[C320-list] Auto Pilot - Wheel vs. Direct Drive

[Jeffrey Brown]

Thanks Lew. I actually contacted him and bought some new rollers and a belt but now the issue is something electronic, maybe the gyro/compass down below, it randomly decides to take a 100 degree turn, the lever also falls down frequently, two of the screw holes that hold the rollers are broken, etc.  It’s time for an upgrade at this point, no point in fixing it when I will eventually need to replace it anyway.  Thanks again for the advice.

> On Nov 6, 2015, at 10:13 AM, sailorlew at aol.com wrote:
> 
> You may want to try this man who repairs Autohelms. He fixed my friends for $50.
> Lew
> 
> Mates-I just had my ST 4000+ wheel autopilot  control head which Raymarine no
> longer services repaired by Dan Gerhardt who was mentioned a few months ago by a
> fellow C320 owner on this site. Costs vary with the amount of work and my repair
> was a lot less than what Raymarine charged the last time this unit was repaired
> 6 years ago.  He turned it around in a few days and it is running fine with all
> the original settings intact.  His contact info is  c250 at mydurango.net.  He is
> out of that great sailing community of Durango CO!  He also buys and sells
> autopilots and services autopilots from Raymarine, Raytheon and Autohelm. He
> told me he has done other instrument repair but with varied success.  Advise
> dropping him a note if you have an autopilot repair need for cost and shipping
> information.  I don’t know if he does autopilot repairs for units that Raymarine
> still services.  
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Graeme Clark <cg at skyflyer.co.uk>
> To: C320-List <C320-List at Catalina320.com>
> Sent: Fri, Nov 6, 2015 12:49 pm
> Subject: Re: [C320-list] Auto Pilot - Wheel vs. Direct Drive
> 
> 
> Jeff
> 
> I guess it depends on how much you can do yourself and whether you want
> to use off the shelf parts.
> 
> I have had nothing but trouble from wheel pilots.
> I’m going for a linear drive now. MY wife and I tend to sail two handed most of
> the time and we’ve realised that the only way we are going to make longer
> passages and start going places , is if we bite the bullet and get a decent
> installation.  Things will only get worse as we age, too!
> 
> I have just
> purchased the Raymarine EVO200 with Type 1 linear drive. Other members here can
> supply some great photos of their installations.
> 
> The thing about the
> raymarine SeatalkNG is that it really is plug and play, so my plan is to do all
> the wiring myself, and only use a professional installer (if I absolutely have
> to) to fit the linear drive. However, knowing exactly where it needs to go etc
> means that  - thanks to the association members here - its not (or shouldn't be)
> the big worry that it would if you were starting a new installation from
> scratch!
> 
> You can buy ready made parts from Catalina Direct or have them made
> up by your local machine shop.
> 
> Certainly there might be some interfacing
> issues if you have older instruments (e.g. windspeed and direction) but thats
> going to apply no matter what a/p you fit.
> 
> Graeme
> #366, Jaskar,
> England
> 
> 
> 
> 
> On 6 Nov 2015, at 17:32, Jeffrey Brown <oceanblues at mac.com>
> wrote:
> 
>> I know this topic has been discussed dozens of times but wanted to
> throw it out there again. There is a significant additional cost to install the
> direct drive autopilot vs. the wheel pilot. I’ve heard the additional install
> cost can range from $1500 to $2500.  For those of you that did go this route and
> had previously used the wheel pilot, was it worth the extra cost? I’ve used the
> wheel pilot for years, and for the most part it has worked well, until it began
> to lose it's mind recently taking random turns which is causing me to replace it
> this year, its the original, 20 years old.
>> 
>> Jeff Brown
>> "Out of the
> blue" Dana Point, CA
>> Catalina 320, Hull 78
>> (949) 350-5123
>> 
> oceanblues at mac.com
>> 
>> 
>> 
>> 
>> 
> 
> 
>