Steering wheel turning to the right when trimmed down far?

[jh321]

When my outboard (a suzuki 140) is trimmed all the way down and I let go of the steering wheel, it'll spin the wheel to the right. The more I trim it up, the slower it spins it and at a certain point it stops. Is this normal and do to the small side fin that balances the forces created due to the spinning of the prop? It is just slightly annoying because if I leave the wheel it sure doesn't stay straight ahead

[jyasaki]

That's what the trim tab is for. It's a tradeoff, as it doesn't adjust for varying speed, but it is there to counter prop torque, which is generally felt more at lower speeds (as there is less rudder effect from the lower unit.)

If the wheel goes right, I think you want the tab turned clockwise (looking from the bottom of the tab.) No guarantees; I've had a few beers. Bottom line: try one way, and if it's worse, go the other.

Luck;

jky

[joakimhansson]

Hydraulic steering is the solution.

[Erin]

Its' normal to find a poorly trimmed engine will cause the boat to veer in one direction. When you have the boat trimmed best, this will be least noticed. The trim tab will also help so may need a little bit of adjustment too, but it won't fully resolve the problem if you're trimmed too far in or out.