External Steering: Stern only, worth it?
 

'02 Sunsation 25', 496 375HP/Bravo1, all stock

I want external hydraulic steering as a safety feature, but want to do it in steps to save a little cash for now. I have seen single-ram, stern only kits for about a $1,000. They use the existing power steering pump.

Will this accomplish anything, or just a bad idea? To go to the helm is about another $1500 (I think).

Anything would be helpful.

Thx!

Very good idea over the stock tiller arm setup. The mechanical advantage of the external steering vs tiller arm is huge. Plus it removes some load off the gimbal hinge pins/steering pins which fail frequently in offshore applications and cause sloppy handling.

Anything that stabilizes the gimbal and adds leverage will be helpfull.

One is certainly better than none, even if you still have a cable in the mix.

Curious- whats the gimbal play like now? Go grab the bottom of the skeg and lift up.

Uncle Dave

I ran a single ram add on kit for many years with 550hp. It is a good step for you to take. Make sure whatever kit you buy, it is reputable so when you go to full hydraulic, you can still get the needed parts.

Thx Uncle Dave! There is no play up-and-down, but about an 1/8 inch side-to-side. I monitor torque on the two gimbal bolts (55lbs). I think the gimbal ring is good (I learned a ton about this on my first boat, a Scarab 22. I researched/replaced it myself over a couple weekends).

Thx for giving me some confidence to move forward!

Single engine boat you can get by with a single ram add on kit is what they call it without the helm. Deffinitely a step up for control at higher speeds. There was a hit for a single awhile back in the swap shop. Maybe a month ago. I'll look for it.

Blue Thunder, Uncle Dave, Smitty - Thank you for your advise. I really appreciate it.

Tom

No problem happy to help

Nice boat you have there!!- You'll like it better with steering.

I couldnt mount ANY rams externally because of molded in swim steps and I was afraid to sell my boat for fear the next guy would kill himself and ended up going with a mercury integrated transom system.

I have a 91 tunnel hull fully hydraulic -

To me it feels like most expensive 21 ft boat on the planet. (dont have the heart to sell it now.....

UD

Here's some options I think will do the trick for you. As you can see from the many other posts a Add-on system is a great way to start. http://www.keitheickert.com/detail.aspx?ID=8875

Uncle Dave, that is a seriously nice drive. Wow!