Ericson 28 Throttle Cable-wheel chain issue

YoreCrew

Junior Member
Hi! I am new to the forem. My son & I sail a 1987 Erickson 28. The wheel froze leaving the slip & we discovered that the throttle-mount is bent, interfering with the wheel chain. Anyone have a brand for the pedestal or any drawings of the internal workings? Any ideas how to pop the throttle mount that is secured with Si to the pedestal base? Thanks!
 

Loren Beach

O34 - Portland, OR
Senior Moderator
Blogs Author
Is there a Y S emblem on the big chromed nut that holds the wheel on?
I ask because my '88 has a Yacht Specialties wheel setup and I know that Ericson installed oodles of these.

LB
 

ref_123

Member III
Yacht Specialties

... as Loren pointed out. However, the nut on mine says "Edson".

Which part of the assembly did get damaged? If it is an aluminum "tang" that goes down to the piedestal, it's a relatively easy fix - any local machine shop will be able to cut you a new one. Also, at this point, the second tang (the one holding a gear shift cable) is probably in a pretty bad shape, too, so check it out and may be just machine replacements for both.

I went through this in August, and a couple of new tangs was $300. Kind of expensive... but much less then a new piedestal. When I started calling around to local machanics most suggested to put me up with a new Edson, stating that YS is too old and repairing it is a hassle...

Regards,
Stan
 

YoreCrew

Junior Member
YS it is!

Thank you both for your insightful replys!

I went to the boat today (power was out here at the house, today, so I am just gettng to this response!) and the wheel is, indeed, cast "Y S".

So I would love to have a sketch of how the throttle cable is connected at the top end of the pedestal to the support that is a part of the add-on to the pedestal that houses the throttle & gear-shift levers.

Also, what is between the top of the pedestal and its deck-mount, regarding the cables?

And finally, how does one remove the section holding the throttle & gear levers from the pedestal base, where it has silicone adhesive holding the two together?

Thanks so much in advance!

Dick Yore
 

Frank Langer

1984 Ericson 30+, Nanaimo, BC
Dick,

It is quite straight-forward, and as you proceed, each next step is fairly obvious. I had to do all this last year when the gear shift cable got a kink in it and "froze", and did it without instruction (and I'm mechanically a bit inept!:)).

I'm not at the boat at the moment, but on ours I had to remove the Ritchie compass on top of the pedestal (4 corner screws) and lift the compass off. Then looking into the pedestal there were four more bolts holding that next piece onto the main base. Main caution is not to drop anything down the centre of the pedestal (it will likely come out the bottom but could roll into the bilge area from there).

The cables are held on by cotter pins in a fitting (again pretty self-evident), the throttle/shift levers on ours are held on by allen screws.

While you are in there, you might want to check and oil the chain, but be careful not to get any oil on the brake area (you will see the small pads there if you have a brake, and they need to stay dry or the brake will slip).

I replaced both the throttle and gear shift cable, and found it much easier than I had anticipated. The only tough part is to get the adjustment right, so the transmission shifts completely into both forward and reverse gear, and the throttle moves correctly to get the right idle and full throttle.

That's as much as I can recall, but feel free to ask questions. Others may have a more technical or knowledgeable explanation.

Good luck!

Frank
 

YoreCrew

Junior Member
YS Pedestal Disassembly

Frank, thank you for your response and information!

Got down to removing the screws (4) on the Clutch & Throttle Housing, but that housing is secured to the pedestal base by silicone. Any suggestions how to remove that housing? The silicone is very thin, I don't want to break anything!

I can see that the throttle bracket is bent into the chain path.

Thanks for the suggestions on lubrication! Now is the time to do that!

Dick
 

Guy Stevens

Moderator
Moderator
YS documentation is on this site

In the Resources section is a scan of one of the last YS catalogs (Which contains all of their technical drawings and most of their instructions from most units).

I would recommend that you download it and have a good look. It will show you in both drawings and photographs how things are supposed to look!

Guy
:)
 

Frank Langer

1984 Ericson 30+, Nanaimo, BC
Hi Dick,

My YS pedestal didn't have any silicone between the piece you mention and the rest of the pedestal. I wonder if it was applied by a previous owner to prevent any water getting into the pedestal. Unless the diagrams and instructions that Guy mentioned indicate otherwise, or someone has a better suggestion, I would gently cut through the silicone and lift it off.

Frank
 

ref_123

Member III
No Silicone

No silicone was there on mine. The bottom of the housing in my case rests on the plate that connects the piedestal with the instrument housing tube (AngleGuard in my case).

Once that housing is off, everything else is a snap. I could not get the cables out of those aluminum tangs (or brackets), so I had to cut the cables with a hacksaw.

Note that these brackets are of different legths - make sure to write down which one goes on the right and which one on the left!

BTW, I was assured that in a case of a really bad need that housing can be replaced with similar Edson's part. That was a big morale boost for me - at least if I royally screw up, not all is lost!

Another BTW - if you need new cable ends, don't buy them from Edson - the ones from Morse, the cable manufacturer, fit perfectly and cost way less.

Regards,
Stan
 

Vincent

Member II
cables

If you loosen the cables from the cable ties below you will be able to rase the assemble higher out of the pedestal making it easer to work on.
Vince
 

exoduse35

Sustaining Member
another thing while you are in there... check the steering cables and chain especially where they join each other. I have had 2 cables wear through. the chain parts can be sourced at a motorcycle shop and the cable at any hardware store. Also with a bit if thought it can be greatly improved upon the original set up. Mine looked like the whole wheel steering set up was an afterthought and done begrudgingly! also check the pulley set up down below as the same guy used a steel cage glassed (poorly) to the hull, and most have rusted away or need replaced. Edd
 

exoduse35

Sustaining Member
Loren, if I had room to take picture I would have done some permanent repairs there by now! As is, I have only done some temp repairs as the only access is a 12x14 panel at the rear of the quarter berth. Just enough room to get my head and one arm and shoulder in! Too bad too, there is a lot of space back there if only I could get to it! The plan is to do a permanent rework when I re power and convert to diesel as I will be changing out the tank as well. With the tank out I should have plenty of room to get in and do some real damage! Edd
 

Loren Beach

O34 - Portland, OR
Senior Moderator
Blogs Author
Picture This...

Edd brings up a good point about trying to work in confined spaces. :headb:
One "trick" I have used to at least plan out a project better is to put my portable trouble light inside the space and then put in an arm with my digi camera and shoot lots of pics. Then I can load 'em into my old iBook on the scene and at least see where the parts go... :rolleyes:

Another idea that may help is to create some more access. While it's a bit cringe-worthy, I have cut into the teak and also the frp moldings inside of our boat (several places) over the years to create new or better access to areas where systems needed work.
An unexpected benefit of this was being able to clean out ancient mold from these areas with a good cleaning and bleach wipe-down. :woot:

Loren
 

YoreCrew

Junior Member
Problem Resolved!

I thank you all for the terrific responses! We were able to get the yard that hauled the boat to own up to the fact that only they could have caused a bend in the tang (to which the throttle cable is attached) such that it interfered with the steering chain. We cannot believe all of the support we have received - and how much we have learned through this! Thank you so much, am so pleased I joined the forum. And we cannot believe what a wonderful boat the 28 is! And yes, I appreciate all of the suggestions and downloads, one can never have too much information!
 
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