Hydraulic steering
 

I've been pondering whether hydraulic steering might be a viable
solution to my steering problem. I have a 20' inboard jet with a
Hamilton 212 pump that has about 45 degrees of rotational slop or
dead-zone in the helm/cable. As it's only ~ 270 degrees lock-lock this
is very annoying and I would love to eliminate the slop.

It seems to me that a decent hydraulic helm should have very little play
in it. Is that true?

One problem could be the number of turns lock-lock. Teleflex indicates 4
turns on their SeaStar unit and not specified on the smaller BayStar
unit. I wouldn't want more that ~ 1 turn max. I need to measure the
linear throw needed at the pump lever and perhaps talk to Teleflex. As I
recall it's a pretty short throw required.

I'm considering hydraulic because I don't think there's room under the
dash for a rack & pinion unit and this is the second sloppy rotary
helm/cable I've had in there.

If any one has any thoughts or experiences I'd appreciate hearing them.

Thanks,
-rick-

You can get different Hydraulic pumps with different rates. We just set up
a high perf. boat that the owner wanted a quicker response. I believe he
settled on 2.8 turns lock to lock


"-rick-" wrote in message
...
I've been pondering whether hydraulic steering might be a viable
solution to my steering problem. I have a 20' inboard jet with a
Hamilton 212 pump that has about 45 degrees of rotational slop or
dead-zone in the helm/cable. As it's only ~ 270 degrees lock-lock this
is very annoying and I would love to eliminate the slop.

It seems to me that a decent hydraulic helm should have very little play
in it. Is that true?

One problem could be the number of turns lock-lock. Teleflex indicates 4
turns on their SeaStar unit and not specified on the smaller BayStar
unit. I wouldn't want more that ~ 1 turn max. I need to measure the
linear throw needed at the pump lever and perhaps talk to Teleflex. As I
recall it's a pretty short throw required.

I'm considering hydraulic because I don't think there's room under the
dash for a rack & pinion unit and this is the second sloppy rotary
helm/cable I've had in there.

If any one has any thoughts or experiences I'd appreciate hearing them.

Thanks,
-rick-

On Fri, 04 Feb 2005 21:25:21 -0800, -rick- wrote:

I've been pondering whether hydraulic steering might be a viable
solution to my steering problem. I have a 20' inboard jet with a
Hamilton 212 pump that has about 45 degrees of rotational slop or
dead-zone in the helm/cable. As it's only ~ 270 degrees lock-lock this
is very annoying and I would love to eliminate the slop.

It seems to me that a decent hydraulic helm should have very little play
in it. Is that true?

Depends on the setup. I was the cheif designer for the hydrolic rams
made by Sental. I can assure you these are the best.

One problem could be the number of turns lock-lock. Teleflex indicates 4
turns on their SeaStar unit and not specified on the smaller BayStar
unit. I wouldn't want more that ~ 1 turn max. I need to measure the
linear throw needed at the pump lever and perhaps talk to Teleflex. As I
recall it's a pretty short throw required.

Yes. My marina has installed thousands of these units.

I'm considering hydraulic because I don't think there's room under the
dash for a rack & pinion unit and this is the second sloppy rotary
helm/cable I've had in there.

If any one has any thoughts or experiences I'd appreciate hearing them.

Thanks,
-rick-

Mark wrote:
You can get different Hydraulic pumps with different rates. We just set up
a high perf. boat that the owner wanted a quicker response. I believe he
settled on 2.8 turns lock to lock

Thanks for the help. I measured the required throw at the pump lever to
be only about 2" so that may be feasible.

Can any one answer the slop issue? Are hydraulic helms pretty tight or
would a rack and pinion with a cable be better?

-rick-