ENGINE/TRANSMISSION CABLES

Tag: engine

By Russell Monaco

I snapped the end of the "teleflex" cable (the cable from the helm to the transmission shift lever on the transmission), while away and had to do real MacGyver job to get the helm to control the transmission so we could get home.

If this happens to you, read on...

The first thing you will need is the replacement cable(s) and this pamphlet from Edson.

http://www.edsonintl.com/EdsonMarine/pdf/Instructions/EB396EngineControlInstr.PDF

There are two cables, each cable has a Morse part number printed on them:

Engine cable, made by Morse/Teleflex 14 feet long:

D 301947-003-168.0

Transmission cable, made by Morse/Teleflex 12 feet long:

032377-003-0144.0

I think all you really need to know is the length and order a cable of that length. I think Morse/Teleflex cables are a fairly common item, the important thing is each end has a 10/32 thread( I don't think this is an issue, I was lead to believe all these cables have this spec.) and the cables are the proper length, as I said Engine(acceleration) needs 14 feet, and Transmission(F-N-R) needs 12 feet.

The repair took one “fairly” able man(me) and one very able man (Tom Senator-tech editor for C36 MKII) a total of 10 man hours to complete the job!!! As to why it was so hard, the two cables are held in place by a bracket about 1 foot down the pedestal. The chain and sprocket for the steering system is above it, you need to get the bracket to the top, but the sprocket is in the way, so after spending about 1-2 hours fiddling with this, we eventually decided to disconnect the steering system, from below, this allowed us to pop the steering chain off the sprocket and push it forward out of the way. Then we lifted the cables/bracket to the top, and did the replacement...BUT...then we had a new problem of getting the chain/steering system back together, the only way we came up with to loosen the system was by removing one of the "pulleys" (sheave) down below the pedestal/above the aft berth. this freed up the chain enough to move it off the sprocket, but replacing the pulley was now our new insurmountable problem.

Note there is no sealant/caulking at the base of the actual pedestal, it is a very open area that allows motion freely up and down (ie-the steering cable).

Also, I had no issue with the legendary screws that keep the compass in place. They came in and out (twice due to an error) without any problem. Be sure to always use an anti-seizing grease before installing screws like these.