Hard Steering

We used my buddys Triton fish and ski boat yesterday and he let me drive. I have a few questions on how his boat handled. The steering reminded me of back in the days with out power steering, is it supposed to be a chore to steer the boat. He has a mercury 115 4-stroke. Another thing I noticed was when under full power the boat seemed to lean to one side with the driver side quite noticably sitting higher. Thanks for any help you can offer on this matter.

Jekern1015, Two possible causes for hard steering. First it can be the steering cable. If that is the cause, you can not repair it. The cable must be replaced.
Second cause- It is possible the steering tube the cable goes thru at the motor. To find out which is the cause- Disconnect the link bar from the cable, and disconnect the steering cable from the motor( a big nut on the cable on the starboard side of the motor. With it disconnected, see if the steering is still hard to turn ( with the wheel ) . If the steering wheel is hard to turn, it is a bad cable. If the steering wheel is easy, try to pull the cable from the tube.
If you have difficulty pulling the cable from the tube, then it is possibly the tilt tube that is rusted . If you can get the cable out of the motor, then clean the old grease from inside of the tube and off of the cable. Then run a boiler brush ( 5/8 inch )thru the tube to remove the rust. Grease the cable and tube with a water proof grease. If it is locked in there tightly with rust, you may want to take it to a dealer. Sometimes it is cheaper to buy a full kit than to buy a separate cable. Go figure? Any more questions? Ask. Ive replaced maybe a couple of hundred of those. They get neglected in the annual service. they should be greased at least ever two years. I prefer every year.

As far as the boat listing to one side while under way, check to see if the motor is mounted on the center line of the boat. Trim the motor don, with the motor straight ahead. Look to see if the lower unit is in the center and the motor is at 90* ti the transom top.

Might just need to be greased. They will get like that if they have not been lubed up

jekern, have you gotten on the scales lately? LOL! My boat is a deep V and does this regularly when the weight distribution on the boat isn't right. If the boat has a kicker motor, extra battery or all the tackle bags on one side, it could be easy to offset the center on the boat. The solution to the problem is to install trim tabs that allow one to right the ship as they say. How long is your buddies boat? I hate boats that require Popeye forearms to steer. The perfect solution to cable steering is to switch to hydraulic steering. I occasionally have a seal issue but overall, it makes steering just like power steering in a car,

I agree with hydraulic steering. However the cost is quite a bit more. It is also a ton better. Also to grease the cable end at the motor, it is best to pull the cable end out of the motor so you can get the old grease out. The grease zerk on the tilt tube does not grease the steering only the outside of the tilt tube to mount brackets.

With cable steering the turning force on the steering wheel goes up as you tilt the motor down. If you were running it so the bow was cutting into the water instead of riding a little bow high, that will increase the steering effort to a noticeable extent. If it's that way it also seems to dart off in the new direction once you start the turn as another indication of improper trim.
I've pulled the swaged end off my cable steering in the past because of it binding somewhere. I installed hydraulic steering, then new aluminum floor boards, then new gunnels, then a divorce, then no place to work on it... My big boat hasn't run in 20 years. Try to limit any work just to what's needed and go fishing is my advice.

Thank you for pointing that out about trim. I knew I was forgetting something. I still stand by pulling the cable out of the tube and greasing every year or two.

part of what you are feeling with an outboard is probably the torque of the motor and prop. you will notice with motor trimmed all the way down in the water the front of the boat is cutting through more water and counter acting with the torque....as you trim the motor up you will feel less and less pull on the steering wheel. At a certain point it will equal out and run smooth...I learned a long time ago.....never let go of the wheel with an outboard. You can find this info on the internet. and yes weight distribution is also a factor in handling.

Don't just think it happens with outboards. With the small 4cyl engine & IO in my Bayliner, it doesn't come with power steering at all. Recently changed the steering cable on mine where I couldn't hardly steer the boat even in idle trying to load the boat on the trailer. Had to put it in neutral just to straighten it out. Steering was hard even sitting on trailer dry. Troubleshot & replaced cable and works so much better now.