Hard left turn steering

[CobraJim]

i am new to a bass boat, just purchased a 2000 viper cobra with 90 hp Mercury. turning right is no problem but at 20+ mph turning left takes both hands and all i have to make her turn. any suggestions? i have greased the steering rods, not under power turns very smooth and easy. is this a normal for a bass boat?

 

[Maclin]

Welcome Aboard!

If it has hydraulic steering then that is not normal.

If not, what happens when you are heading straight and take hands off the wheel when fully on plane? If it tends to go to the right then you may need to adjust the trim fin/anode just aft of the prop.

Does the boat have trim tabs?

Does it have a whaletail on the outboard?

 

[Fed]

Try trimming the motor out before you alter the trim tab.

 

[CobraJim]

thanks for the welcome and such a quick response.

how would I know if it has hydraulic steering? this is the first bass boat I have owned and of course no manuals. there is a canister that looks like an oil filter in the battery compartment and have not figured out what it is or attached to. I do have a whale tail, on plane straight as an arrow. when not fully on trim it's not as difficult to turn but not going as fast either.

 

[Fed]

Google hydraulic boat steering & cable boat steering to see the difference or put up a picture of your set up.
Are you saying the more you trim out the harder it gets to turn left, that makes no sense unless you have a counter rotating prop.

 

[Chris1956]

Look for a fin shaped piece of zinc above and behind the prop. That may be adjusted to help with the torque of the motor. You would normally turn it CW (from above) to help a pull right.

On some high performance boats, this trim tab is not enough to counteract the pull. There are other remedies for that situation.

 

[heypawpaw]

Agree with Fed try trimming it out. My 18' Bluewave does same thing with engine trimmed down all the way hard to turn left. As I trim up the engine left turns get as easy as right turns. If trimming it doesn't help then a look at the fin behind prop.

 

[heypawpaw]

"When not fully on trim it's not as difficult to turn but not going fast either?

What do you mean fully on trim? Trimmed all the way down bow plows and hard steering, trimmed up bow lifts and steering easier, trimmed too high it cavitates. After boat is on plane, trim (tilt) motor up a a little and try steering, tilt up a little more and steer again. If you don't have power trim, use tilt pin at engine bracket to achieve best performance.

 

[SWINE69]

i am new to a bass boat, just purchased a 2000 viper cobra with 90 hp Mercury. turning right is no problem but at 20+ mph turning left takes both hands and all i have to make her turn. any suggestions? i have greased the steering rods, not under power turns very smooth and easy. is this a normal for a bass boat?

Do you have the owners manual for the boat or information on the boat? I'm looking for Wiring diagrams. Ty

 

[GA_Boater]

Do you have the owners manual for the boat or information on the boat? I'm looking for Wiring diagrams. Ty

Hijacking an old thread.

Closed.