Seastar Hydraulic Seals/Gland replacement

[JoseWorks]

I have a 1986 20c Mako boat with a 200 HP 2000 Yamaha Saltwater series OX66. When I bought it, it had a Seastar hydraulic steering.

Fast forward some years of use and now it's leaking oil through the seals in the piston. I don't know the model because the stickers have faded. I got the somewhat expensive tool from Marinetech to extract the support brackets. I also ask around between vendors, and they recommended buying the seal kit HS5157. That one comes with a wrench for the pins in the piston caps.

The issue that I am having is that my hydraulic piston caps have no pin holes, or for that effect, no markings whatsoever. All they had was a circlip inside the edge of the piston, which I already took out. But I have no idea whatsoever how to take out the old caps. I noticed that at the end of the main rod, there are two (maybe threaded inside?) holes. I have already sunk a lot of money on other repairs, hence I am avoiding buying a new steering unit.
Attaching some pics, any suggestion would be greatly appreciated!

[hectorsn]

That cylinder may be too old to be serviceable. I put new seals on mine and just months later I was replacing the entire cylinder so it just may serve you well to forego that exercise and replace the cylinder now.

Wish I could be of more help. Attaching a pic to try and get you to laugh, or at least not want to cry. Don't worry, you're not alone. My boat has stopped working for hundreds and now only works for thousands.

[JoseWorks]

Thank you hectorsn! Much appreciated. Good to know about the cylinder. That Tshirt is hilarious, I got a good laugh out of it.
So:
option 1 - Put everything back very carefully in case it disintegrates. And Sail around with 2 bottles of steering oil.
option 2 - Bite the stripper, I meant the cylinder, I meant the bullet.
I wonder if there is any way to find a compatible cylinder with the rest of the stuff that I have.

Thank you again,

Jose

[hectorsn]

You should be able to find a new replacement for that cylinder easily but they are not cheap from seastar. It should be the hc5345. There are knock-products for less than $300 all over the net. A neighbor of mine said he went the knock-off route and has been happy with the result.

Your other option is to take the cylinder to a hydraulic repair shop and see if they can do something with it. You could try that first if you're inclined to replacing it anyhow.