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steering straight? |
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jameski 
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Joined: May-18-2004 Location: United States Status: Offline Points: 368 |
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 Topic: steering straight?Posted: November-10-2004 at 1:07am |
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That is why I like having a steering wheel that has symetrical spokes. I really don't worry about "centering" mine because it doesn't really have a "center". As 79nautique says, it WILL change with load, speed, and other factors.
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79nautique
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Joined: January-27-2004 Location: United States Status: Offline Points: 7872 |
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Posted: November-09-2004 at 7:35pm |
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Here's my two cent
Center the wheel lock to lock first. Turn the steering wheel all of the way to one side until it stops. Now turn it the opposite direction and count the turns until it reaches the other stop. Now you turn back the other direction 1/2 as many turns as it took to go to the stop. Now this is where you need to have the wheel centered, adjust accordingly. Now you should have the wheel centered lock to lock. Once this is accomplised you can now center the rudder. Loosen the clamp block and slide the steering cable forward or backwards until the rudder is centered and tighten the clamp block. This will be a good starting point to dial it in the rest of the way. Now you need to take the boat out and see how well the wheel is center while under power. It will vary depending on the load in the boat and the speed that you are going. Judge how much more it needs to move to be centered. Say after driving the wheel is at 10 o'clock while going straight, now you want to loosen the clamp block again and slide the cable towards the stearn and tighten the clamp block and take another ride and a see if you moved it enough or went the wrong direction and re-adjust it until you have it where you like it. Don't try and nit pick it to death beacause as soon as you change the load it will change the center of the wheel. It will be in one position while in an idle zone and another position while pulling a skier so find a happy medium and button everything up and enjoy. |
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David F
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Joined: June-11-2004 Location: United States Status: Offline Points: 1770 |
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Posted: November-09-2004 at 3:30pm |
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Ryan:
Centering the wheel by rotating the hub on the shaft gives a finer degree of adjustment and is easier...one nut to remove instead of many bolts. I am even surprised that the bolt holes are uniformly spaced. As Jameski and I said, it is important that you ensure the wheel is centered lock to lock. |
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jameski
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Joined: May-18-2004 Location: United States Status: Offline Points: 368 |
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Posted: November-08-2004 at 7:13pm |
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Ryan,
With your wheel "straight" count the number of turns left to lock and the number of turns right to lock and they should be the same. If not, then you need to adjust the rudder at the tiller arm, then re-adjust the steering wheel. Otherwise, you won't have as much maneuverability at low speeds in one direction as you have in the other direction. |
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Ryan S.
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Joined: October-03-2004 Location: United States Status: Offline Points: 53 |
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Posted: November-08-2004 at 5:36pm |
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Thanks, guys. I was able to remove the bolts easily (as hoped) and I rotated the wheel two holes and it is now nearly perfectly strait when the rudder is straight. David, is there any reason you know that I should make adjustments at the hub if the rudder and the wheel line up now? THANKS
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Ryan
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David F
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Joined: June-11-2004 Location: United States Status: Offline Points: 1770 |
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Posted: November-08-2004 at 3:35pm |
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Ryan:
The allen bolts only remove the wheel from the hub. You must remove the hub in order to reposition the wheel on the splined shaft. The shaft nut is under the emblem in the center of the steering wheel. Pry the emblem off. You should ensure that the wheel is centered from lock to lock regardless of what the rudder is doing. Then make final adjustments to the rudder position at the tiller arm. |
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Darrel
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Joined: June-16-2004 Location: United States Status: Offline Points: 340 |
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Posted: November-08-2004 at 3:24pm |
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I always like my steering wheel to look "straight" too. the allen bolts will remove the wheel, depending on the bolt pattern you may or may not be able to move one notch and replace the steering wheel. On mine (95SN) they are in sets of 2 so i would have to spin the wheel almost 1/3 rotation to realign bolts.
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66polyhead
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Joined: December-20-2003 Location: United States Status: Offline Points: 171 |
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Posted: November-07-2004 at 10:20pm |
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How does the boat track when underway, with the wheel straight?
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Ryan S.
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Joined: October-03-2004 Location: United States Status: Offline Points: 53 |
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Posted: November-07-2004 at 4:13pm |
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Has anybody taken their steering wheel off? Is it as simple as it looks? I have (just purchased) a '97 Nautique and when the wheel is centered the rudder is slightly turned to the left. Can I just pop the wheel off, rotate it one hole and pop it back on? It looks like there are five or six bolts (allen wrench). Thanks - Ryan
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Ryan
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