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I`m thinking about putting a seastar system on my boat, it`s a 92 18 footer, has anybody put one on their older boat, I`m wondering how much of a pain it is, you know how it is they say it`s simple , only takes a few hours, then you wind up having to buy extra parts & modify stuff , if it`s pretty much bolt on I`m gonna do it , if not I`ll keep the ol reliable cable system.
I have a 92 GT183. I have installed hydraulic steering and I love it. Would not go back to cables.
Install is straightforward. Hardest part will depend on your boat:
Sometimes removing the steering wheel is a pain.
Pulling old cables out can be difficult if electrical wiring is attached to steering cables.
Pulling in new cables can be a pain to not get tangled in electrical wiring.
When you pull out the old cables you can pull in a rope to use to pull in hydraulic hoses. If they will not pull in easily, use an old CB antenna or a 1/2" lenght of CPVC pipe to push/pull in hoses.
Well worth the effort. You will be amazed at the difference.
<table width="90%" cellspacing=0 cellpadding=0 align=center><tr><td>Quote, originally posted by Wedawee »</td></tr><tr><td class="quote">I have a 92 GT183. I have installed hydraulic steering and I love it. Would not go back to cables.
Install is straightforward. Hardest part will depend on your boat:
Sometimes removing the steering wheel is a pain.
Pulling old cables out can be difficult if electrical wiring is attached to steering cables.
Pulling in new cables can be a pain to not get tangled in electrical wiring.
When you pull out the old cables you can pull in a rope to use to pull in hydraulic hoses. If they will not pull in easily, use an old CB antenna or a 1/2" lenght of CPVC pipe to push/pull in hoses.
Well worth the effort. You will be amazed at the difference.
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simple unbolt/bolt on....if you've got a buddy nearby with a boat that has the seastar, get him to bring his boat over and park beside yours , so you can MIMIc his set up...
Wedawee what lenght hoses will I need? also did you use the seastar or seastar pro? I`ve been doing some reading up on it & just have a few questions, I`ve noticed on e bay & some other sites when you look at whats included in the package both the seastar & seastar pro kits list the same part #`s for the cylinder & the helm, but the pro kit says the hoses are kevlar because of the added pressure, just wondering. on seastar`s (teleflex) website it list`s different part #`s for the helm & cylinder, maybe there`s some misprints somewhere, thanks for the info!
the hardest part will be installing the helm. just a little griding to fit the helm in. took me hour and half to do mine put i have installed a couple hundred.
If I remember correctly, you will need at least 16 ft hoses. I had my hoses made up at a local hydraulic shop.
I bought my system a piece at a time off ebay. I bought a new/old stock baystar plus helm. The baystar helms are rated for 150 hp motor that I have, but i did not feel comfortable with the new baystar helms. I talked to a Teleflex technical person and he indicated that the baystar plus was a much better helm. I bought a UFLEX cylinder that was highly rated. The only issue with the cylinder was the thread size of the fittings. Since I had the hoses made up locally, it was not a problem to get the correct fittings. I purchased a gallon of fluid from an Airplane maintenance company (matched the seastar specs).
I think it is best to get the hoses 18 feet and have the length to route them under the console so they are out of the way. The shorter the hoses, the tighter the bend radius. Some others may have a better memory than I do about the length.
I used a roto-zip tool to enlarge the opening on the dash for the helm. Put a drop cloth under the helm and cover as much as possible when enlarging the hole and adding fluid.
Good luck and keep asking questions.