I got the steering wheel off without too much fuss. By the time my buddy got over to help me I had sprayed it 3 or 4 times w/ PB Blaster. I pulled on the wheel and he hit the shaft w/ a hammer and it came right off after a minute or two.
I started to remove the helm, first two hex bolts came out fairly easliy, but the third stripped out. All I had was standard size hex but it was actually metric. Gonna try the correct size metric tomorrow and hopefully get it out w/o having to get creative. I knew before I did it I should just wait until I had the metric, but stupid me tried it anyway.
After I get the helm off tomorrow I'll know exactly what was in it and go from there. Sounds like unanimously I should get the NFB. The thing is, I don't think I had it before and I could literally go ten minutes without touching the wheel on a 1-2 ft seas day.
Another problem, as I mentioned earlier, is I'm pretty strapped for cash right now (stupid Christmas presents), and I'd really like to get it fixed ASAP. The great powers that be have decided that we don't need to catch any grouper during Feb and March because they'll all die and become extinct if we do. Pretty much that means I won't be diving during Feb and March so I need to get my fix before then. (I know I sound like a crackhead, but trust me, spearfishing is very addictive).
Thanks again to all of the helpful responses. This site is AWESOME. Wish I would have found it sooner.
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