1992 Champion steering

[Faded501s]

Hey all. I've got a 1992 201 DC with a Suzuki 225 for the last 5 years. The steering has always been a little "stiff" but manageable. My boat sat through 2 Illinois summers and winters without use and now that I'm down in Florida I've found that steering is nearly impossible. I really have to manhandle the wheel to get the motor to turn. I've always assumed that this boat was built without hydraulic or any type of steering "assist" and was basically controlled by cables. Does this sound right? Every other bass boat that I've driven had a steering system that easily turned the wheel/motor.

Any thoughts would be greatly appreciated. I'm pretty new to boat mechanics. TIA

[jarhead175]

Cables unbolt from the front of the motor and move the motor by hand than the cables. You can narrow it down to which one has a issue my bet is both cables need replaced. Tgeir a few youtube videos on cleaning/lube on old cables but, I wouldn't mess with it. New cables aren't much and replacement is easy.

[pmgoffjr]

Grease is the enemy
Never put grease on a steering cable it will always dry out and pack up which causes your problem.

You can clean them with carb cleaner and penetrating oil. It’s messy but you have to melt and get the grease out. Lube with light oil or silicone never with something that dries out and gets hard.

If they are beyond repair then replacing is a moderate do yourself project.

[Faded501s]

Thanks for the awesome replies! I think you've both hit it on the head. I took the boat in to a mechanic to have it winterized and "looked over" instead of doing it myself, partially because of the steering problem. I still vividly remember the confidence he had when he showed me the white grease he liberally applied to the steering cables, lol. Anyway, 2 years later I'm sure you're both right that that grease has gunked up the cables making them almost completely inoperable. Time to start looking for replacements. Thanks again for the help!

[pmgoffjr]

I’d for sure try to clean them out first. Really rare when you can’t save them.

[Faded501s]

Well now I might just give that a try haha. Thanks Pat

I’d for sure try to clean them out first. Really rare when you can’t save them.

[ChampioNman]

Where about in FL are you Scott? If you're up north I'd be glad to assist if needed.

[Faded501s]

Where about in FL are you Scott? If you're up north I'd be glad to assist if needed.

Wow! Appreciate the offer! I'm actually down in Sarasota. Started trying to clean it up yesterday with some Liquid Wrench. Got a lot of the gunked up grease out of there and it seems to be working better but really want to see hoe it handles on the water. Removing the cables to thoroughly clean or replace looks like it might be an all afternoon project so I'm hoping the quick clean will do the trick. Thanks again for all of the help and encouragement!

[getfished]

The last time I did this project on an older boat I made a T and attached it to the cable on the motor end. I put the other end of the cable in a milk jug. My T was probably 6" long. One end of the T on the cable and the other end I had a fitting with an air chuck. On the top of the T I poured solvent and then put a cap on it. I raised the cable up vertically and let the solvent slowly soak downward for about 30 minutes or so. With the other end of cable secured in a jug with a rag wrapped around I attached an air hose to the end of the T with the chuck and gently applied some air pressure. For me it blew the solvent through the cable and helped clean it out. After that I ran some liquid lube like WD 40 or something. It worked for me.