Has anyone put a folding steering wheel on their Hunter 376? I'm considering it so it's easier to get around the wheel when not sailing, but I'd like to hear the opinions of other 376 owners.
Steering Wheel
- Thread starter Scripty666
- Start date
I have one.....and I do anchor out...I like it because it gives me more room while I am anchored.......but I like it most because the wheel is always in place.......so incase of an emergency (dragging or..)...I am not trying to fit the wheel hub into the keyway........I can start the engine and take control..(I hope)
If I had a $1,000 that I just couldn't find something to do with I would get a folding wheel. I have it listed on my upgrade list, even though I figure the odds are low that I would even spend the cash for it.
Can't speak for a 376 but our 38 came with it when we bought her new. Absolutely love it. Makes moving around the cockpit when in the slip or at anchor so much easier. We use the stern platform a lot for swimming, boarding the dinghy, and kayaking and the folded wheel ales all of that a breeze.
When sailing the locked wheel performs as solidly as a standard wheel
When sailing the locked wheel performs as solidly as a standard wheel
Never thought about removing the wheel when in the slip, but that's a great idea. To save money, I suspect Hunter and other manufacturers use the same wheel on a range of boats regardless of the difference in cockpit width at the helm. On the H31, it's a real squeeze around the wheel. I haven't measured, but I think the wheel diameter could be a foot less and still allow for comfortable steering from port or starboard.
I was very close to buying one last year. Could not justify the price. I remove my wheel and I leave an elastic thingy that my wife uses for her hair on the shaft. When I remove the wheel, I roll the elastic over the key to hold it in place. Like MikeM said, 15 seconds and the wheel is out of the way.
Edison makes a wheel holder that mounts on the rail. Easy to use but just for safety I do tie a small line on it. A lot cheaper than the folding wheel and actually better because it gives you even more room taking it off and on about two minutes
We went with the folding wheel on our 29.5. Soooo glad we did. We had a 42" Edson wheel and we could've taken it off but with the Autopilot ring it's a pain and lots of wear and tear. My luck I would lose the key or nut while anchored out somewhere.
I added a folding lewmar to my H42- but it is center cockpit , so made a huge difference- love it! Why worry about the price- everything on a boat costs! That's why BOAt is the acronym for " bring On Another Thousand!":dance:
We changed out our fixed 36" wheel to a folding wheel on our 450 Passage and have been extremely pleased with the results.......better hand feel (new wheel is leather-wrapped), MUCH more space and manuverability in cockpit at anchorage or slip, and good looks. Sold our fixed stainless wheel for $200 and paid about $600 for new folding wheel (on line store with no tax or shipping), so net investment quite acceptable. Find the funds and go for it...you'll wish you had done it sooner!
Yes the replacement is expensive. I just remove the wheel on my H376 when anchored or staying on board. Takes me about 5 minutes. The only disadvantage is a short lunch stop on in a busy area on the hook, usually don't remove wheel for safety reasons.
Go to sailnet.com and look up "low bucks projects". Scroll thru the pages to find what was done for the wheel.
I just remove mine and store below.
First time I did it I had to wait a week for a new stainless steel key, bought 2.
I used some glue to keep it in place
I just remove mine and store below.
First time I did it I had to wait a week for a new stainless steel key, bought 2.
I used some glue to keep it in place
Finding that one sailnet could be a chore. Look under Gear & Maintenance.
Few of our skippers have done this, since most of them have autopilot wheelpilots, which require finageling with wires and clutches to remove the wheels. If you have a belowdeck pilot, not so hard. This is true for the ST4000, newer and our older ST3000 APs.
Also, many spend what I consider to be unwarranted $$ on the Edson quick release knurled nut for the wheel. When we first got our boat in 1998, I simply greased the threads and use the regular nut if I want to remove it.
In the 15 years we've had the boat, I simply have not found the need to ever remove the wheel. Heck, all I do is step up on the cockpit seat to get around the wheel. I do not find this hard at all, and I have both a (formerly) broken left leg from skiing as well as some other back issues.
Silly me, I just look at is as exercise! My PT and doctor would be proud of me!
We have a single wheel, no walk through transom.
Few of our skippers have done this, since most of them have autopilot wheelpilots, which require finageling with wires and clutches to remove the wheels. If you have a belowdeck pilot, not so hard. This is true for the ST4000, newer and our older ST3000 APs.
Also, many spend what I consider to be unwarranted $$ on the Edson quick release knurled nut for the wheel. When we first got our boat in 1998, I simply greased the threads and use the regular nut if I want to remove it.
In the 15 years we've had the boat, I simply have not found the need to ever remove the wheel. Heck, all I do is step up on the cockpit seat to get around the wheel. I do not find this hard at all, and I have both a (formerly) broken left leg from skiing as well as some other back issues.
Silly me, I just look at is as exercise!
My PT and doctor would be proud of me! We have a single wheel, no walk through transom.
I have just replaced my old 32" with a 42" Lewmar foldable steeringwheel. Now I´m looking forward to try it but so far the snow is still coming down and the water is covered with ice. I looked at Forespar's new quick-release Steering Control Arm but found the foldable much better, dispite the price difference. Now I can sit beside the wheel and still have full control of the boat. With the old one I had to lean forward and that was very unconfortable. Picture on my website valetta.n.nu/loggbok
I also thought long and hard about spending over $1,000 on one even though it would open up acess to the back of the boat so well. When I found a second-hand one on ebaY it was a no-brainer to get it! Absolutely love it! Bill on STARGAZER