb]
Edited by pippolino on 11/09/20 - 7:38 AM
Have you removed the bolt on the port side of the engine bracket where the steering rod comes out?
Do you have photo from front showing the starboard side of bracket where the cable enters the tilt tube?
Hi Phil,
on the starboard side at the moment this is the only picture I have (i'll be back to the boat in 2-3 weeks, we're in lockdown now and cannot move...). Is this enough? What do you need to see exactly?
The problem here is very common with mechanical/cable steering on a Mercury outboard.
It has also been discussed here many times before.
The cable freezes in the tilt tube due to lack of servicing and lubrication, which is not easy to do, nor are most aware that it needs to be done. The grease seal 0-ring, inside the port end of the tilt tube, wears out quickly, letting in water and contaminants, and can't be replaced without pulling the steering ram back in the tilt tube so the seal can be accessed. This may even require removing the engine from the boat, which is why this needed service is rarely done. The old seal has to be dug out and a new seal installed, then the ram re-greased and re-installed.
To repair this mess, and prevent it from happening again, I recommend replacing the port side tilt tube nut with a SS "Steersman" 1" grease zerk nut (about $25 USD), which has it's own o-ring seal, easily replaceable, The Mercury tilt tube o-ring seal is removed and not replaced.
If cable steering is to be retained, the old twin cable system should be removed and discarded, and replaced with a complete new "no-feedback" single cable system.
Even better, if it were my boat, I would convert to front mount hydraulic steering, eliminating the cable problems completely. An additional recessed mount plate kit is needed for mounting the Sea Star helm.
As for removing the frozen ram in the tilt tube, the steering cable should be cut at the starboard side, with a cutting/grinder disk, and pounded out as mentioned previously. If this can't be accomplished, a new engine tilt tube may be required.
