Hydraulic steering for outboard

[MVFLY]

I have a single outboard Sea Star front mount (single) cylinder hydraulic steering set up on my 18 foot Grady 180 sportsman. It seems like the responsivness of the steering is a bit less than when it was new 6 years ago. Never had leaks. Might just need to be sure the fill level is proper. Doesn't feel spongey. Should I just go ahead and bleed the system to be sure there isn't any air in it? Any advice?

[Chisox]

I would definitely bleed the system. If the wheel moves but the motor doesn't, there is air in there.

[welder]

Yes , bleed the system.

The oil is so light [ In color and weight ] if is leaking while running you wont see it.

Remove the filler cap at the helm 1st and see if it is low.

[JollyMonNJ]

As Osprey and Welder point out, if there is air in the system and the engine won't turn, you will need to bleed. If you find that the oil level is a little low try adding fluid first. Could be that you've lost fluid through the vent cap on the helm over time. If you don't see any difference then bleeding will be the next step.

Good Luck,

JollyMonNJ

[onejacker]

Hey MVFLY,

You may know this, but if you decide to bleed the system, it is MUCH easier if you have someone to help you.

Good luck.

[Chisox]

Onejacker is entirely correct. Buy a buddy a beer on this Friday afternoon and put him to work!

[MVFLY]

Onejacker is entirely correct. Buy a buddy a beer on this Friday afternoon and put him to work!

Thanks for all the advice. I will bleed it. And I know it is a two man job. I got plenty of beer to get the help. Thanks to everyone. MVFLY

[Chisox]

Thanks for all the advice. I will bleed it. And I know it is a two man job. I got plenty of beer to get the help. Thanks to everyone. MVFLY

Let us know the outcome.

[Capt. Thunder]

Thanks for all the advice. I will bleed it. And I know it is a two man job. I got plenty of beer to get the help. Thanks to everyone. MVFLY

FYI,

my seastar went out at 1 year on my 205 edgwater. They replaced it under warrenty. Then it went out again this nov. I always rinse the cylinder, but it started to pit. I called seastar and was told the pitting was due to stray voltage and water can get into the system and make its way to the helm and cause that to malfunction. I was also told they would send me a grounding strap. I contacted the dealer and he had not heard of grounding the 4 strokes, so they weren't willing to pay for a new unit. I contacted an outfit in fla about rebuilt units and asked about the stray voltage.

The lady was very knowlegable, but hadn't heard about the grounding strap or voltage. She said she would research and call me back. She left me a voice mail and said seastar told her that the 4 strokes put out extra voltage and the engine needs to be grounded to keep the cylinder from pitting.

I called back to sea star and told them the mfg didn't know about the stray voltage and they didn't send a strap when it was replaced under warranty. We haggled back and forth and they sent me a knew helm, cylinder, groundingstrap and fluid. They also said this was all they were going to ever do, unless it was bad out of the box. It has worked as advertised now for 4 months and no pitting. This is just an fyi, so if your running a 4 stroke, get the grounding strap.

[Chisox]

Thunder,

I work for a major boat builder, and, until this "economic downturn (read recession/depression)", we did over a 1000 Seastar installs a year with no mention of any ground strap, and most were done on 4-strokes, very few Etecs. The SE Teleflex rep is a VERY good friend of mine.

So what's the deal? Do I need to do some digging? And why would a 4S generate stray current versus a 2S?

There are 3 points of direct metal-to-metal contact on any Seastar cylinder install. Both sides of the tilt tube plus the pivot plate where it attaches to the steering arm. What you/they are saying is that because of the plastic washers on either side of the tilt tube, the seals at ends of the cylinder, that the hyd ram is not actually touching any metallic surface of the motor, and therefore is not grounded?

This will require a couple of emails...and who told you that 4S motors create more voltage than 2S motors?

This should be some fun...