Charger 18DL Stiff Steering

[Sawbladz]

Just bought my first boat used and looking for advice on a steering problem.

2007 Charger 18DL
1988 Mercury XR2 150
HIJACKER Manual jackplate

Steering is very stiff basically all the time. Reading I have done leads me to believe I need to replace the cables. Helm says teleflex no feedback steering but no serial numbers. Single cable setup. Approx 13 ft long. 3 turns lock to lock.

Based on the photos attached, can you identify this steering setup? Is this acceptable or should it be upgraded? The boat has a 19pitch 4 blade on it so not very fast.

Is it possible to replace just the cable or do I need the complete system? What measurements do I need to confirm which cable I need?

[rock]

Welcome to the site. Might be a good time to invest in hydraulic. I know it is pricey but you will love it. I have had the rotary before and it worked fine but have never had it on a performance boat. Even with new cable it won't compare to hydraulic and sounds like you have a nice boat worth the investment. Good luck.

Rock

[idvette]

A good dual cable system is getting harder and harder to find, hydraulic is a great upgrade. The no feedback system is junk for high performance, it will lockup at speed. I haven't done it myself, but have heard it is possible to disassemble the helm and remove the rollers to eliminate the "no feedback" and it will act like a dual cable system.

Edit: just noticed it is a single cable, scrap that.

[rgsauger]

Single cable on performance setup is not what you want. Hydro rocks.

[Sawbladz]

Thanks for the feedback. Do you have any links to a hydraulic system you would recommend?

[Tomanytoys]

If you’re considering hydraulic I’d look at SeaStar pro.
Readily available and realatively cost effective for your application.
Looking at your pics, you’d have a hard time getting your dual cables to make the bend out of the hole in your splash well with the setaback you’ve got on the boat.

[rgsauger]

What he said. Seastar pro