So over the last several months the boat has been sitting while we made a move back to the low country. Not thinking I left the steering arm hard of port and its stuck inside the hydraulic pump.
I think its the grease inside the motor and it solidified. I disconnected the steering arm to the engine and the engine moves freely with no issues.
I used a pair of vice grip pliers to try and work the hydraulic arm free but didn’t have much luck. I do not have a heat gun but was going to try using a hair dryer next to heat it up and see if that loosens it up.
Any recommendations for the next step would be greatly appreciated. I can usually tackle the small stuff on this boat, but might need a little guidance on this one. Its a a 06 Scout 175 Sportfish with a Yamaha 90 Two Stroke.
Sounds like you have standard steering. Spray down as much as you can and let it soak. Have someone help you by turning the steering wheel to retract the rod. While they are holding some pressure, take a rubber hammer and hit the end of the rod. That should free it up, then you can clean it up, and grease it.
If this is on the boat that’s in your signature it’s not likely that you have a hydraulic steering, it is more than likely cable. The 90 Yamaha is a bulletproof motor but a lot of them suffer from corrosion in the steer tube leading to a loss of steering. If you force the steering from the wheel it bust the cable through the jacket resulting in the need to replace it. It’s best to disassemble the rod connection at the motor. Remove the rod completely and use a wire brush (gun cleaning brush works good) and drill to clean inside tube then reassemble with a lot of grease. There is actually a aftermarket steer tube nut that has a built in zert fitting. Removing rod may require a mallet and on some installations require the motor to be removed or at least slid over on the transom to have enough clearance to get the entire rod out. Hopefully this helps.
For what it’s worth, if this so happens to be a hydraulic system I have had them stick in a hard over position due to any number of issues within the hydraulic system. Sometimes you are able to get these to break free by having someone turn the wheel while another individual rocks the motor hard port and starboard multiple times. This may result getting the system to burp and with is that release of air hydraulic steering is returned. If this is the case then something is allowing air into the system and it is very least needs to be bled and most likely troubleshot further.
Its not hydraulic its cable steering, I have been learning a lot about this boat lately. I tried to start breaking down the tilt tube where the cable arm is stuck, I have been working on applying heat to break up the grease, but still can not get the steering cable out of the tilt tube. The cable runs into the tilt tube from a small seat in the back of the boat and I do not have a lot of room to get it to back out even if I can get it lose. I do not have anything that I can use to lift the engine off the boat and have never attempted anything like that, so I may be to the point where I need additional help. I will keep everyone updated. Thanks for the help!