hi to all,

I need your advice about a steering problem I just experienced last night while sailing betwen Sardinia and Corsica.

essentially , while being on autopilot , the port steering wheel (the one connected to the other bar , so without load) made a noise and suddenly disconnected from the rudder.

inspecting the connection the transmission wires are loose, therefore the wire+chain loop got broken or disconnected. while sailing , I removed the chain onto the gearbox to avoid any interference with the rudder movement.

the cable transmitting the wheel rotation got lose somewhere on the wheel hub, because the lower chain on the gearbox and its connection to the wires is intact.

what's the best way to access the upper part of the steering system in order to identify the failure? I guess that the wheel is connected to a chain hub, that acts on a piece of chain that is connected to the steel wire like below the deck. how to access the piece of chain sitting on the wheel hub ? how to extract the cables for inspection /repair ? it seems that the first pulley connected to the wheel assembly  prevents to extract the wire ends...

as a second question , while I was inspecting the port system during real world sailing conditions I could hear some grinching noises from the starboard side , where the autopilot was working. it is not the (jefa) autopilot itself , but somewhere in the transmission (bars, chains, gearboxes, wooden wall). since I just greased all the system , verified the tensions and the bolts , this surprised me. I couldn't hear the same grinching noise when I tested the system in the harbour. could it come from the lewmar gearbox itself? I would like to think it's the wooden panel, but I know that Leon is very suspicious about these boxes because they are subject to wear. most importantly : how to do the correct  maintenance of these gearboxes? any grease or oil that can be added without removing them ? I admit that I consider them sealed systems ,and I never extracted them from the boat for mechanical inspection...

Any advice on both subjects ? 

thanks to everybody in advance ,

piero

Haven't had to do it yet, so I am watching for responses as well.     I assume you have this diagram?

Latest news: the chain at the top is broken. It had various signs of oxidation, and some chain elements are "cracked", one of which showing an old crack. Surprising, because i never use the port wheel...the starboard seems ok. I admit i never greased and lubrificated the top chain, but only the lower chain. Now that i know how to access it i will do it regularly. I have to decide if i am going to buy a complete wire+chain link or just a motorbike chain cut to the right length. Anybody has experience on this? do you suggest me to contact lewmar, boatoon or somebody else for a rapid solution?