Pontoon Boat & Deck Boat Forum

I am thinking of installing hydraulic steering on my pontoon. At higher RPM it is a load to steer. Do any of you have any experience with this installation and can you offer any advice? I would like to do it myself. Also, any recommendations on which one to buy would be appreciated.
Thanks.

What size is your motor ?

It is only a 50 hp Mercury 2 stroke but at any RPM over about 3000 it steers like a log wagon. I had it checked by a shop and they found no problems with the steering but said the problem is common with pontoons.

I adjusted my trim tab to give me near-hands-free steering at our chosen cruising RPM of 4000. At least I'm not fighting the wheel just to keep it on course. I imagine it's not easy making tight turns at those speeds, but I haven't tried either.

Paul, my boat is pretty old, a 2005. It has really big pontoons and they should have designed the transom lower. It has a long shaft motor but if you trim mine much at all it starts to get the prop out of the water.

I think I have the short shaft. Mine is a 1999 model.

I was referring to the trim tab by the propeller and not the trim/tilt control (confuses me). What I did was to find a cruising speed that I liked and used the trim/tilt control to get the fastest speed and then adjusted the trim tab for effortlessly steering at that cruise speed. It took me a few stops to get the right tab setting, but worth it!

Very interesting.

Can anybody just answer the question???

Baystar would be fine for that and should not be hard to install. For that size motor though I am surprised you would need it. Are you sure that your steering cable is not the problem? They can turn freely without a load and then bind up under way.

https://www.amazon.com/BAY-STAR-HYDRAUL ... B000FPY3Y4

I upgraded my 28’ Party Hut with the Seastar hydraulic steering that I bought from ebay.

Baystar is a little cheaper in cost and is made by Seastar and for the size of your motor will do the job. I had to enlarge the side holes on the motor pod to clear the cylinder bracket. Other than that, it’s a relatively easy install.

jrolin1 wrote:..... For that size motor though I am surprised you would need it.

This is what I thought. I have a 70HP motor and fought the steering to keep it going straight, but after making my above mentioned adjustments, steering is fine for me without assistance. One less thing to buy and, more importantly, one less thing to break.

But, to each his (or her) own...

I am about to,upgrade to hydraulic also. The baystar kit. It looks very easy jump on YouTube and u will find installs.
I have a 22 foot 2001 bennington 90 hp my steering is very very stiff so I am doing the upgrade.
I am just looking for the best deal on the kit. I had a place but lost the link to,it. West marine and Amazon are not the cheapest are Not.

I have the Sea Star on my 23 ft Suncatcher with 115 Yamaha. I did not do it myself. Paid 1400 for it and should have done it the day I bought it. Can't say enough about the ease of turning, eliminated the torque steer and comes with a super duper tilt adjustment. LOVE IT,
It will make a world of difference. I can turn with one finger where before I had to keep a death grip on it to keep it from jerking to the right despite the trim tab adjustment being all the way to the side that supposed to correct it.

Write the check....