I have a 1978 mercury 110 leccy start being fitted to a small single seat junior race boat. Its running a treat now but I have been thinking about the steering.
Boat has cockpit about shoulders width with cable/pulley steering. Cables run down the combing towards the motor. I have a pucker steering conversion bracket, correct type but it is all wrong. Gets in the way of everything and looks rubbish.
I do not want the expense of making a full racing type yolk for now, but could bolt a bar to the back of the motor taking the cables directly off the rear pulleys.
Does anybody have experience of how wide the bar should be and if I should bend it forward. I do not want it to become too twitchy by having about quarter turn lock to lock
The Hydro bar ( steering arm) must have the cable eyes at the point of piviot, otherwise, the cable will go slack as you steer, and about 2' wide will do. the steering ratio will be controlled by the steering drum diameter , more than the width of the Hydro bar.
hiya seven...I thought you may help thanks. so if I fit a bar to the back of the motor it needs to bend forward.
the boat has a pulley on each side of the dashboard...nice flush mount one so its tidy up front. The rear has lost its pulleys, but I have a pair of the usual ones with a 2 bolt fitting that lets them "waggle" about. Would I be right keeping the cable tidy to the combing at the rear using these?
Also, I was going to hook to the bar using bottle screws to enable easy tension fiddling and importantly a way to slacken the cables and remove the motor easily by slackening them off.
I am struggling to understand the geometry as to why steering goes slack if the bar is not in line with the pivot but take your very experienced word for it
I have tried to attach a picture, the motor is high and it will bring the cables up well over the combing and possibly rub the driver if they are not "captive" to the rear combing?? is that normal/ok.
If not using rear pulleys (it evidently had some once looking at holes in timber) do I need to fabricate a bar that comes both forward and down?
Put a crank in the steering bar to bring it lower if it helps, as long as it does not bend/twist it won't make any difference. I've had to crank mine up on Colliwobble to get above the deck! Se7ens right the end where the cable attach should be in line with the motor pivot so as one goes back the other goes forward the same amount... in practice I've found that near enough is ok, mine are just behind the pivot but I've a tension spring on the port side and a bottle screw on the stbd side so any slight tension change due to the slightly incorrect geometry is taken up by the spring....works ok for me but Se7en is right the steering bar end should be in line with the motor pivot.
thanks, seven is the fountain of all knowledge here so I shall devise something without rear pulley's and as near to the pivot as possible knowing that slightly off centre will be ok as you have proved. It is not easy working out what to fix to either
It needs a nice stainless "yolk" hydro bar really but until I prove how it goes and the motor is a goodie it is not worth spending so much. I think it will be easily welded mild steel!
thanks. so if I fit a bar to the back of the motor it needs to bend forward.
