Problems with my paserrelle

[lanerboy]

Hi All

I have refitted the cooney passerelle to my boat and it works fine in the up and down motion BUT it is struggling to slew in and out, when I operate the slew out button the unit moves but very very slowly and the motor sounds different to when it goes up or down almost like it is trying to operate under extreme load

I spoke to some one who said it may be the bush in the top of the pedestal which may have swollen up and may be acting like a brake ?????? has anyone ever had any problems like this with this type of passerelle

The passerelle has been off the boat for about 18 months and stored in the previous owners garage below is a picture of the passerelle

 

[jfm]

Shawn it might be ok. For example it could have quite different "gearing" in slew mode. I would find out the mechanism principle ( rack n pinion or tiller arm). If tiller, just disconnect the ram and see if the bush runs free. If rack n pinion you may need to open tHe valves to check if the bushing is free. Then if the bush is jammed some oil might fix it. You need a heck of a jammed bushing to stop the hydraulic slew action

 

[P4Paul]

Check you haven't got a restrictor fitted in the slew feed or return pipes, they are often fitted to stop the hyd. ram moving too fast and the tender whipping about. It will normally be nothing more than a washer like disc placed in the fitting on one of the hydraulic pipes.

If there is one, try taking it out but be aware that the speed will be far, far quicker so make sure everyone is standing clear. You can drill out the hole in the centre of the restrictor a bit at a time until it gets to the right controlled speed. For obvious reasons, do not drill the hole out with the restrictor still in the pipe unless you want to replace the rest of the hydraulic components!

 

[lanerboy]

I know what you mean regards it slewing in and out slower but it hardly moves you have to push it at the same time to get it to move more than a few centimetres

I have been thinking about this and I don't think it will be the bush because we loosened one of the pipe fittings off to be able to get it back in again and it did push back to the boat manually so I think the bush sticking is less of the problem I now think it will be some thing to do with the power pack, we were not sure which pipe went onto which valve could this be the problem ????

I am happy with the up and down action this seems fine so would it cause a problem if the slew in and out pipes were the wrong way around

 

[P4Paul]

I know what you mean regards it slewing in and out slower but it hardly moves you have to push it at the same time to get it to move more than a few centimetres

I have been thinking about this and I don't think it will be the bush because we loosened one of the pipe fittings off to be able to get it back in again and it did push back to the boat manually so I think the bush sticking is less of the problem I now think it will be some thing to do with the power pack, we were not sure which pipe went onto which valve could this be the problem ????

I am happy with the up and down action this seems fine so would it cause a problem if the slew in and out pipes were the wrong way around

How many pipes go to the slew ram? Just two or were there three?

 

[lanerboy]

no just the 2 pipes Paul there are 4 in total up,down,in,out

 

[P4Paul]

no just the 2 pipes Paul there are 4 in total up,down,in,out

Ok, with the information to hand, at a guess you have the down direction pipe connected to the in or out direction slew. Bear in mind this is best guess diagnostics made while crashed out on the sunpad of
I take it that it lifts ok and drops ok? Have you had any weight hanging from it while it lowers?

 

[lanerboy]

Paul it seems fine when lifting and maybe a bit jerky when lowered when I take my finger of the button, and yes I have had my tender hanging from it whilst lowering it onto its chocks

If you are right in what you say and the pipes are connected up wrong would the paserrelle not just go up when it should slew out or maybe do down when it should slew in for instance

Also when I operate the left hand side button it goes up and down so I must have these pipes on the right way round ??????, but the switches are not marked up its the other switch the right hand one that does not seem to be doing anything hardly it works and the pump unit makes a noise but the paserrelle hardly moves

I don't have any detailed pictures of the switches but they are just 2 separate rocker switches you can just make them out in the picture below in the top right corner by the manual bilge pump

 

[Deleted User YDKXO]

Shawn it might be ok. For example it could have quite different "gearing" in slew mode. I would find out the mechanism principle ( rack n pinion or tiller arm). If tiller, just disconnect the ram and see if the bush runs free. If rack n pinion you may need to open tHe valves to check if the bushing is free. Then if the bush is jammed some oil might fix it. You need a heck of a jammed bushing to stop the hydraulic slew action

Good advice but it may just be as you say that the slewing mechanism is geared to operate slower which IMHO is a good thing. I have a Besenzoni slewing pasarelle on my boat which slews faster than the in/out and up/down movements which is positively dangerous so it could be that Cooney have deliberately engineered this in

 

[lanerboy]

Good advice but it may just be as you say that the slewing mechanism is geared to operate slower which IMHO is a good thing. I have a Besenzoni slewing pasarelle on my boat which slews faster than the in/out and up/down movements which is positively dangerous so it could be that Cooney have deliberately engineered this in

Mike its not this as it hardly moves by that I mean it moves about 1cm then stops and this takes about 5 seconds to achieve it will carry on moving if I push against it whilst the wife operates the buttons but its hard going

 

[Deleted User YDKXO]

Mike its not this as it hardly moves by that I mean it moves about 1cm then stops and this takes about 5 seconds to achieve it will carry on moving if I push against it whilst the wife operates the buttons but its hard going

Ah OK, in that case jfm's advice is good. Remove the hydraulic ram or hydraulic motor from the slewing mechanism and see how easy it is to move the pasarelle by hand. Try not to disconnect any hydraulic pipes because you'll get oil everywhere. Obviously if you can move the pasarelle easily, its a hydraulic problem

One common hydraulic problem is that you've got a sticking solenoid valve which is not moving across fully when actuated. If you can identify it, give it a gentle tap with a hammer to see if it will move. If that doesn't work, get a hydraulic engineer to look at the system!

 

[jfm]

Ah OK, in that case jfm's advice is good. Remove the hydraulic ram or hydraulic motor from the slewing mechanism and see how easy it is to move the pasarelle by hand. Try not to disconnect any hydraulic pipes because you'll get oil everywhere. Obviously if you can move the pasarelle easily, its a hydraulic problem

One common hydraulic problem is that you've got a sticking solenoid valve which is not moving across fully when actuated. If you can identify it, give it a gentle tap with a hammer to see if it will move. If that doesn't work, get a hydraulic engineer to look at the system!

Exactly. Work out if hydraulic or mechanical problem

If hydraulic, could be the valve or the solenoid actuator. Easy to replace either. Also you can dry swap the solenoid valve actuator with a neighbouring one to identify if that is the culprit. You can swap thr valve too but will have to deal with a bit of oil. Also worth checking the solenoid is receiving a good 24 or 12v supply

 

[lanerboy]

Ok thanks for all your help I will try what you say next time I go to the boat and report back

thanks

 

[Nick_H]

I used to have a Cooney slewing passarelle on my T46, looked exactly like yours, and iirc the slew action was always quite weak. There's obviously something wrong with yours, but if the action is weak anyway, it would only need a small added resistance, or reduction in hydraulic pressure to stop it altogether, so you may not be looking for something very significant.

 

[lanerboy]

Well I have had a company look at my paserrelle and they are scratching their heads as to what is wrong as they cannot figure out what the problem may be

Can anyone recommend a company that knows what they are doing with paserrelles who could take a look for me on the south coast as boat is in Weymouth

I did think about asking Pirtek in poole to have a look as they must deal with hydraulic stuff on tractors etc etc it cant be that much of a problem it just needs someone who knows about hydraulics I think

What would you do if it was you

 

[Deleted User YDKXO]

I did think about asking Pirtek in poole to have a look as they must deal with hydraulic stuff on tractors etc etc it cant be that much of a problem it just needs someone who knows about hydraulics I think

Not Pirtek. They just deal with replacing hydraulic hoses and fittings and sometimes they're not very good at that. I can't help you with names but what you need is a specialist hydraulic engineering company with travelling fitters. Perhaps a construction plant repair company might be able to help

 

[stelican]

passerelle

Well I have had a company look at my paserrelle and they are scratching their heads as to what is wrong as they cannot figure out what the problem may be

Can anyone recommend a company that knows what they are doing with paserrelles who could take a look for me on the south coast as boat is in Weymouth

I did think about asking Pirtek in poole to have a look as they must deal with hydraulic stuff on tractors etc etc it cant be that much of a problem it just needs someone who knows about hydraulics I think

What would you do if it was you

May be worth speaking to Marine Option Poole
They are agents for Passerelles, Think they do warranty work for (Optimare)

 

[lanerboy]

Latest update is I was at the boat on the weekend and I found the manual and traced all the pipes back from the paserrelle to the pump and discovered 2 pipes were the wrong way around so I changed this and then tried to operate the paserrelle and it seemed to work ok great I thought. I them played around with it for a while and it was working ok but then it started slowing down and then it would not come back into the boat unless I gave it a pull at the same time as the wife operating the switch.

So now it works great up and down still and it will slew out away from the boat but it will not come back in again, also if I put the slightest bit of pressure against the walkway then it stops the slew action straight away in either direction even when I thought all was fine

So my summary now is up and down is fine it will slew out but has no power if resisted and will not slew back in

Any ideas anyone

 

[CharlieAlpha]

So the fluid is pumped either side of a piston+seal to make it go one way or other so probably the seal has gone so the oil goes from one side of the piston to the other instead on exerting the pressure IMHO

 

[P4Paul]

Latest update is I was at the boat on the weekend and I found the manual and traced all the pipes back from the paserrelle to the pump and discovered 2 pipes were the wrong way around so I changed this and then tried to operate the paserrelle and it seemed to work ok great I thought. I them played around with it for a while and it was working ok but then it started slowing down and then it would not come back into the boat unless I gave it a pull at the same time as the wife operating the switch.

So now it works great up and down still and it will slew out away from the boat but it will not come back in again, also if I put the slightest bit of pressure against the walkway then it stops the slew action straight away in either direction even when I thought all was fine

So my summary now is up and down is fine it will slew out but has no power if resisted and will not slew back in

Any ideas anyone

I am glad you have made some progress, incorrect pipe connections was my guess from the outset so it was good to get an up-date.

How many times have you slewed it in and out because it sounds a bit like you have air in system? Again, from behind a keyboard it is hard to diagnose but I would slew it the full distance of the travel out and then back in fully a few times and see if it improves. You may have to wait a bit with your finger on the switch while the passeralle stays still until the air compresses and gets expelled but hopefully it will clear after four or five full movements.

A quick check for air in the system is to see if you can slew it by hand without pressing the switch at the same time, if you can move it and then it bounces back, you can be fairly sure there is air in the system. Not being able to move it however is not conclusive proof there isn't any air, just that you can't move it!

It could be the seal set in the ram leaking, equally it could be oil bypassing the spool in the directional control valve; you could try tying a rope to the end of the passeralle, slew it all the way out and then without pressing the switch, see if you can pull it back all the way to the park position. If you can pull it all the way back in and it remains in the home position on its own then either it is oil passing the spool within the directional control valve or the ram seal set leaking.

Hopefully it is air... :encouragement: