[Markus]

Hi rmgeis,

happy to help. Actually the installation was not that smooth as I had expected, but now it works very nicely. But let me first describe the complication: The steering system is designed for normal-sized boats. E.g. the mounting bezel has a bigger diameter than your entire cockpit dashboard in the cocktail class racer. Thus, you cannot work with the classical bezel, but rather mount the steering axis directly to the dashboard. It requires some tweaking, but not a big deal in the end. See some photos below:

Then I build a custom wheel out of a piece of wood and a race wheel of an old Fiat 500 Abarth:

 

There are several systems from Ultraflex, but I had to use the T86 (with 7 inch cable) as I needed max space below the steering system in the bow for my battery (probably not your problem if you go for a classical engine). Happy to assist with selecting the right version for you, if needed.

And by the way – I learned that it pays off to think before you mount it. Otherwise you will have a surprising test-drive (left is the new right…) and the need to do it all over again transforming your cockpit dashboard into a Emmentaler cheese:

But overall it is really a great solution. It works seamless and no cables in your cockpit. The only downside is that you have 3 wheel turns to get from full right to full left, but not sure whether the classic steering has a better gear ratio. I hope this was helpful to get a better view on the ultraflex steering option.

I can well remember the days when starting the build – enjoy!

Cheers, Markus

[Markus]

Thank you, Jeffrey! Also thank you for the guidance along the way so far. For sure I will keep you posted about the next steps. Would be indeed super to see some other electric pioneers building a all-electric CCR. A great example that tradition and innovation go well together. 😉

Stay well! I’ll be back…

Markus

[Markus]

Thank you, Jeffrey! Thank you for your detailed thoughts. And you are fully right – i was not sufficiently clear in my post. The thing is that I am about to build an all-electric cocktail class racer with a torqeedo motor. As part of this effort i thought it would be also worth testing an alternative steering mechanism with a classic teleflex/ultraflex steering system.

I am now already somewhat further down the road. After quite some research I am now trying a system from Ultraflex (https://www.ultraflex.it/product/rack-and-pinion-steering-systems-for-jet-boats/)

If all goes well i can provide an update by end of the month of how it fits into the cocktail class racer… 😉

Thank again and all the best! Wish you a wonderful racing season!

Markus

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