Yamaha C90 - steering cable stuck in clamp bracket

My steering cable is stuck due to corrosion in the motor clamp bracket tube. The steering cable passes through this tube of the front of the motor clamp bracket. I use my boat in salt water a few times each year and this is the 3rd time I've had to pay someone to take it apart and clean the rust out. I have a friend with the same motor and this has happened to his engine a couple of times as well. Does anyone know of a solution that would prevent this from continuously happening to my motor?

Heat gun used carefully will warm up the hardened grease. Then take it apart and clean out ALL of the old grease ... beg or borrow an old 12-gauge shotgun cleaning brush and scour the ID of the tilt tube.

Then buy a ‘Steersman’ stainless steel nut (with zirk fitting) to close off the open end of the tube to the steering arm.

The stainless nuts with zirt fittings sound like a good idea. While searching for the nuts I found a stainless tube to replace the factory carbon steel tube. You would think that Yamaha would have made the tube out of stainless to begin with. Has anyone tried replacing the tube with a stainless tube? I used to clean the tube out myself using the 12 gauge shotgun brush attached to a drill but then I added a PowerPole to the transom and now it is no longer possible to clean the tube without removing the motor. I agree, once the tube develops rust the first time it happens more frequently. This time I want to fix so I don't have to deal with it again.

On an OMC 90hp used in saltwater I replaced the steel tilt tube w/ a SS one. 2 of us did it using a come-along from a garage ceiling steel I-beam.

DaleH said:

On an OMC 90hp used in saltwater I replaced the steel tilt tube w/ a SS one. 2 of us did it using a come-along from a garage ceiling steel I-beam.

Click to expand...

Did it solve the rust issues for you?

Yes, that, a Steersman, and OMC ‘Triple Guard’ grease did the trick!

But where you don’t venture to the salt too much, try a good THOROUGH cleaning and re-lubing with that grease and a Steersman.

I have an extra Steersman lying around, but not sure if the thread is for an OMC, Merc or Yummieha ...

I ordered the stainless tube and nuts with zirk grease fittings today. Hopefully that will remedy my problem with the corrosion.

Thanks

Replace the tube.

Once the rust starts, there isn't any stopping it. It rusts in the same places over and over again.

Rust is iron oxide, meaning you have to keep the oxygen out to avoid rusting. Salt and water speed the process up, as you've already realized.

The fittings are a great idea and would help getting marine grease in there which would help keep air, water from getting to it. Also keeps everything nice & lubricated. Mercury 2-4-C is what I've always been taught to use for steering cables & tubes, though I'm pretty sure that a lot of other brands/types would work as well.