johnson oceanrunner 150/ fish/ radar arch

[ReelNauti]

neighbor has a johnson oceanrunner 150. the steering is VERY difficult. is it possible to add some type of "power" steering to this? i have never driven an outboard with such stiff steering

second, he is looking for a radar/ fish arch for his 20ft cuddy cabin. is there a boating "junkyard" or surplus vendor who would have arches from vessels no longer in service?

[Gerry Zagorski]

Some questions first. Does it have hydrolic steering or cable? When you say it's difficult to steer I assume you mean the steering is very tight and wheel needs a lot of force to turn. Is it difficult to steer at all speeds or just while running? Let us know more and perhaps we can help.

I had twin 200s on a prior boat with hydrolic steering (no power steering) and you could turn the engines with one finger. Although some of the newer and larger outboards do come with power steering and there are some aftermarket companies that sell add on power steering units, I doubt power steering in the answer here and I'll bet there is something else up that is binding the steering.

Here are a few things to check and start the process of elimination:

If cable steering then the cable might need to be lubricated or replaced or pehaps the gear rack behing the helm needs to be greased. Easiest way to see what is causing the issue is to disconnect the cable from the motor. If the steering wheel now spins freely you have now eliminated the rack behing the helm and the cable and your issue is where the outboard pivots on the engine mount. There should be a grease fitting there. Try greasing it several times while turning the engines back and forth.

If hydrolic it could be the ram that mounts on the motor or the pump in the helm station could be bad... Once again, the best way to find out what is causing the issue is to disconnect the ram that mounts to the engine and see if the wheel now steers freely. If it does not then it's likely the pump at the helm or the ram at the engine. If does spin freely then it's likley where the engine pivots on the engine mount. Grease it and see what happens.

Hope this helps.