can't &^% win...

[zelatore]

I finally got around to finishing my Zieger steering install today. Everything's installed and now it's time to bleed. Talked Michele into sitting in the boat and cranking on the wheel forever while I run around opening fittings and topping up the oil. First cylinder goes OK. But on the second, I hear air escaping....from the AN fitting at the transom. :mad:

Pulled it apart and found a crack in the fitting. Now where do you think a guy is going to find a stainless -6 AN fitting at 3:00 on a Saturday afternoon?

I was hoping to get it all buttoned up then run it next week. Now it looks like I'm SOL until I can mail-order a fitting, install it, and corral somebody to come help me bleed the system. Michele gave me some lame excuse about not being able to help me with the boat next week because she's going to Rome.

Geez- anything to get out of working in the garage....

The real joy is this isn’t even a fitting I installed; it’s on one of the short hoses that came pre-assembled.

Heck, if CP Performance was open today, I’d have driven the 50 +/- miles to their location to pick one up just to get the job done this weekend!

[zelatore]

Again he asks himself 'how hard can it be'

And again, the answer is 'much harder than it should be'.

I've called every disty I can think of and either they're closed or don't have a S/S -6 AN fitting in stock.

Poodle - if you're sure they've got 'em, let's have the number! I'm willing to drop ship all the way across the country if I have to at this point!

:bonk::bonk::bonk:

[BlownCrewCab]

Any hose/fitting supply store should be able to make you a hose to get you through till you can have a nice stainless one made, if you don't mind running a temporary hose it's no big deal. When the boats in the water nobody will see it anyway..

[BUIZILLA]

how's about posting of pic of this fitting...

sounds stupid... but...

[zelatore]

Well, my local aeroquip vendor called back and said he can get them - $75 ea and it will take 2 days. That's about .... oh ... double the going rate.

I won't be back to the boat to take a pic of it unit it's too late. I can find plenty of pics of them in assembled, but none showing them taken apart. It's a 3-piece assembly; the outer fitting that screws (reverse thread) onto the hose end, and the inner sleave that gets threaded into the hose with a flare on the end that captures the nut that in turn secures the assembled part to the bulkhead fitting.

You can't really see much in this pic, but basically any of the pre-assembled hoses here have the same fitting.

[zelatore]

Any hose/fitting supply store should be able to make you a hose to get you through till you can have a nice stainless one made, if you don't mind running a temporary hose it's no big deal. When the boats in the water nobody will see it anyway..

I'm thinking I may do this. I can pick up a non stainless fitting today or tomorrow locally, then order a stainless one to install later. Bummer is, if it was someplace you couldn't see like under the helm I wouldn't mind. But this is at the transom, so it's right out in the open. that means I'll have to pull it off re-blead the system when I replace it.

[BUIZILLA]

what's the Aeroquip part # ??

I was there today picking up some stuff, I can go back tomorrow if need be...

[Mr X]

I have a few of them in my box of emergency spares...all of them are from Latham and are chrome plated......are you sure yours are stainless?
I would be happy to overnight one to you.

[zelatore]

Call Zeiger direct, have them send you a new hose...
I gave them a call right after learning that CP was out of stock. They're closed until after the holidays and can't help right now.

In order to stop stressing about it I'm going to just put a non stainless fitting on for now and replace it later.

On a positive note I just wrote this whole post from my iphone...which means I'm slowly figuring out how to use the thing.

[Air 22]

Call Zeiger direct, have them send you a new hose...
ZEIGER sent me the same part on a Friday overnight SAT Delivery...no qestions asked...I have some spare fittings if its the same type as mine if u'd like one? I bought a few spares...rememeber those fittings only need be hand tight...if u crank on it u will crack the HP fitting...ask me how I know this...lol:bonk:
Here is a pic to see if the fittings match...

[zelatore]

I picked up a standard brass fitting at the local shop - below are a couple pics of it assembled and exploded.

When I pulled the old one apart I looked at the brass insert and compared it to the insert from the new part. Hmmm....looks awfully similar. So I've put it back together with the s/s outer parts and only using the new brass insert from the fitting I bought.

Now I just need to find an assistant to help me bleed the thing so I can see if my fix worked.

I also shot a pic of the cracked original brass insert (after 10 attempts to get the camera to focus on the thing)