Steering

[SkunkBoat]

Originally Posted by steplift20

Skunk boat what are you doing this weekend?

It's Mother's Day week and I own a flower shop....

[steplift20]

I had the same problem years ago I am guessing a zerk is also a grease fitting? The only advice I can give you about that is when I did mine and turned the engine all the way to one side( the fitting was on the port side) the motor hit it it was a good thing I could get a flush mounted fitting and got the head to use for it to so make sure your engine won't hit it oh also it worked got the grease to come out the top too

[Destroyer]

Originally Posted by steplift20

I had the same problem years ago I am guessing a zerk is also a grease fitting? The only advice I can give you about that is when I did mine and turned the engine all the way to one side( the fitting was on the port side) the motor hit it it was a good thing I could get a flush mounted fitting and got the head to use for it to so make sure your engine won't hit it oh also it worked got the grease to come out the top too

Yes, Zerk fitting and Grease fitting are the same thing. Also called a grease nipple or an Alemite fitting.

[Troutkiller2006]

never changed the steering cable on a v20 but i did it once a long time ago on a bayliner capris. dont remember any issues getting it off the motor. i tied a piece of parachute cord to the old cable, pulled it out, measured it, got a new one then used the cord to pull the new one in

[13Echo70271]

Thanks Skunk n SLv20. I will let you know how it works out. I had a bit of success putting more pressure on the grease by stopping the grease from coming out at the bottom. I used a strip of rubber inner tube wrapped around the bottom and held tight in place with a hose clamp. The clamp ultimately fails to keep the grease in under increasing pressure, but I think it is taking a bit more pressure and grease each time. A bit of wd40 topside at the joint and pushing the motor side to side each time to help move the wd40 and grease around. No grease at the top yet. we'll see.

It looks like there is enough material there to recess a zerk a bit, giving it more clearance when the motor swivels. the plan is to drill a 3/16 pilot all the way, looking for change in material coming out. then drill zerk hole maybe 1/2 way, then drill larger 5/8" recess hole to fit grease gun onto zerk maybe 1/4" deep. Or maybe i'll take the surface down flat a bit with a grinder to get more room.

[13Echo70271]

update . the wd40 sprayed weekly onto top has seeped in and has loosened the steering. I am seeing a mix of wd40 and a bit of grease at the joint now, and the motor moves freely side to side. I hope with time and an occasional spray of wd40 there, that I start to see more grease, less wd40, until I don't need the wd40 any more. I did not add a zerk (yet, waiting to see).

[steplift20]

Destroyer I hot the steersmen nut but I can't get the port side bolt off, did you have a problem getting yours off? When I turn the bolt the whole tube turns too, how do I hold the tube from turning? Thanks

[Destroyer]

Originally Posted by steplift20

Destroyer I hot the steersmen nut but I can't get the port side bolt off, did you have a problem getting yours off? When I turn the bolt the whole tube turns too, how do I hold the tube from turning? Thanks

I'm a little stumped. Mine have never given me a problem,. All of them have just unscrewed like they should have.

Seems to me that if you unscrew the starboard side nut you should be able to slide the whole tube assembly towards the port side. (Use a brass or urethrae hammer to gently tap it sideways) That should buy you about a half inch or more of exposed threads. I'd take a pair of channel locks put a piece of bike inner tube on each jaw so you don't muck up the threads and try to clamp the tube right next to the port side nut while you back off the port side nut. Unless it's been cross-threaded it should unscrew easily enough.

[steplift20]

That's a good idea, I'm just afraid of bending the tube but if I use rubber as a cushion that should help me and honestly I'm scared of screwing something up cause right now with the new cable it's so easy I don't want to mess anything up but I should be able to do that, dam it I had it moved over before and didn't even think of doing that Oh well I will do it now I just hope it turns cause now it don't

[Destroyer]

Originally Posted by steplift20

That's a good idea, I'm just afraid of bending the tube but if I use rubber as a cushion that should help me and honestly I'm scared of screwing something up cause right now with the new cable it's so easy I don't want to mess anything up but I should be able to do that, dam it I had it moved over before and didn't even think of doing that Oh well I will do it now I just hope it turns cause now it don't

The rubber is more than a cushion... it's also a friction material with a higher coefficient of friction than just plain smooth metal on smooth metal.
(Like you would have by just clamping on the tube with bare Channel-locks). Put another way, it will hold better with less clamping force needed, which means less chance of bending the tube or damaging the threads.

Also, if you have a heat gun (NOT A TORCH) you might want to apply a little heat to the NUT first before you try to loosen it. The heat will make the nut expand slightly (a few thousandths of an inch), and at the same time, if there is any dried grease on the threads it will help soften it, making it easier to spin off the nut. (In much the same way that running a stuck jar lid under hot water helps loosen it so you can unscrew it).