Cable/pulley steering with a new 25 hp Mercury

davebwm

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Jul 31, 2013
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I am a new member, looking to get back into boating after near 50 years away. I bought an older boat with a cable/pulley steering system on which I want to put a new 25 hp Mercury (it previously had a 40 hp Evinrude on it). The dealer I want to buy the motor from will install the motor and other controls but won't hook it up to the cable/pulley steering system, says there is too much liability for him to touch it. I believe I understand the risk and am willing to take it. My guess is that I can easily do the steering hookup myself if I can figure out the right connector to the motor. Can someone please point me in the right direction here? Thanks for any help.
 

Bob_VT

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Re: Cable/pulley steering with a new 25 hp Mercury

Welcome to iboats.

Honestly........ dump the old cable/pulley system. A brand new single cable steering system is not too much money and much safer for control. Very easy to install too.

This is what I have and I am very happy with it Uflex ROTECH Rotary Steering System Package - iboats
 

davebwm

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Jul 31, 2013
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Re: Cable/pulley steering with a new 25 hp Mercury

Welcome to iboats.

Honestly........ dump the old cable/pulley system. A brand new single cable steering system is not too much money and much safer for control. Very easy to install too.

This is what I have and I am very happy with it Uflex ROTECH Rotary Steering System Package - iboats

Thanks for the reply. I expect I will replace the cable/pulley system at some point in the future, but with no experience with this boat, it seems to me to make sense to defer that until I have a better idea of whether performance is reasonable or I need to look for another boat. I suppose a new single cable steering system would be essentially transferable to another boat. True?
 

Lakeshadow

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May 29, 2012
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Re: Cable/pulley steering with a new 25 hp Mercury

IMAG1566.jpgI am using a rope steering on my '53 Kit Chris*Craft. I just hooked up a 33 Evinrude Ski-Twin this year. My steering get up is somewhat hippie rigged, yet it works smooth and steers perfectly.

Last year I had a 15 clamped on the transom with no jack plate. The steering was too quick. Now with the jack plate, it has moved the leverage to turn the outboard at a wider sweep.

The rope steering on my boat is period authentic and could quite possibly of been installed when the boat was originally built. I would not ever consider removing the rope steering. Yet the bracket get up is a temporary prototype that will be refined during the off season.

There were no pulleys at the outboard from the day I brought this boat home, I know factory offerings are like that to ease the ratio, yet with a jack plate and this arc, it is perfect.

Sounds to me like that dealer lacks the prototype fabrication skills to get the job done.
 

Lakeshadow

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Re: Cable/pulley steering with a new 25 hp Mercury

Come to think of it a steering change may be better for you. Mine is a continuous carry over as I go. I guess it all depends on which design is better suited for your boat outboard combination.

I'm thinkin' a simple bracket or two and your there? What year Merc and did that outboard have ropes?

Put some photographs up.

I'm still struggling with trying to find out if an old aqua-meter tach is going to work or not....'oh my 'oh my.
 

davebwm

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Re: Cable/pulley steering with a new 25 hp Mercury

Come to think of it a steering change may be better for you. Mine is a continuous carry over as I go. I guess it all depends on which design is better suited for your boat outboard combination.

I'm thinkin' a simple bracket or two and your there? What year Merc and did that outboard have ropes?

Put some photographs up.

I'm still struggling with trying to find out if an old aqua-meter tach is going to work or not....'oh my 'oh my.

Thanks for your response. I'm afraid I'm functioning in the technological dark ages here, with no capability to take digital pictures. The old motor was a 40 hp Evinrude from, I think, 1972, and the new motor is a 2014 Mercury 25 hp. The old motor apparently worked fine with the cable/pulley system, but I never saw it operate. The cable/pulley system uses clear plastic coated wire cables that wind/unwind on the steering wheel hub and run down the side of the boat through pulleys at the right rear corner of the transom. One cable runs to the motor directly while the other runs across the back to a pulley at the opposite corner and then back to the motor. The motor ends of the cables connect to a small metal fixture that fastened somehow to the front of the old engine. There are spring tensioners where the cables hook to the fixture that fastened to the front of the old engine.

I am pretty confident that this system would work fine with the new engine with the appropriate fixture to accept the cable tensioner ends and attach to the front of the new engine, but I have no capability to fabricate a one-off fixture for the new engine. I think the dealer could do it but he doesn't want the liability for cable breakage and the possibility of an accident from the motor torque suddenly causing the motor to slam to one side. My hope was that some outfit made an appropriate fixture. I called Mercury tech support today, and they said they don't have one, but that one could be made to do the job. I had already figured that out. Someone must have already addressed this problem.
 

Lakeshadow

Petty Officer 1st Class
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May 29, 2012
Messages
205
Re: Cable/pulley steering with a new 25 hp Mercury

You may have to go with the modern steering new like the outboard.

When I first fired the mighty 33 pony with ear muffs it torqued the steering wheel half a turn. I had to snicker because the little 15 pony didn't do that. Yet when she's in the drink I don't notice any of that.

Good Luck...
 

rsalley

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Aug 17, 2012
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Re: Cable/pulley steering with a new 25 hp Mercury

Thanks for your response. I'm afraid I'm functioning in the technological dark ages here, with no capability to take digital pictures. The old motor was a 40 hp Evinrude from, I think, 1972, and the new motor is a 2014 Mercury 25 hp. The old motor apparently worked fine with the cable/pulley system, but I never saw it operate. The cable/pulley system uses clear plastic coated wire cables that wind/unwind on the steering wheel hub and run down the side of the boat through pulleys at the right rear corner of the transom. One cable runs to the motor directly while the other runs across the back to a pulley at the opposite corner and then back to the motor. The motor ends of the cables connect to a small metal fixture that fastened somehow to the front of the old engine. There are spring tensioners where the cables hook to the fixture that fastened to the front of the old engine.

I am pretty confident that this system would work fine with the new engine with the appropriate fixture to accept the cable tensioner ends and attach to the front of the new engine, but I have no capability to fabricate a one-off fixture for the new engine. I think the dealer could do it but he doesn't want the liability for cable breakage and the possibility of an accident from the motor torque suddenly causing the motor to slam to one side. My hope was that some outfit made an appropriate fixture. I called Mercury tech support today, and they said they don't have one, but that one could be made to do the job. I had already figured that out. Someone must have already addressed this problem.

I'm with you on the cable steering. I'm trying to locate kits so that I can remove all of the newer crap off my boat so that I can go out knowing nothing will go wrong. That is what was so nice with the old style cable/pulley systems. Everything is visible and easy to repair with the simplest of tools. If anyone know's where I can but the kits or, individual pieces, I'd surely appreciate the help. Thank you fellow boaters.
 

GA_Boater

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49,038
Re: Cable/pulley steering with a new 25 hp Mercury

If you would start a new thread with your questions instead of tagging onto an old thread, you might get some answers. Please start your own thread.
 
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