Help Growling/Groaning Hydraulic Steering

[Ismael]

I am a new registered user on iboats. I recently bought a project 1976 Fiber Form 22.5' Cruiser with a 351W engine and Alpha 1 Mercruiser Leg. The Leg is well painted over covering any serial or model numbers.
I have a single Char Lynn Helm pump hydraulic system steering. The reservoir is a small plastic container with new red Dextron III fluid and mounted about four inches above the Helm pump.
Statically the steering left to right seems okay but with engine running with water muffs, the steering produces a growling/groaning sound that seems to emit from the engine compartment. It is louder than the idling engine, especially on the left and right stops. We have bled the trapped air in the hydraulic actuator located in the engine compartment but the sounds persist.
With the stern in the water and engine idling in gear, I can cycle the steering left and right, but the water seems to dampen the sound a little, is this operational sounds normal?
I really appreciate any troubleshooting techniques I could do before I contact my local repair shop. I am located on the island of Kauai in Hawaii where resources are limited so thank you for any advice or ideas.

 

[Bondo]

Re: Help Growling/Groaning Hydraulic Steering

I am a new registered user on iboats. I recently bought a project 1976 Fiber Form 22.5' Cruiser with a 351W engine and Alpha 1 Mercruiser Leg. The Leg is well painted over covering any serial or model numbers.
I have a single Char Lynn Helm pump hydraulic system steering. The reservoir is a small plastic container with new red Dextron III fluid and mounted about four inches above the Helm pump.
Statically the steering left to right seems okay but with engine running with water muffs, the steering produces a growling/groaning sound that seems to emit from the engine compartment. It is louder than the idling engine, especially on the left and right stops. We have bled the trapped air in the hydraulic actuator located in the engine compartment but the sounds persist.
With the stern in the water and engine idling in gear, I can cycle the steering left and right, but the water seems to dampen the sound a little, is this operational sounds normal?
I really appreciate any troubleshooting techniques I could do before I contact my local repair shop. I am located on the island of Kauai in Hawaii where resources are limited so thank you for any advice or ideas.

Ayuh,.... Welcome Aboard,.... a '76 with a 351, will have an MC-1 drive, as the Alpha wasn't invented yet,...

Yer hyd. steerin' shouldn't be tied in any way to the motor, so yer noise ain't makin' alota sense,...

Is there also a P/Steerin' pump mounted to the motor,..??

Pictures would Help,...

 

[Ismael]

Re: Help Growling/Groaning Hydraulic Steering

Ayuh,.... Welcome Aboard,.... a '76 with a 351, will have an MC-1 drive, as the Alpha wasn't invented yet,...

Yer hyd. steerin' shouldn't be tied in any way to the motor, so yer noise ain't makin' alota sense,...

Is there also a P/Steerin' pump mounted to the motor,..??

Pictures would Help,...

Thank you for your response.
There is no power steering pump attached to the engine. There is no electrical hydraulic motor attached to the steering either.

I have attached three pictures (though not the greatest) I have. One is the Helm Char Lynn pump and one of the cabin Helm (sorry for the mess of the before pictures).
The other picture was taken near the engine; showing a Tilt pump, and Trim tab pump (plastic cover). Below the Trim pump is the steering actuator that has two brown hydraulic lines going to it and also two bleeding nipples mounted on actuator.
Thanks

 

[achris]

Re: Help Growling/Groaning Hydraulic Steering

Ok... Let me get this straight. The helm is a pump to move fluid into and out of the ram at the engine end. No electrics, nothing attached to the engine at all... If that's the case, your noise is not coming from the steering system. Particularly if the noise is still there when you don't touch the steering wheel... I would venture to speculate it's a uni joint or the gimbal bearing.

Remove the drive and fire up the engine. Noise gone? Unis or gimbal bearing, maybe the top gears or bearings in the drive, but check the unis and gimbal bearing first.

Chris....