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I am considering installing a Lewmar 32" folding wheel on my 2005 M. I thought I saw some commentary on this idea on another post. Has anyone actually installed one and are they happy with it?

we looked at the folding helm, but after all is done, approx a thousand boat bucks will go out seems a 26" edson is financially palatable, and has the proper look and leverage. don't know of anyone with the folding installed. of course, if you go ahead, the rest of world would like to know. Alice and Stew, "THE RESTLESS TWO"

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I have a new Lewmar 32" suede-wrapped folding wheel, but I've elected not to use it.
PM if interested.

Bear in mind that you really need to change the Mac's steering hub to plumb-vertical or the wheel won't look right. The factory sets the hub at an angle, maybe ~15*. I also have the vertical mounting kit & bezel for the U-flex planetary steering hub.

Finally, also bear in mind that a 32-inch wheel vastly exceeds the torque these small steering hubs are designed for. If you mount a large wheel you must always remember that it can easily overwhelm the hub. I feel it's advisable to choose the planetary hub when mounting a large wheel. Some of the reasons are quoted below.

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(Click photo = pyacht's catalog) . . . . . . . . . . (Click photo = U-flex page)

Ultraflex mechanical steering helms T71 FC, T73 NRFC as well as their dual cable versions and tilt wheel versions use a Planetary Gear Design. A Planetary Gear Design has three satellite gears that rotate on their axis and at the same time rotate around the central helm axis. This allows for equal distribution of engine torque over three points of the central gear, dividing and balancing the system loads. The benefits of this special design are increased system longevity, increased efficiency and less engine feedback compared to single pinion gear helms.

Thanks, everyone. I appreciate the input. I'll let you know if I go for it.
(FrankC I'll contact you if I get serious about it)

Check the past mods section
I love mine.

So how does anyone with a wheel larger than the OEM negotiate their bodies around it...??? I have seen the 18" wheel installed on another's boat and it looks and operates just fine but they are smaller in stature so it is not a problem. I have a hard enough time with the 15" wheel and even though I'd like the 18" I am hesitant because I already struggle to get around it. I also saw someone put a big 24" wheel on but then could not raise the seats up all the way because they hit the wheel. They also had to climb over the seats to move forward from the helm or to enter from the stern. Seems like a lot of hassle involved just for the asthetics of a larger wheel. Are they really that cool?

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Can't comment about the M. I have a 22" wheel on my X. You can see it here.

You can't just sneak past it as it hangs past the edge of the seats, but I just grab the grab bar and swing around the pedestal. It's really no problem. This is I believe about the biggest I could actually swing past. Any larger and I'd have to climb on to the seat to get past it.

I wanted the biggest wheel possible because I normally sail while sitting half sideways on the windward seat, and as far forward as possible. I can reach this one while sitting slightly forward of the pedestal with my back against the gunnel.

The folding Lewmar is a seriously nice wheel but way too expensive for my taste. But the folding feature can only reasonably be used when you're not actually trying to steer the boat. And, even when folded it's going to be in the way on a boat the size of the Mac. If I were looking for more room in the cockpit when at the dock or anchored, I would consider instead a larger conventional wheel with a quick release hub.

Added later on edit: As Eric says a larger wheel definitiely provides more accuracy and sensitivity, but also enough additional leverage to break something in the steering system if you're not careful. In fact there's a warning on the steering unit you can't see until you get the old wheel off which says words to the effect "Don't use a wheel larger than 16". I'm careful with mine and so far so good.

BTW, I still have the original Detmar R&P steering now going on eight years since new, and for which I have been receiving dire warnings of imminent, catastrophic failure for at least the past five years.

To paraphrase Crocodile Dundee's observation on knives:
32 inches --- you call that a wheel? THIS is a wheel!

How'd you get that to fit between the cockpit seats? Is that an M or an X?

parrothead wrote:To paraphrase Crocodile Dundee's observation on knives:
32 inches --- you call that a wheel? THIS is a wheel!

I think he brought aboard a king size bed headboard, and the Admiral is sitting there saying--I told you it wouldnt fit past the sliding hatch on our Mac-X (the back stay in the pic proves its an X)
eh...anyway, that's what it looks like

Is that an M or an X?

Actually, it's not on a Mac at all - that photo was taken on a Farr 40 we were sailing while visiting St. Thomas in December.

But you have to admit that it IS a WHEEL.

Ive seen some of those Farr 40s....Farr away receding over my transom as my white hulled sails away....