Trojan Boat Forum

I'm assuming that like mine, most F-26s came equipped with rack & pinion driven cable steering. I don't have a fly bridge so this is a single station boat with a single rudder and a ralatively short steering cable. Would there be an noticable advantage to change this system over to hydraulic or is it better left alone.

If it is working I would leave alone... not sure with such a light boat you will feel the money to convert to hydraulic would be worth it.

Paul,
I had the old chain, rod and pinion system on my 1972 F-26. It squeeked like crazy. When I would pull into the slip (a lot of rudder moving) it was really annoying. I was able to piece a hydraulic system together on ebay. Whole thing for about $250. It's a huge change, the steering is so much smoother. The only beef I have about the system is the hydraulic helm (where you mount the steering wheel) sticks out futher than the old system from the helm, so I lost some room between the seat and the wheel. So now I have to watch out for my beer belly.

Paul,
I had the push pull cable steering you are describing. My original one froze with the rudder hard over while I was in the process of getting into my slip years ago. Luckily I was lined up ok, so it wasn't a big deal. I couldn't find an original setup but bought a "no feedback" system from teleflex ( I still have the part # if you need it) I had to modify my helm a little, which wasn't really a big deal as the teleflex unit was a little larger in diameter and too big for the original board. I purchased 5/4" teak to replace the original board. This setup works great, it is very smooth and I can actually drive with one finger, at all speeds (though I don't recommend it) Attached is a photo of the new setup, you'll notice how much larger the new teak board is.

Ken, hydraulic must have been a huge improvement over the old chain system. I bet with the amount of backlash involved in the chain you must have had a couple of white knuckle rides.

Matt, I'm not familiar with the no feedback system from Teleflex. Is it Hydraulic? And yes I would be inderested in the part # if you have it. The cable system that I have now does work well without fighting it. I'm really just wondering is a hydraulic system would make it any better. Right now it requires almost 4 full turns of the wheel to go from hard port to hard starboard. Would hydraulic reduce this?

As Michael stated, I need to know if it would be worth it. If it becomes more responsive with fewer turns, it might be worth it.

Paul,
I still have to turn the wheel quite a bit to go from hard starboard to port. It depends on the volume of the hydraulic cylinder.

This is pretty much what I have...
http://www.teleflexmarine.com/cgi-bin/p ... oduct=1167

The no feedback mentioned above I beileve is like most outboard steering. The "cable" from the helm to the rudder spins and is like a worm gear pushing and pulling depending on which way you turn the wheel. Like this...
http://www.teleflexmarine.com/cgi-bin/p ... oduct=1086

One nice thing about the Hydraulic is that you can get the helm and the cylinder and the tubing can be routed any way you like and as long as you want. And can be cut to length in the boat. The other type you have to order the corrent length cable.

Paul,
I just got back from the marina; it takes 5 full turns of the wheel to go from hard to port to hard to starboard with my hydraulic setup.

Thanks Ken,

Sounds like the ratio is close to the same as my rack & pinion. No advantage there.

Paul,
My steering unit is a Teleflex No Feedback steering system part # SS147 (15 foot cable) It is a rack system with a push pull cable. It's designed for outboard use, to eliminate steering loads but works really well in this application. It is a little over 4 turns lock to lock and is virtually maintenance free. The thing I like best about is that even if you take your hand off the wheel it holds it's course really well. I installed this during the 1996 Season, it is still available today.

Thanks Matt