Frozen Steering

My mechanical steering is frozen. I have a 1990 Johnson 70HP outboard. The piston that goes in and out of the tube on the outboard is frozen. If I disconnect the cable end, at the outboard, I can get movement at that point by turning the steering wheel. I've sprayed penatrating oil in the tube at the cable end but no help. I noticed the fasteners at both ends of the tube are rusty. The thing is, I just had the steering replaced in April 2006. The old steering cable froze up and was the original. The boat shop that installed the new cable says there only good for two years in salt water. My boat has been used in salt or brackish water all it's life.

Am I right in thinking I have a defective cable at the motor end? I'm replacing the motor this weekend with a new E-TEC and will probably have to replace the steering cable too. $$$$$$

Is hydraulic steering worth the big bucks and less of a problem?

Re: Frozen Steering

Hydraulic steering is the way to go for larger engines or twins. Cable should do just fine for a 70 if the trim tab is set properly.

Re: Frozen Steering

Hydraulic steering means you won't be messing around with frozen cables any more. I have a Baystar system and it works fine. I put it in myself with no problem, though drilling the hole in the helm was a bit intimidating.

Jinx

Re: Frozen Steering

go hydro and never look back

on cables, you need to lube all the time