Should you grease the slide portion of the steering cable that attaches to the rudder

[dkimball]

Should you grease the slide portion of the steering cable that attached to the rudder? I was going to install a new cable this weekend but after getting access to the rudder and cable and reviewing the area of cable that slides in the sleeve I noticed a little bit of dirty/grime. It was a small amount and I was able to clean it off and it does seem like it helped a bit on the smoothness of the cable, I also greased the rudder. My question is should I put grease on the slide portion of the cable? It doesn't appear that there was any there before.

[bturner]

I do as part of my winterization process. Clean with a rag with WD-40 then put a very light coat of marine grease.

[JayG80]

At the end of use, turn the steering wheel all the way to the right. Minimizing cable exposure in the stern.

[charlesml3]

No harm in greasing it and it may help some. However if the cable is already causing really stiff steering then greasing this is unlikely to fix it.

-Charles