steering system - chain and wire

[MicHughV]

yep, I had the Edson chain and wire setup on my first boat....never occurred to me that anything would break, it looked so substantial.
but the chain, did in fact break.....It was an Edson supplied chain.....broke after 5-6 years of use...could not really say why, the steering was never stressed, but just snapped a link one day. I managed to jury rig the break to get me home, but I was pissed off at Edson. They sent me a new chain.....had to pay for it, off course....Edson gives nothing away...but thereafter made it a point to remove the binnacle once a year to grease and oil the chain. I used the oil as it would wick down the chain to the wire cable...and then greased the crap out of it. be sure to use a good waterproof grease.
The cable was inside a pull-pull conduit, also Edson supplied, it was supposed to take a 1/4" stainless steel wire, but I could never fit the 1/4" wire all the way thru' and had to use 3/16" wire instead. The pull-pull conduits had a grease fittings fitted to it, so these I made sure to check every year. Never had a problem with the wire, just the chain. I remember seeing a "made in China" label on the chain.......not sure if that meant anything....but gave me pause..At the rudder were bronze pulleys, I would grease these and the cable from time to time.
the chain sees salt water moisture even though it may appear sealed under the binnacle....
The whole steering system on most boats is " out of sight, out of mind"..so it does warrant careful attention.
yep, change the chain !!!

[CassidyNZ]

I have Edson with the ubiquitous chain/sprocket at the wheel but my cables go into outer sleeves directly under the binnacle. The outer sleeves run all the way back to the quadrant but halfway there, two fittings in the sleeves have grease nipples installed. Squirt a dollop of grease into the fittings and the grease migrates back and forth along the inner cables, keeping it all well-lubricated.

The only part of the system that has ever failed was one of the plastic fittings at the front end of the sleeves that cracked and which I replaced for $35 for both. The only other part that ever required attention was the Crosby clamps at the quadrant end that provide adjustment of the cable, which slipped and created excessive play at the wheel.

Other than that, all the components remain in pretty good shape with no play on anything. And I have no reason to suspect that these parts are not original which makes them 34 years old. I can’t imagine what conditions would cause Edson steering components to degrade to the extent shown in the OP post.

[MicHughV]

The link that failed on my boat was one of those outside link plates....there was no rust anywhere on the entire chain....just the one outside link plate. The link plate on the other side was not affected in any way.
That link plate rotates around that center bearing, one each end of the link plate.....it seemed to me, that the hole thru' the link, where the bearing is located is where the failure started. That particular link plate looked like it had been " torn" apart for want of a better description. It must have developed a crack some time at that hole location, before the actual failure.
I sent the broken link plate to Edson, hoping to get a replacement chain, but I received no comment from them and had to pay full price for the replacement. That really soured me on Edson, and given a choice, would opt for a different make.

The chain in the OP's photo looks badly rusted and I would suggest this gets replaced ASAP!

[blubaju]

Originally Posted by stormalong

Couple of things from other posts:

I would never use anything other than 7X7 stainless steel wire. Dyneema would chafe quickly.

I'm not selling Dyneema, but I need an easy & quick to repair yacht beyond the end of the world. So don't take it personal, I haven't the slightest idea where chafe should appear in a proper installationn with well aligned sheaves.

No flesh hooks, easy splicing, less spare parts, floating, all reasons for me to prefer Dyneema.

Was not my idea but our yacht designers, catamaran before I installed a hydraulic steering, flawless too, but very heavy and expensive

[stormalong]

Originally Posted by blubaju

I'm not selling Dyneema, but I need an easy & quick to repair yacht beyond the end of the world. So don't take it personal, I haven't the slightest idea where chafe should appear in a proper installationn with well aligned sheaves.

No flesh hooks, easy splicing, less spare parts, floating, all reasons for me to prefer Dyneema.

Was not my idea but our yacht designers, catamaran before I installed a hydraulic steering, flawless too, but very heavy and expensive

I am not taking it personal - a little bit thicker skinned than that.

The steering cables wrap around a steering quadrant, in my case a full circle. The cables are constantly being pulled on and off that quadrant. Even with perfect alignment there is wear and tear. I wouldn't trust a synthetic material for this application. Just my opinion.

[patprice]

And something else, on my yacht anyway. After replacing the wires and chain I went for a test drive. Turned to starboard and guess what, she turned to port.
The wires cross inside the pedestal. Not to be seen easily.

[stormalong]

Originally Posted by BrianGJS

This sure brings back a memory. The cable got switched on my 34 when it was replaced and leaving the dock involved reversing all the usual backing out procedure. Sailing beside another boat and them watching you steer toward them at the start line did have its advantages.

Originally Posted by patprice

And something else, on my yacht anyway. After replacing the wires and chain I went for a test drive. Turned to starboard and guess what, she turned to port.
The wires cross inside the pedestal. Not to be seen easily.

Well that makes three of us. Right after buying my boat I removed the pedestal to paint it. First time in the water and OOPS. And I had 29 bridges to go through to get to lake Michigan from the boatyard. My mantra for the day was turn left to go right.

[LouTai]

Hello David,
Your picture looks a lot like Goiot pedestal. They are very common in french boats.
At least the one in my boat has rubber sealing plate between compass and the pedestal. If you loosen wires from quadrant, you´ll probably be able to lift the chain up until you get to the chain/wire connection. Using the thin rope attached to wire trick you may be able to check and replace, if needed the wires w/o taking many parts off.

[DavidMRea]

Thank you all, so much. Yes, I plan to replace both chain and wires immediately. I'll check the wheel bearings at the same time. Maybe then able to do some gentle manoeuvring in the river before winter sets in, but no real passages. Then, I'll check under the pedestal over the Autumn (or Fall).

PS -Pete7. It's a French built yacht, first sold and equipped in Holland, then moved to England about 10 years ago. Thanks for the link to Cliff at yachtsteering services. Looks good

[coopec43]

QUOTE [ " Couple of things from other posts:

I would never use anything other than 7X7 stainless steel wire. Dyneema would chafe quickly. UNQUOTE


I would use 7 X 19 Stainless cable as it is more flexible than 7 X 7. (I think you'll find 7 X 19 is used almost universally)

When using SS Cable the pulleys (sheaves should be a minimum of 7 inch diameter)

I considered using Dyneema but couldn't work out how to tension it on the quadrant. If you terminate the dyneema by doing a splice there'd be no room for a tensioning device.(and the splice diameter would be far too big for the groove on the quadrant)

There is a fitting (Bluewave SS fitting) you can use but they cast $360? But even using that there would be virtually no room for tensioning?

I used competition motor-cycle chain but I had to be very careful to get chain with links of the right length/width.

(Removing the pedestal on my yacht is very easy as it is center-cockpit)

[MicHughV]

to the OP..Edson has new chain lube available...check out their website...it goes on as an oil for penetration and then leaves a barrier film.
That is the key to success for your steering system. Keep the chain and wire lubed !!!
Once you put the compass back on the pedestal, this often becomes a forgotten item, make it a yearly ritual to inspect !!

[sanibel sailor]

You likely need size 50 chain, yours looks not to be stainless. SS50 chain, available from industrial supply houses at about 1/3 the cost as thru the marine sources. Same chain, made by the mile for industrial uses and adapted by marine businesses. They don't make their own chain. Grind off the head and drive out the pin on the last link and put a shackle pin thru it. I made mine about an inch longer on each side because the standard prior install would allow the last link to go onto the gear before the rudder stops hit.

[blubaju]

Originally Posted by MicHughV

to the OP..Edson has new chain lube available...check out their website...it goes on as an oil for penetration and then leaves a barrier film.
That is the key to success for your steering system. Keep the chain and wire lubed !!!
Once you put the compass back on the pedestal, this often becomes a forgotten item, make it a yearly ritual to inspect !!

The wording for Edison lube lets me remember my 30 years old Boeshield lube, maybe the same? One thing to remember: a sticky surface attracts dust... Guess how I know ;-)

[coopec43]

Originally Posted by blubaju

The wording for Edison lube lets me remember my 30 years old Boeshield lube, maybe the same? One thing to remember: a sticky surface attracts dust... Guess how I know ;-)

Being a center cockpit yacht the steering pedestal is directly over the top of the motor on my yacht. After installing the compass I plan to use silastic as a gasket for the pedestal cover and silastic the C/S bolt-heads. There should be no dust!

[stormalong]

Originally Posted by blubaju

The wording for Edison lube lets me remember my 30 years old Boeshield lube, maybe the same? One thing to remember: a sticky surface attracts dust... Guess how I know ;-)

Originally Posted by coopec43

Being a center cockpit yacht the steering pedestal is directly over the top of the motor on my yacht. After installing the compass I plan to use silastic as a gasket for the pedestal cover and silastic the C/S bolt-heads. There should be no dust!

Make me think of Superlube spray teflon grease. Boeshield is more of a protectant than a lubricant

Sealing the top of the pedestal with any type of sealant just means you have to cut through it for maintenance and inspection. I can't imagine any dust or dirt getting in through the top. I have a canvas cover over the compass to keep the sun off.