"Steve Lusardi" wrote in message
...
If you ever used a PROPERLY installed hydraulic system, you would never
use a cable system again.

I guess the hydraulic steering on my BassCat that swings that 250ProXS
around at 70+ mph easy as you please must not be properly installed then.
What should it do better? Steer the boat for me?

It is easy to make mistakes so you must do your arithmetic before you buy
the parts.

Buy the parts? I already have a dual cable steering system that works
perfectly. It would crank a 150 Black Max around just fine at the 55 MPH it
was capable of pushing the boat it was on at. I also have single cable
steering on two smaller boats that works just fine.

In the end, the cost difference is minimal. your assumption of similar
maintenance between hydraulic and cable is flat wrong.

Ok. So other than lubricating the cables and push rods what OTHER
maintenance is there. They aren't electrical so no magic smoke to worry
about. LOL.

There is much less maintenance on hydraulic systems. In fact, if designed
and installed correctly there is No maintenance, just occasional
inspection.

No maintenance really? Zero ever? So seals never start leaking, and they
never dry rot? And of course the cost of completely tearing down a
hydraulic cylinder to replace a seal is zero and takes no time when a seal
fails, as opposed to the 50¢ worth of Triple Grease you should use in your
steering once a year with cables? Or do you not count that as maintenance?
Or do you not believe in doing maintenance to replace seals before they fail
and instead call it repairs? If they never need maintenance why do
inspections? Even if a seal lasts ten years it will cost more to replace
than it cost you to keep your cables lubed properly.

Other than that push pull cable steering (not rope on a pulley) sucks
according to you, and hydraulics never need maintenance ever, do you see a
strong need not to use dual cable steering that adequately moved a 150
around under power for a jet drive lower unit which does not develop any
side torque that you need the extra mechanical advantage of hydraulics to
overcome? A cable system I already have and won't cost me anything other
than a little bit of grease to reinstall in this new project.

Ugh! Cable bad! Juice good!

Steve. I know properly working hydraulics are superior to cable steering,
but seriously. Is it an overriding must have or you will die when not
dealing with side torque? Especially if you already have a complete
perfectly working dual cable steering system.



"Bob La Londe" wrote in message
...
As I'm sure you are aware in a lot of bigger outboard applications it can
be really hard to turn the wheel under high throttle due to side torque.
Its why a lot of (most?) bigger bass boats have hydraulic steering. Any
reason you can see not to go with dual cable push pull steering on with a
jet lower unit? Obviously push pull cables require maintenance, but so do
hydraulic systems.

I'm probably going to wrap up the weld & rebuild on The Tin Can Too in
the next couple months and I have a bigger project in mind. I already
have a decent push pull system laying around from another boat I cut up
and threw in the dumpster a piece at a time.