replacing steering cylinders

[duetto]

hi all,

as some of you may have read, we needed to replace both hydraulic steering cylinders. these are located in the extreme aft end of each hull and are attached to the steering arms on the rudders. the telltale signs of a problem are loss of fluid at the upper helm and the rudders constantly getting out of alignment. this can be seen on the rudder indicator on the autopilot. a definitive check is to look at the ends of the cylinders while someone cranks the wheel hard over. if the seals are bad you'll see a spurt of fluid.

the replacement has 3 phases: 1) remove old cylinders, 2) hookup new ones, 3) bleed the system. i did a variation on step 3 which i'll explain later. steps 2 & 3 are straight forward for the most part. step 3 comes in 2 flavors: 1) teleflex method 2) pdq's way as documented in the owner's manual. i think that pdq's way is simpler and can actually reduce it to a one person job. before you start you'll need at least 2 qts of teleflex steering oil and an assortment of wrenches (2 - 3/4" open end, 1/2" open end, 5/8" open end, a big philips screw driver, 3/4" socket, 1/2" socket, and about 6' of 3/8" clear plastic tubing).

back to step 3. i found it easier to unbolt the cylinders and then move them forward into the engine compartment before disconnecting the hydraulic lines. as in real estate it's all about location, so into the cave. the starboard side is much roomier and easier to get at. the port side is much tighter. i removed the battery and engine room fan and then used the water heater as a "bed". at this point, with the new cylinder ready, undo the hydraulic fittings from the old cylinders and connect to the new. the second twist on step 3 is to bleed the cylinders in the engine compartments before bolting them back in place. this is a much easier exercise. before putting the cylinders back it's a good idea to tighten the packing on the rudder posts because they probably have never been touched. also, for those with tides marine dripless seals, i would recommend polishing the propshaft and moving the seal carrier slightly.

i would like to give a big thank you to: a) james powers, pdq maintenance guru. i called him for advice and what he didn't know he found out and got back to me. b) roger, of mary & roger of teamwork. he replaced one cylinder and gave me a lot of good advice. as an aside when i was emailing him he and his boat were 2 miles down the icw at his house. by chance he did a sunset cruise to the marina where duetto was staying. small world.