Posts: 32959
Location: Rhinelander, Wisconsin | So let me get this straight, the hydraulic system on Mercury's engines and the Warrior steering system should now meet USCG ratings for a console boat, and as a result a tiller boat can now be rated with a larger engine than the ratings allow under the current USCG horsepower ratings protocol.
Where is this published?
I'll get in touch with our USCG rep who inspects the boats at Tuffy and ask the question.
Here's Crestliner and Lund's take on it:
http://features.boats.com/boat-content/2011/02/outboard-horsepower-...
Nothing changed in the federal regs on HP.
http://law.justia.com/cfr/title33/33-2.0.1.8.44.html#33:2.0.1.8.44....
Still the same in definition of remote steering and the regs in the USCG Boat Builders Handbook, no changes, a 'steering wheel' is the definitive item defining remote steering.
http://www.uscgboating.org/assets/pdf/downloads/PART1.pdf
I've spoken to Mr. Chang several times in the past, I'll see if I can get a confirmation.
UPDATE:
I just got off the phone with Mr. Chang, and he confirmed that NO power steering tiller system is accepted as remote steering. No exceptions confirmed by two boat builders as well this morning, and the reasoning remains as stated in the Crestliner test article above:
'“We have had many discussions with the Coast Guard on that subject,” says Chad Keskitalo, compliance specialist for Lund and Crestliner boats, “and the Coast Guard won’t budge.”
Po Chang, a civilian boating safety engineer for the Coast Guard, explains that the agency has three concerns when considering max power for tiller- versus remote-steered boats. The first is operator placement.
“With the operator sitting further aft at the tiller, the boat is not in ideal trim,” says Chang. “He also can’t see forward as well, and the boat may be more prone to porpoise.”
The second concern, says Chang, is operator security.
“A steering wheel provides a brace for both hands, and the seat offers additional stability, that the operator of the tiller boat does not have,” explains Chang. “The tiller operator is just hanging on the gunwale with his right hand.”
Finally, there’s the difference in reaction to helm input between the two systems.
“With a steering wheel, it takes a pretty deliberate motion to change course,” says Chang. “The tiller is connected directly to the motor, and it’s much easier to make an inadvertent course change.”
Adding power assist to the tiller does not really address any of these issues."
Mr. Chang told me this morning that the power steering does reduce fatigue, but doesn't address the issues above and will not be considered remote steering in any case for HP rating.
No Tuffy 1890 with a buck and a half tiller for me, I guess.
Darn it.
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