To all,
This Sunday on the Chesapeake it was 95 in the shade and foolish me decided it was a great time to climb into the cockpit locker and have a look around. I had it in mind to exercise the scupper seacocks and check belt tension. The steering cables had just enough play in them so I could move them with my hand. So, the question is, how tight should they be?
Chris Cram
CD 30 C "Hesperus"
cccobx@prodigy.net
steering cable tension
Moderator: Jim Walsh
-
Larry DeMers
Re: steering cable tension
Hi Chris,
I have never read an exact spec., so I use the try it and see what it does approach..the imperical method. I adjust both sides to give the quadruple turks head Jan made to mark the top center position of the wheel, a centered position in fact.
Then apply even numbers of turns on either side taking up the obvious slack, and stop.
Now go to the wheel, and try it. The movement should be very smooth and without resistance from the cable tension on the sheaves. Go to the the wheels center position and start a shimmy test. This is where you move the wheel back and forth (fairly forceful here..only as much as needed though) to check free play and stretch in the wire. You can feel the stretch as you stop your shimmy movement. Return to the basement and adjust the same number of turns on both sides..say 5 turns more. Go top side and check the feel of the wheel again. You now have a feel for how much effect 5 turns has, so apply more or less as needed, until the freeplay on the rudder during the shimmy test is minor, but still there. This really takes your senses as the gauge. Error on the side of too loose if you have to. You can always add a couple turns later. That would be the sneak up on it approach. Very effective, and you learn your boats particular feedback to a loose helm vs. tight. Since we adjust these things so rarely, it is a good learning experience to remember well. I did mine last spring for the first time, and discovered the spot where DLM likes to keep the tension at. It changes as the lake warms up during the summer, I found. That surprised me.
There should be very little stretch in the system, so the rudder should respond fairly quickly to your change in direction movement. Under sail and in larger winds, the rudder should be absolutely positive, with no looseness felt.
ALSO>>> too tight will put undo stress on the whole steering system, breaking the wire rope eventually, or cutting through a sheave bearing pin etc. It also has the horrible effect of dampening down the "feel" from the rudder. You no longer feel the waves action and boats reaction to the weather, only a general pressure. Do not set it up here.
In the end, you have to find that point where it feels sensitive yet has little (but some) freeplay in the system. When you find it, don't forget to tighten the locknuts on the adjustment turnbuckles, and grease those sheaves once a year.
Cheers!
Larry DeMers
DeLaMer
Cape Dory 30 ~~~Sailing Superior for three weeks!~~~
demers@sgi.com
I have never read an exact spec., so I use the try it and see what it does approach..the imperical method. I adjust both sides to give the quadruple turks head Jan made to mark the top center position of the wheel, a centered position in fact.
Then apply even numbers of turns on either side taking up the obvious slack, and stop.
Now go to the wheel, and try it. The movement should be very smooth and without resistance from the cable tension on the sheaves. Go to the the wheels center position and start a shimmy test. This is where you move the wheel back and forth (fairly forceful here..only as much as needed though) to check free play and stretch in the wire. You can feel the stretch as you stop your shimmy movement. Return to the basement and adjust the same number of turns on both sides..say 5 turns more. Go top side and check the feel of the wheel again. You now have a feel for how much effect 5 turns has, so apply more or less as needed, until the freeplay on the rudder during the shimmy test is minor, but still there. This really takes your senses as the gauge. Error on the side of too loose if you have to. You can always add a couple turns later. That would be the sneak up on it approach. Very effective, and you learn your boats particular feedback to a loose helm vs. tight. Since we adjust these things so rarely, it is a good learning experience to remember well. I did mine last spring for the first time, and discovered the spot where DLM likes to keep the tension at. It changes as the lake warms up during the summer, I found. That surprised me.
There should be very little stretch in the system, so the rudder should respond fairly quickly to your change in direction movement. Under sail and in larger winds, the rudder should be absolutely positive, with no looseness felt.
ALSO>>> too tight will put undo stress on the whole steering system, breaking the wire rope eventually, or cutting through a sheave bearing pin etc. It also has the horrible effect of dampening down the "feel" from the rudder. You no longer feel the waves action and boats reaction to the weather, only a general pressure. Do not set it up here.
In the end, you have to find that point where it feels sensitive yet has little (but some) freeplay in the system. When you find it, don't forget to tighten the locknuts on the adjustment turnbuckles, and grease those sheaves once a year.
Cheers!
Larry DeMers
DeLaMer
Cape Dory 30 ~~~Sailing Superior for three weeks!~~~
Chris Cram wrote: To all,
This Sunday on the Chesapeake it was 95 in the shade and foolish me decided it was a great time to climb into the cockpit locker and have a look around. I had it in mind to exercise the scupper seacocks and check belt tension. The steering cables had just enough play in them so I could move them with my hand. So, the question is, how tight should they be?
Chris Cram
CD 30 C "Hesperus"
demers@sgi.com
-
Chris Cram
Re: steering cable tension
"don't forget to tighten the locknuts on the adjustment turnbuckles, and grease those sheaves once a year."
Larry, Thanks
That's what I thought I might be the answer and will climb back into the "basement" (chuckle) again next weekend. The other thing that made me pose the question that I didn't mention in my earlier post is that those locking nuts on the adjustment turnbuckles were hand loose. I tightened them and then spent a little while pulling on cables and wondering about tension.
All the steering stuff in my boat had been changed recently because the pedestal backing plate had rusted away and it looks like the sheaves and sheave pins were replaced (cables too). I did notice the sheave pins are stainless steel, which was reassuring given recent posts on that subject.
What grease would you reccomend?
The next project is to remove the binnacle compass and replace the brake pads. The edson website makes that look fairly simple but being a first timer for that project I am a little apprehensive.
Enjoy the cruise! fair weather to you! 12knots of wind (at least)
Chris Cram
CD 30 C "Hesperus"
cccobx@prodigy.net
Larry, Thanks
That's what I thought I might be the answer and will climb back into the "basement" (chuckle) again next weekend. The other thing that made me pose the question that I didn't mention in my earlier post is that those locking nuts on the adjustment turnbuckles were hand loose. I tightened them and then spent a little while pulling on cables and wondering about tension.
All the steering stuff in my boat had been changed recently because the pedestal backing plate had rusted away and it looks like the sheaves and sheave pins were replaced (cables too). I did notice the sheave pins are stainless steel, which was reassuring given recent posts on that subject.
What grease would you reccomend?
The next project is to remove the binnacle compass and replace the brake pads. The edson website makes that look fairly simple but being a first timer for that project I am a little apprehensive.
Enjoy the cruise! fair weather to you! 12knots of wind (at least)
Chris Cram
CD 30 C "Hesperus"
cccobx@prodigy.net
-
Larry DeMers
Re: steering cable tension
Chris,
Your welcome. The brake pads are easy to change. I rebuilt the whole pedestal this spring..about 3 hrs. work. The pads are retained with one screw and nut. The screw is the brake adjustment actually. Just be sure to catch the hardware (there is a spacer that wants it's freedom very badly..watch him carefully sir!)before it succumbs to gravity, and disappears in the basement!
Drip a little 30w on the shift and throttle cables while you are in there, and also on those sheaves, an wire rope.
Cheers, and good sailing yourself!
Larry
demers@sgi.com
Your welcome. The brake pads are easy to change. I rebuilt the whole pedestal this spring..about 3 hrs. work. The pads are retained with one screw and nut. The screw is the brake adjustment actually. Just be sure to catch the hardware (there is a spacer that wants it's freedom very badly..watch him carefully sir!)before it succumbs to gravity, and disappears in the basement!
Drip a little 30w on the shift and throttle cables while you are in there, and also on those sheaves, an wire rope.
Cheers, and good sailing yourself!
Larry
Chris Cram wrote: "don't forget to tighten the locknuts on the adjustment turnbuckles, and grease those sheaves once a year."
Larry, Thanks
That's what I thought I might be the answer and will climb back into the "basement" (chuckle) again next weekend. The other thing that made me pose the question that I didn't mention in my earlier post is that those locking nuts on the adjustment turnbuckles were hand loose. I tightened them and then spent a little while pulling on cables and wondering about tension.
All the steering stuff in my boat had been changed recently because the pedestal backing plate had rusted away and it looks like the sheaves and sheave pins were replaced (cables too). I did notice the sheave pins are stainless steel, which was reassuring given recent posts on that subject.
What grease would you reccomend?
The next project is to remove the binnacle compass and replace the brake pads. The edson website makes that look fairly simple but being a first timer for that project I am a little apprehensive.
Enjoy the cruise! fair weather to you! 12knots of wind (at least)
Chris Cram
CD 30 C "Hesperus"
demers@sgi.com