Seastar Hydraulic Steering Leaking

[poundalead]

Just wondering if anyone can shed some light on the problem I have encountered with the seastar setup on my c/console. About 4 weeks ago I noticed that there was oil leaking out of the bottom screw at the front of the helm ( behind the steering wheel), so when I got home I pulled it apart and took the plate seal off and replaced the rubber O ring (thinking that this was the problem). Unfortunately this made the leak worse next time I took it out. Not wanting to mess around with it anymore I took it to a boat mechanic who told me if the hydraulic oil is leaking past the O ring the shaft is probably stuffed and I will need a new pump ($780)as it can't be fixed. My question being is there any way to fix the problem or could it (hopefully) be something more simple than what was diagnosed. Any help would be greatly appreciated as I am no expert.....
Cheers Benny

[leezor]

Hey Benny, if the shaft is damaged where the o-ring seats it might be worth seeing if it can be sleeved. A stainless sleeve would be a much cheaper alternative than a new pump.

Cheers,

Lee

[poundalead]

Thanks mate, Just got off the phone to the F In-Law. He said the same thing being an escavator operator he has problems with hydraulics all the time and said re-sleaving could be an option. I even thought about a generous dob of sikaflex!!! Any more thoughts are much appreciated