[85 mercury 850]

I have a 1975 Mercury 85 hp and the steering cable looks to be in good shape but it will not turn. I can (facing the motor) unscrew the nut that connects the cable to the arm? and the motor turns...Cable is frozen I guess is there a way to fix it? This is my first post i'm a newbie please help...Not much money these days to buy new parts

[jerry place]

hey man, i'm a newbie also and the boat i just bought had the same problem. the way i fixed it was to disconnect teh engine control arm as i guess you already have. then i loosened the nut on the right side of the engine (as u sit in the boat). then i sprayed it heavily with wd 40. next i went under the steering wheel and sprayed that end of it as well. then i had my brother apply light pressure to the steering wheel. very light as you dont want to shear off the teeth on the steering column. as he did this i took a hammer and tapped on the engine side of the cable. i had to relube it over and over again and just when i was about to call it quits it broke free. there may be a better way but this worked for me. hope this helps.
jerry

[Chris1956]

First unscrew the large nut on the starboard side of the tilt tube. Turn the wheel and see if the cable moves freely. If so, the cable end is the only thing stuck, and it can usually be freed up. If the cable doesn't move, it is time for a new cable or entire steering system.

Another trick to break the cable free is to put a pipe wrench on the end of the cable and rock it front and back. Spray the cable end with some penetrating oil. If the pipe wrench can move the cable end at all, it will eventually break loose. Keep rocking and spraying and wiping it.

You can also heat the tilt tube a bit, and that may help break it loose.