Re: Twin 1975 25 E/J - steering hookup
I've done it a couple of different ways. My first set up used a transom mounted clamp to anchor the steering cable, and a home made steering bracket system.
The first thing that I had to do for the initial system, was to fabricate a pair of L shaped brackets to bolt onto the steering yokes of each engine. I ended up welding a piece of flatbar onto sections of L channel, because the L channel pieces weren't deep enough to allow for turning.
The second step was to find a large, galvanized turnbuckle with eyes on each end. I welded a tab in the middle of that and drilled a hole in it. This tab provided a place for the push/pull steering cable to bolt onto. The L channels that I described above, were the attachment points for the eyes in the turnbuckle. Each of the extended sections of the channels had a hole drilled it, so that a bolt could be used to secure the turnbuckle eye to it.
It is also important to drill a hole in one side of the turnbuckle, at the point where the screw arm passes through it, so that a cotter key can be used to prevent twisting. Basically what this involves, is finding the proper extension length for that side, and then drilling through both the turnbuckle and the screw piece. The other side can be left without this feature, so that toe-in and toe-out of the two engines can be adjusted.
My second setup made use of a steering tube adapter that was set up to steer one of the two engines. Added to that, was a steering link to connect the two motors. These are hard to find, but some shops have them. If you end up having to fabricate your own, remember that you will have to have the ability to adjust toe-in and toe-out. The easiest way to do this is the turnbuckle system, or a threaded tube with two threaded rods for end pieces.
On any of these setups, remember that you will want to use nuts with plastic inserts for nut locking. This is needed because you can't tighten the nuts down too hard - doing so will make the steering stiff.
If you need help on a duel throttle/shift system, I can help you on how to make one out of a pair of Johnson Shipmaster or ERude Simplex control boxes. While shop.evinrude.com says the manufactured duel units are still available as dealer direct items, no price is given. I doubt there are very many around by now, and the last price I saw on one was over $400!
