The last time out on the boat the steering was very difficult, could turn the wheel only with a great deal of effort. A few weeks prior, in much warmer weather, I did not notice any steering problem. I have been checking to see what the problem is, and it is the steering cable itself. I have removed it from the boat, and it is very hard to move the inner cable back and forth. I think what happened was that the last trip was in cold weather, and the grease in the cable finally just quit being grease. There are no provisions to lube the cable, and Teleflex states it should not be lubed.
I have had a hard time determining whether it was a model SSC124 or SSC134 cable, and thought it looked more like the 134 model I saw in what few good photos on line, But I finally found a number on it, and it says SSC12476. If it said SSC12416, that would be a model 124 cable 16 feet long. I measured the flex part of the cable and added 30 inches, as I understand is the proper way, and I get a lenght of 16' 6". So I am wondering if anyone knows if the 7 in place of the 1 is a coding for a cable that is 6 inches longer? Maybe a special for Sea Ray, and they needed a way to code half a foot into the 2 digits?
So it looks like I need to replace this cable. I think someone else indicated in another thread you should replace the helm unit too. If I do that, then I think it would make sense to go to the newer model, SSC134 cable and SS-141 helm, which I think will still fit in the mounting bracket. I am curious if anyone with a mid-90's boat has already done this, and dealt with these questions. If so, I am interested in what you found out.
Any help or comments appreciated.
Dave
I have had a hard time determining whether it was a model SSC124 or SSC134 cable, and thought it looked more like the 134 model I saw in what few good photos on line, But I finally found a number on it, and it says SSC12476. If it said SSC12416, that would be a model 124 cable 16 feet long. I measured the flex part of the cable and added 30 inches, as I understand is the proper way, and I get a lenght of 16' 6". So I am wondering if anyone knows if the 7 in place of the 1 is a coding for a cable that is 6 inches longer? Maybe a special for Sea Ray, and they needed a way to code half a foot into the 2 digits?
So it looks like I need to replace this cable. I think someone else indicated in another thread you should replace the helm unit too. If I do that, then I think it would make sense to go to the newer model, SSC134 cable and SS-141 helm, which I think will still fit in the mounting bracket. I am curious if anyone with a mid-90's boat has already done this, and dealt with these questions. If so, I am interested in what you found out.
Any help or comments appreciated.
Dave