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Pedestal Steering Jammed

Christian Williams

E381 - Los Angeles
Senior Moderator
Blogs Author

Filkee

2B6BD09E-7300-4E83-BE10-20D718C07BB8.jpeg

I managed to extract the debris from the bottom of the pedestal and now I’m trying to figure out what story it tells. The shackle connecting one side bent and I found a straight cotter pin. There’s a lot of chafing of the cables. The heat shrink jacket was torn off on the side where the shackle bent but both sides are pretty chewed.

I’m thinking maybe the engine controls and the steering were not playing well together? There were a couple of occasions where rpm’s would drop when I turned.

1985 E32-3
Universal M25
Aylwin
Lake Champlain, VT USA



Christian Williams

Yes, the pedestal contains a lot of stuff--the control wires, the chain to wire, and the wires for the binnacle lamp.

It may be that your chain to wire connection is nonstandard. It appears to use wire eye spices and shackles to connect. Looks like they bind in the narrow confines of the pedestal tube.

YS used swages on the wires, which then fit into the master link of the chain end in a slender profile.

Perhaps the shackles inside your pedestal interfered with each other and also the throttle and shifter control wires. The answer would be to have new cables made up by a rigger in the style of the YS wire/chain connections. Note that the chain wires cross in this installation, exacerbating any friction between them.

Here's what my '85 E32-3 quadrant looked like, with engine control cables led through their specific port. Also, the swage example from the YS manual.

E32-3 quadrant and cables.jpg

...
swage to chain.JPG


YS document Capture.JPG
 

Filkee

Sustaining Member
These images were very helpful to my rigger. Watch this spot for my springtime panic when I’m attempting to retread it all.
 

Guy Stevens

Moderator
Moderator
This was a wrong construction problem. The eye splices don't work well in this application. There are specific swage terminators made for chain connection which connect directly to the chain instead of using a shackle. Redo with the correct terminators and this problem should go away.
 

Loren Beach

O34 - Portland, OR
Senior Moderator
Blogs Author
Late to the party, but in looking thru my photo archives I found this recent photo from under our cockpit. 1988 Yacht Specialties steering, showing the sheaves directing the cables aft to the quadrant.
Perhaps of some interest to other owners with EY vessels of this vintage.
All of the wiring connectors go up each leg of the ss guard, one side is the DC supply for the autopilot wheel drive, and the other side is for the plotter/radar display.
On our boat the crossover happens inside the column.
 

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Filkee

Sustaining Member
Okay, I remembered the crossover, but when I was removing the engine controls an engine control clevis pin took a dive down the tube and is MIA. It looks like this:

ED021BB4-5191-4E88-B1D5-EB7237B5A0D8.jpeg

The controls are labeled “Panish” (which my wife always wants to fix with a sharpie to read “Spanish”). 7C6F8D84-27FD-4303-8041-F69B787F0746.jpeg
Any idea where I could find a replacement? Appears to be bronze or brass. Not 100% sure either way and my initial attempts at “Panish Controls“ haven’t revealed much.

One step forward, two steps back.
 

Filkee

Sustaining Member
I'm that guy who would forget the crossover when reassembling.
I”m that guy who doubts the crossover. But I thought it through and it makes sense. Getting everything back on the quadrant or whatever variation of such thing is now my primary source of launch anxiety. Suddenly, the teak looks just fine.
 

Filkee

Sustaining Member
I’m now that guy who can’t put his engine controls back together. Does anyone else have the single handle shift/throttle setup apparently designed by Rob Panish? There’s very little out there that I’ve been able to find. Even a parts list to help me understand the guts. My after picture looks an awful lot like before. I can shift to forward and accelerate, but when I shift into reverse, it jams full astern.

BEFORE (shifter in neutral)
CE4B6BE3-CCD5-4987-80FA-8D440C076809.jpeg
AFTER (lever jammed full astern)
FFF639E5-66ED-4BCF-B6FC-3A47B9618B36.jpeg
I’m going to see if adjusting the turnbuckle on the shifter side makes a difference next time, but I’m running out of ideas.
SIDE VIEW (for identification purposes)
39A3A910-5C90-4C13-A8D6-B8F30410DE34.jpeg
 

Filkee

Sustaining Member
Talked to Edson today and they said one of two old timers in the shop might know about the Panish venture and will call me tomorrow, but tonight I went back to the boat (in the rain) and tried once more for a total of about ten reassemblies and five parts dropped down the tube. Final result, what appears to be a return to full functionality. Sometimes you just need to walk away a few times and think about it. Now on to the steering cables. I have one of those disc units that requires the cable to thread through a hole before it goes into the eye bolt which should make for some guru level boat yoga.
 

Filkee

Sustaining Member
Talked to Edson today and they said one of two old timers in the shop might know about the Panish venture and will call me tomorrow, but tonight I went back to the boat (in the rain) and tried once more for a total of about ten reassemblies and five parts dropped down the tube. Final result, what appears to be a return to full functionality. Sometimes you just need to walk away a few times and think about it. Now on to the steering cables. I have one of those disc units that requires the cable to thread through a hole before it goes into the eye bolt which should make for some guru level boat yoga.
And to their credit, Edson returned the call and offered me Panish’s number. Good customer service.
 

RedDog

Member II
I just bought Coqui, a 1972 E35-2and the steering wheel is very tight and hard to move. There is absolutely no free play in the wheel so it feels like the tightness is right there in the shaft the wheel rides on. I sprayed it with Kroil for days with no improvement. I have the compass off and sprayed everything. It is real tight. Whats next? Yacht Specialty Co. steering.
 

Christian Williams

E381 - Los Angeles
Senior Moderator
Blogs Author
Check the cables at quadrant and sheaves. There is supposed to be play in the wire, as I recall a deflection of 1". People tend to overtighten them.

It's a simple adjustment made with the eye bolts on the quadrant.
 

RedDog

Member II
Check the cables at quadrant and sheaves. There is supposed to be play in the wire, as I recall a deflection of 1". People tend to overtighten them.

It's a simple adjustment made with the eye bolts on the quadrant.
Thanks Christian. I'm new to Ericson. I will look at this this morning.
 

Jerry VB

E32-3 / M-25XP
Thanks Christian. I'm new to Ericson. I will look at this this morning.
If you search this site for zerk, you will find several threads on tight steering. One thread mentions the needle bearings in a Edson pedestal.

The rest discuss the two grease zerks on the rudder shaft that tend to be ignored for years. My steering was OK but noticeably better after I greased my rudder shaft.
 

Dave G.

1984 E30+ Ludington, MI
While you have the compass off check the wheel brake system & pads if so equipped. Make sure they are not binding and releasing as they should.
 

RedDog

Member II
The wheel brake is working fine and is not the problem. I need to remove the shaft that the wheel is connected to. That shaft is binding and almost seized.
 

Christian Williams

E381 - Los Angeles
Senior Moderator
Blogs Author
steering chain.jpg

As I recall, the cogwheel needs to come off so the shaft can be withdrawn.

There isa roll pin, which goes all the way through the shaft and needs to be knocked out with a drift pin. Might be a set screw, too. The roll pin should be replaced with a new one.

More here: Yacht Specialties/Merriman binnacle steering manual: https://ericsonyachts.org/ie/resources/merriman-binnacle-catalog.187/
YS wheel shaft detail.JPG
 
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