thanks, I actually did that, but couldn't wait for spring afterwards. I had to start up Port to verify my new fuel injectors worked, so I started starboard too... the pump tank looked pink from the air, but settled down by the next day. even after running the engine and left/right a dozen times, I can still shove the drives about 1/2" or so. I'm hoping actually using it will get the last bit of air out, spring 2021.

That is looking great! :D

If anyone wants a follow up. I only have ONE thing for you. If you think you want full hydro steering, or your boat doesn't have it.

BUY IT NOW. Install it NOW.

Love, love, love it. I can let go of the wheel and at 50 MPH the boat goes dead strait. I can use my pinky and put the drives anywhere I want. You turn the wheel, drives move. You don't move the wheel, drive do not budge a millimeter.

I was seriously thinking of trading my boat in the steering was so bad/loose. It would take all my mental energy to keep messing with the wheel constantly everywhere trying to hold a strait line. It made boating miserable.

Now, I can (safety aside) let go of the wheel, and the boat track so strait it's scary. I honestly didn't believe it at first. I was so used to it hooking left hard or hitting a wave and throwing me off course. I couldn't even run at speed close to friends because I was afraid of hitting them!

Now at any speed, it tracks perfect and steers amazing.

What does full hydro mean?
I have "power steering". Is that the same thing but only smaller?
I'm not having any real issues with my steering (other than me sucking at driving) but I'm curious.

The standard, for most boats, from the factory is you get a aircraft push/pull cable from the helm, to the back, which pushes/pulls a ram inside the boat to push/pull a tiller arm on the top of the drive. It's a setup that's... cost effective. But years of wear and tear makes it more and more sloppy every year. If you're on land and you can move your drive left/right easily (by grabbing it from the back of the boat) you have this steering. If your boat goes over 50 MPH, and you have this steering, you should look at options if you're having a hard time keeping it in a strait line.

Partial or half hydro would be retaining the cable type setup at the helm, but instead it pushes/pulls a valve in the back, to actuate rams that attach to the drive. this half setup is less expensive, but really when you consider the parts and time of the install, it's not what I'd want to do. You're removing any free play on the drive, but not from the steering wheel.




Full, would be, hydraulic all the way to the helm. I have 4 hoses that run to the helm, with a pump at the steering wheel. There is no aircraft push/pull cable, and the entire system is fully hydraulic. This is the most effective steering system I know of, for boats. (Unless you're also looking at steer by wire, but that's another conversation).

Thanks for the explanation :)
Ah ok so mine is a partial system with a wire from the wheel to the hydraulic thing mounted to the drive tiller arm.
Because can't compare to anything else (no experience from boating) I can't tell if my steering is bad or not. It's a bit of delay when going slow at 5mph and I tend to go left to right to left to right and so on :D
At that kind of speed it also feels a bit "jagged" or not super smooth. Maybe I can refurbish and get it smoother with some tlc.
My boat has not reached speeds over 45mph since I have had it anyway. My goal is 50 if this can be achieved without major upgrades. A good hull polish, maybe new propellers is enough?
My propellers doesn't look great and I will take them to the propeller shop and see what they say.

Not the same. The hydraulic ram that is connected to the tiller arm is not what is considered hydraulic steering. It is simply a power steering aid and nothing more. Does it work for most recreational boats? Yes. However, there is a major difference between this type of steering and the external hydraulic steering setup that is being referred to here. Performance boats (and boats with high-power outboards) require full hydraulic steering from a safety standpoint. As speed increases, the need to accurately hold course is especially important. The loads on the drive at highspeed cannot be compensated for with cable-actuated steering allowing the drive(s) to wag back and forth. External hydraulic steering eliminates this and keeps the drive(s) pointed exactly where they're supposed to be. Another benefit to the external steering set-up - in the event of a gimbal ring failure the rams will keep the drive attached to the boat.

Hope this better explains the differences.

Oh ok that's good to know. Don't want to tell people that I got hydraulic steering (even if I have it per definition) and cause confusion :)
I guess nobody uses SP290-DP drives for high power setups, I can't find a single hydraulic ram setup for sp290.
Maybe there's a way to manufacture some kind of connector for rams, but I can't see any obvious way to do it.

The Volvo setup definitely complicates things. I do not know of a way to attach the external rams. The newer performance drives (DPX) have built-in hydraulic steering. If you really wanted it… you could get the benefits of full hydraulic by using an inside system from Seastar. It would be similar to how hydraulic steering for an outboard is setup.

a deep V will wander at slow speeds. and boats, at low speed, are like steering a drunk cow. you give it a direction and eventually it turns, usually a few seconds later. It's normal. your learn to anticipate and correct steering/throttle with experience.

if you find yourself fighting the wheel constantly (at cruising speed) to keep it in a strait line, that's when you should look at options.