Steering backlash

[Ryland3210]

My boat is a 2003 Bayliner with Bravo III outdrive on a 260 HP 5.7 liter GM engine. I bought it a few months ago. At low speeds, it fishtails in a very annoying fashion. Difficult to keep going straight. No problem at higher speeds. There is a little looseness in the steering wheel rack that drives the cable to the power steering unit, but I don't think that is the cause. I had a 73 Searay with manual steering that did the same thing, but that was caused by slop in the spline that connected the tiller to the top of the outdrive. Is there something in the outdrive that could cause this? Gimbel bearing? Something else?

Thanks,
Ryland

 

[biggjimm]

My outboard fishing boat did the same thing & the trim tab above the prop needed adjusted. It was straight on & I think it ended up needing to be a few degrees off to the right hand side. Mine also steered harder one way than the other. Now it's smooth both ways & tracks straight thru the water. Not sure if that'll help you but I think there is something in the stickies at the top of the page about adjusting it. Good luck with it. Jim.

 

[Scott Danforth]

Its v-hull wander. Happens to all of them

 

[Ryland3210]

It feels like slop somewhere in the steering. To keep it going straight, I have to swing the steering wheel about 60 degrees back and forth. I had no similar problem with my 34 V-Hull, but that had twin inboards with rudders. Rock stable at any speed. So was my '73 Searay 19 footer with single I/O, until the spline wore out.

I have a theory for this 7,000 pound single I/O: At low speeds, with the prop pushing behind the outdrive pivot axis, unless steering is tight, the tendency is for the prop's thrust to push the outdrive to one side or the other. This would be similar to the effect of negative caster on a car's wheels. At high speeds, the velocity of the water is powerful enough to keep the outdrive running straight. Any tendency for the outdrive to swing to one side is met with high water pressure on that side, so it is self correcting.

If that is correct, the remedy is to find the cause of the slop and fix it. In older motorcycles, there sometimes was an adjustable friction device to prevent the wobbling with often occurred at highway speeds. Probably a similar device with enough friction would compensate for the instability. In my boat, with power steering, that would cause no inconvenience.

What do you think?

 

[Bondo]

What do you think?

Ayuh,.... I think water is dynamic, 'n asphalt is static,.....

I think yer experiencin' V-hull wander, the cure to which is usually less operator input,.....

You can look for the slop, usin' 3 people is the best way,...
One to hold the drive, one to Look, 'n another to shake the wheel,.....
Then one, 'n three swap jobs, while two Looks for any slop,.....

I have heard the B-III is much better,....

 

[flipbro]

Yep my 20 foot wellcraft has v hull wander too. And stearing is tight.