Worn gimbal ring on bravo drive. I have side to side play on my factory steering set up and want to add hydraulic steering. Can I add hydraulic steering without repairing/replacing the worn gimbal ring? Or should I fix gimbal problem then add new steering. Thanks in advance

Fix it then add the hyd steering....if the gimbal ring breaks, hyd steering wont help ya! May save the drive from sinking to the bottom of the lake though

+1

+3 Accident waiting to happen any other way .

Check out Jrmarine. Very good business for that repair, and good businesses are hard to come by these days.

I'm only assuming the ring is worn, boat is a 1992. I was hoping I could tighten the bolt that pinches around the steering pin because someone previously tried the "merc" fix by drilling the 1" holes in the side of the transom assembly but they drilled them 1/2" to high so they do me no good. I can access the top nut and that seems tight. I'm looking into the JR Marine kit right now. Also from reading on here I've had some water in my bilge and couldn't really figure out where it was coming from and sounds like it might be the seal around that pin. (Pretty sure it's not called a pin, but I think you guys understand)
Thanks again

Once they are worn you can't tighten them. I tried it in a vise for fun. Steering arm bolt and u bolt broke with all kinds of slop still......

Earlier this season, I got a set of repaired gimble rings from JR Marine along with a bunch of other misc parts to complete the rpr. The gimble rings came painted and the bushings already installed. Sweet!! Prices for the misc parts (bellows, seals, gaskets, bushings, etc) were in line with other online sources and the customer service is A++. When you call JR, you are talking to "the man" (Ron). He knows the bravos inside and out. Shipping was quick too.

I was pulling the engs anyway so I didn't use the kit he sells to remove the ring with engs installed.

One word of caution, if you go with the super bad-ass U-bolts he sells, don't forget to use the lube he supplies with them. I started the nuts and then remembered the lube, tried to back off the nuts but one seized and I had to break the u-bolt to get it out.