My Boat Steering Cable Replacement Experience

Last updated on August 25th, 2018 at 04:01 pm

Recently, I had to tackle replacement of a steering cable in my boat, the Boomerang. Would I say that it was an easy task, to do a boat steering cable replacement? Certainly not. However in the interest of saving money (which I will discuss later in this article), I decided to tackle this project. Would I define this as the most difficult project in the world? Certainly not either. Part of the difficulty is that most of the people who have the knowledge of how to replace a boat steering cable, want your left arm to do so. Rather than give them my left arm, I made an executive decision to do it myself.

My Boat Steering Cable Replacement Tips

I will recommend the following when replacing your boat steering cable:

1. Have a lot of patience. Knowing going in that this will take a reasonable amount of time and is not a task that will be completed in 30 minutes.

2. Watch Youtube for examples. This is one of the best tools I have found for learning how to repair things yourself (and a lot cheaper on your wallet!) If you are a visual person like I am, many times seeing someone actually do the installation in a video is much more effective than trying to read an instruction manual. However, at the same time everyone has their own methodology for the physical process involved with removal and installation of the boat steering cable.

3. Use the correct wrench, rags, and cleanup materials makes the pulling out of the old boat steering cable and installation of the new one a much tidier process.

4. Check out the great boat steering cable guide over at SeaKnights.com. This guide helped me tremendously with my boat steering cable replacement project.

5. Get your boat steering cable parts from Amazon. From what I could find, they offered the best overall selection, and I was able to get everything I needed from them.

Those are my top 5 boat steering cable replacement tips.

How Much Does A Boat Steering Cable Replacement Cost?

Boat steering cable replacement cost depends on the make and model of the boat that you have. Some range for around $100 to as much as several hundred dollars. Some boats require replacement of a single cable, while others have multiple cables. What I can tell you is that the main cost involved in this process is the labor. Once you have the knowledge of having done it, this cost becomes irrelevant to you, as you are not spending money from your wallet on the labor. Not to mention, that with a new boat steering cable, it will perform light years better. That leads into my next topic which is proper maintenance of your boat steering cable.

My Boat Steering Cable Maintenance Advice

You always need to be on the lookout for any signs of wear and tear in the steering system and the area around the boat steering cables.

1. Check your steering support rods for signs of old or hard grease.
2. Re-lubricate the rods with new grease.
3. Make sure all fittings are tight
4. Make sure your hydraulic fluids are clean
5. Do this once a year

Hopefully these boat steering cable maintenance tips based on my experience and working on fixing these problems will help you to maintain your charter boat steering cables in good working condition. As with your car or any other vehicle, proper maintenance is the key to avoiding problems in the long run.