Installing a tillerpilot

[Thomas Ehmke]

Next season's major upgrade is going to be a tillerpilot. Practical Sailor just did an article on the Simrad and Raytheon (formerly Navico and Autohelm) tillerpilots, and the results seem to be too close to call. The models I'm considering are the Simrad TP30 and the Raytheon ST2000. The Mid-Winter Boat Show is coming to Cleveland in about two weeks and I want to go shopping with good information.Now to my questions. Which one is the best? Pretty tough, huh? Really, though, if you have a preference or if you've used either of these models, or use a tillerpilot at all, or if you have installation tips, or problems that I need to be aware of, I'd appreciate hearing from you. I want to use Phil's new Thread Tracker, so bring on the ideas.Thanks in Advance,Tom

[Don Evans]

I asked the list about installing an aotopilot aboard my 25 some time ago. Here is a message from a Steve LaBroad, an 27 owner."I've had a tiller autopilot for the 15 years I've had my OD27. An Autohelm800 for about 13 of them (I sent it in for repair, they returned a box ofparts!) and a Autohelm 2000 for the last two.They both lay across the seat, perpendicular to the tiller (starboard side).The back (outer) end of the 2000 is 2 or 3 inches from my boat's coaming.It has a stainless connector that drops into a round brass socket. Youdrill a hole in your boat's seat, and epoxy the connector into the hole.They recommend you epoxy a thickness of marine ply to the underside of theseat and you drill the hole through the seat and into the marine ply. Irecommend you buy a forstner bit of the appropriate diameter as it willminimize splintering on the entrance side of the hole.You also drill a 1/4" hole in your tiller for the stainless pin that theother end of the autopilot attaches to. The hole must be vertical when thetiller handle is down. My autopilot is about 18" forward of the axis line of the tiller.I put the waterproof plug (included) on the starboard side of the footwellwhere I was unlikely to kick it.The unit is completely and easily removable.Current draw is for when it's working. If your sails are trimmed to give arelatively balanced helm, the tiller pilot won't work very much.Regards,Steve"-----Original Message-----From: Don Evans [mailto:EvansDo@ENE.GOV.ON.CA] Sent: Thursday, September 16, 1999 8:22 AMTo: oday-list@sailnet.com Subject: Re: autopilot -ReplyMorning Mike:I have given thoughts to installing a tiller pilot, like the AutohelmSt1000, orNavico TP100. The problem on the OD25 is the space it must take up.Does it lay across the seat, taking up a butt's worth of space? How haveyou physically attached the unit to your seat deck? Do you leave it out insight while at your mooring, or can it be easily disconnected when notaboard? How have you routed your power cable? The catalogues sayabout 1/2 an amp of power consumption. Is this your experience? Anyinsight from you or anyone else who has a tiller pilot, would beappreciated. Thanks.Don

[Ben Allen]

Hi Tom,Don's response is dead on. I installed a Raytheon ST1000 on my O'Day 26 just 2 months ago. Installation was straight forward and only took about an hour and a half, calibration, another hour. The two units are very similar with a few differences. They both have the autotack feature, this allows you to press a button or a combination of buttons to perform a 100 degree tack. I chose the Raytheon model because it shows the compass degree heading on the unit. This will give you your cross track error when compared to your main compass or GPS. Which ever unit you chose, you will wonder how you ever got by without one in the past.Ben AllenMontgomery, AL"Wahoo"O'Day 26