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rivercrazy
02-06-2003, 02:33 PM
Generally speaking when is external steering become necessary? I've always heard anything that breaks 70mph is a good canditate.
Are there any behind the wheel signs that indicate that it might be a good idea to upgrade???

1stepcloser
02-06-2003, 05:31 PM
I suppose that the 70 MPH rule is the most widely prescribed as a point to upgrade.
I did mine last year concurrently with a motor upgrade, having alot of faith in the mods... :D
I can tell you this though, There was a noticable difference in the steering feel after the upgrade. prior to the change, the steering whell feel was fairly light, kind of easy to turn in either direction. there was a small amount of play in the wheel also, which made the boat kind of hunt side to side in no wake zones.
After the upgrade the wheel was tighter, it took a little more effort to turn but it now feels much more responsive. Great "road feel" if you will.
The low speed hunting is gone, the boat goes where it is pointed.
Worth the money. :)
Besides, all that stainless hanging on the transom looks really cool :D

XLGPP
02-07-2003, 10:53 AM
Im no expert, but strongly agree with the 70mph rule

waterndog
02-25-2003, 11:35 AM
1stepcloser:
I suppose that the 70 MPH rule is the most widely prescribed as a point to upgrade.
I did mine last year concurrently with a motor upgrade, having alot of faith in the mods... :D
I can tell you this though, There was a noticable difference in the steering feel after the upgrade. prior to the change, the steering whell feel was fairly light, kind of easy to turn in either direction. there was a small amount of play in the wheel also, which made the boat kind of hunt side to side in no wake zones.
After the upgrade the wheel was tighter, it took a little more effort to turn but it now feels much more responsive. Great "road feel" if you will.
The low speed hunting is gone, the boat goes where it is pointed.
Worth the money. :)
Besides, all that stainless hanging on the transom looks really cool :D So did you go single ram or dual ? what mfg did you go with
[ February 25, 2003, 11:39 AM: Message edited by: waterndog ]

1stepcloser
02-26-2003, 01:37 PM
I went to WPM (http://www.wpmracing.com/) in Corona. They were the easiest to work with, offered the best price, and were there after the sale when I had a problem with the system and stepped right up to take care of it. I tried a couple others, and was told mostly, No, it wont work on your boat...(I have an integrated swimstep, and not too much room back there) Dan said "No problem, we'll work something out for it".
I used a single ram system as I dont really ever think I'll see better than 80 MPH, and doubt I'll ever make more than 500 HP :(
Besides that, the single ram is far more easier to install than the dual, as both rams need to be perfectly parallel and very close to the pivot point of the gimbal or you can run into a bind problem.
If you are contemplating a hydraulic system, call Dan over there, he'll hook you up. :)

220EagleXp
02-27-2003, 07:39 AM
Hey 1step, do you have a picture of what wpm did for you. I have a 220 eagle which has the same swim step setup as you. I put in a hp 500 efi and we needed steering for saftey issues. Dan came up with a single ram setup for me last July. They were a little aprehensive at first to tackle the project but they got it done where everybody else said it couldn't be done. They do top notch work. I wanted to see if they used the same mounting location as they came up from me. I think I was the guinnee pig and now they can do the swim step boats easily now. http://members.aol.com/jlstang95/backwpm.jpeg

hot_diggity_dog
02-27-2003, 08:07 AM
RiverCrazy,
It's nice when cruising in the 70's to not have to put the death grip on the wheel. wink
It really helps. :D
I have a Imco dual ram. :D
HDD :cool: