mike farrants Posted August 23, 2021 Share Posted August 23, 2021 Had a lovely day out yesterday - drifting for mackerel then anchored up - (catch report coming). on lifting the anchor I found the steering mechanism/cable had failed - wheel and rudder could go hard over one way but not past straight -rudder was free so the mechanism/cables appearing jammed or slipping. I have a tiller so was able to steer home, but with the throttle in the wheel house and the tiller on the rudder it made for a challenge coming alongside! but actually managed absolutely fine! quite proud of myself to be fair! I have a panel behind (in front of) the wheel I can look at and i can access the control arms by the rudder so will go and have a look when i have time - however is there anything to look for or be aware off before I start removing panels? - its an old boat so pretty basic - assume its cables and pulleys? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Saintly Fish Posted August 23, 2021 Share Posted August 23, 2021 Sorry Mike I can’t help with the tech stuff. But we’ll done for over coming the problem like a pro and making it back safe. 👍🏻 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mike farrants Posted August 23, 2021 Author Share Posted August 23, 2021 thanks - i did feel super proud of not panicking - thinking it through, and planning how to tackle the marina and coming alongside before actually doing it! it made life difficult when hauling anchor I could steam away to lift it ok, but as i couldn't manoeuvre the boat very well when hauling the bouy in, it proved difficult and at one point the boat nearly drifted over the anchor warp while retrieving - ended up bringing the anchor up on both sides of the boat! i'm just grateful pugwash has a back up - the metal bracket on top of the rudder has been added to accommodate the manual bilge pump handle as a tiller..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Saintly Fish Posted August 23, 2021 Share Posted August 23, 2021 My boat also has a manual tiller, and a throttle control in the deck area. Hope I never have to use it in anger though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mike farrants Posted August 23, 2021 Author Share Posted August 23, 2021 yeah throttle at the stern would have been fine - id drive it like that way more often if it did - great for coming alongside and dropping/hauling anchor! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andy135 Posted August 23, 2021 Share Posted August 23, 2021 Did the wheel not go past dead ahead when at the helm? Sounds like the steering box could be jammed if so. What brand of steering does Pugwash have? Teleflex? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mike farrants Posted August 23, 2021 Author Share Posted August 23, 2021 yeah it sticks at dead ahead and the wheel clunks past it but the rudder doesn't move not sure on the steering box - ive never looked - it was late when we got back so will go have a look later this week. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andy135 Posted August 23, 2021 Share Posted August 23, 2021 3 minutes ago, mike farrants said: yeah it sticks at dead ahead and the wheel clunks past it but the rudder doesn't move not sure on the steering box - ive never looked - it was late when we got back so will go have a look later this week. Ok, so the wheel does move past dead ahead, but the rudder doesn't? If so, then check your cables. Sounds like one has snapped. Steering box would only be the culprit if the wheel didn't move past dead ahead, but as it is able to move past, then a cable break is looking likely. Either way, you may decide to replace the whole lot - if one cable has snapped then the other may be close to snapping or if the box is jamming then wear and tear may have started to catch up with it. The best solution for safety and peace of mind would be to replace the lot rather than repairing individual parts of an old system. Saintly Fish 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mike farrants Posted August 23, 2021 Author Share Posted August 23, 2021 ok thanks Andy - will look into that! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post mike farrants Posted August 24, 2021 Author Popular Post Share Posted August 24, 2021 headline - steering fixed with relative ease. went down the boat and met my mate who is the previous owner and his son (who is technically minded) - we (his son) looked at the steering box behind/infront of the wheel and noticed a centre nut and bolt was missing - the nut had dropped behind the box - (not the big wheel boss nut and bolt - i would have noticed that), thinking it was that we re-tightened it and hoped for the best - no luck - steering still jamming in centre. perhaps the bolt was just holding the box cover on.... refocussing our (his) attention to the other end of the cable, we (they) noticed a large bolt had come off the threaded bar that joins the rudder and slid down the cable - having tightened this back up it all worked - a small amount of tweaking on the threaded bar to locate the rudder with the same amount of lock in each direction and we (they) were done in less than an hour. Guess i need to go and hide few cans of Thatchers on their boat now! grateful for a friendly helpful boating community! jonnyswamp, GPSguru, mick and 2 others 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andy135 Posted August 24, 2021 Share Posted August 24, 2021 That's good news Mike! A cost-free fix 👍 Any idea how it happened in the first place, and how to stop it from happening again? mike farrants 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mike farrants Posted August 24, 2021 Author Share Posted August 24, 2021 (edited) similar system here - we first thought it was the bolt that goes in the green circle - but was in fact the nut circled in red - it had come loose over time and i guess one to check every couple of months - easy fix at sea if it happens again - easy enough access and as long as i have a lookout on board holding the rudder still i could tighten up myself at sea. Edited August 24, 2021 by mike farrants i dont know my bolts from my nuts Andy135 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dicky Posted August 24, 2021 Share Posted August 24, 2021 Nice work, definitely worth a few cans of Thatchers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mick Posted August 25, 2021 Share Posted August 25, 2021 On 8/24/2021 at 8:46 AM, mike farrants said: similar system here - we first thought it was the bolt that goes in the green circle - but was in fact the nut circled in red - it had come loose over time and i guess one to check every couple of months - easy fix at sea if it happens again - easy enough access and as long as i have a lookout on board holding the rudder still i could tighten up myself at sea. It`s easy to tell the difference ,nuts are in a bag, bolts Jamaican. Saintly Fish 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geoff Posted August 28, 2021 Share Posted August 28, 2021 On 8/25/2021 at 10:13 AM, mick said: It`s easy to tell the difference ,nuts are in a bag, or are OO forum members. FTFY Mick. Geoff. Odyssey 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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