Auto pilot preference

[CaptSpike]

After having carpal tunnel for months after my two week troll on Ontario last yr I got to thinking about adding an autopilot to the boat. I have a few questions for those that already have it.

What brands/models are good?

I own a 18' Lund so I'm guessing the cheaper smaller units would be fine. I found this unit on a search and like some of the features: RAYMARINE

SmartPilot S1000. The price is reasonable too.

Next question is how easy are they to install?

I am mechanically inclined and usually perform my own work on my boats. I have just never dealt with an autopilot before. Radars, fish finders, gps's and such but not an AP.

Do they work at slower speeds? I sometimes troll as slow as 1.5mph (locally).

If anyone has any good (or bad) to say about a unit that would work on my size boat please give me some info.

Thanks,

Spike

[holy mackerel]

Check out octopus marine. They are selling the old simrad ap12 design (very good unit). I believe Defender marine can also help. I have not heard anything good about the Raymarine smartpilot. If you have mechanical (cable) steering, you are very limited.

[Don Supon]

I use a Garmin TR1 Gold on my 18' Lund. A fantastic unit! Will troll at any slow speed if wind and waves don't overpower the motor rpm. If they do, press a button on the remote and incrementally increase it until you have the engine speed needed.

You will be able to self install. You won't need the wireless remote, just use the included remote with an 18 ' cable.

It uses it's own hydraulic pump.

Price close to $3000. Bought mine from trollingsolutions.com for $2600 two years ago. Check internet for other prices.

Unit can be programmed to do step turns (rt or lt), circles (rt or lt), clover leaf (rt or lt), MOB, zig zag, straight (forward or reverse), angled course course changes (predetermined), or simply press a button on the remote until pointed at target and boat will track in that direction until you change it again.

Included in my unit was a throttle actuator and motor specific steering unit. Made for motors up to 15 hp, uses a different model for larger outboards.

[CaptSpike]

My kicker is already tied into my main engine steering via ez-steer rod. I'm thinking I can just hook up an AP to the main engine and drive the kicker that way. I upgraded to hydraulic steering after the first yr without it. That was a big improvement. I'm now looking to go the next step with an AP since I do troll alot.

Spike

[Don Supon]

You want autopilot that controls your main motor, not kicker. Garmin and many other brands have what you want. Auto pilot for the main motor will then not be able to control rpm's on the kicker, only the main motor. You will need a method to control RPM's for the kicker to set the boat speed you want. That wouls require a seperate throttle control for the kicker or hand adjustment if you have a tiller handle outboard.

Now you can see the dilemma. Autopilots are extremely effective for controlled trolling, but are specific to engine sizes (HP).

[Iceman]

Garmin GHP-10

[CaptSpike]

You want autopilot that controls your main motor, not kicker. Garmin and many other brands have what you want. Auto pilot for the main motor will then not be able to control rpm's on the kicker, only the main motor. You will need a method to control RPM's for the kicker to set the boat speed you want. That wouls require a seperate throttle control for the kicker or hand adjustment if you have a tiller handle outboard.

Now you can see the dilemma. Autopilots are extremely effective for controlled trolling, but are specific to engine sizes (HP).

A light just went off in my head. I didn't think of how the AP integrates with the throttle. I was only concerned with correcting the boat course by the direction of the motor. I have a control king on the kicker and that is how I control the rpm of that motor. Would the AP be able to hook up without an integrated throttle control and work?

I did see on another forum how the Raymarine didn't do so well at slower troling speeds.

Thanks for the posts I'm starting to understand how the whole system works. I have used Ap on plenty of boats just never needed to think about hooking them up and what system is better.

Spike

[stinger]

Spike

I have the Sportpilot hooked up to my main and my kicker is connected with a connector rod http://www.cabelas.com/product/Boating/ ... t104602680 . Throttle is controlled with a TrollMaster.

It is not necessary for the AP to control the kicker throttle especially if you already have a Control King.

[mudflat]

The S1000 ap works ok but has some limitations. It does not use any heading sensor and works off the nema 0183 output from your GPS unit. When they first came out they would shut down if your speed dropped much below 2.5 mph then Raymarine came out with an updated software that improved my unit down to 1.7 mph. The new units are now suppose to work down to 1 knot. You still need to be going faster, 2.5-3 mph, to get the unit to engage at first then you can slow down ok.

The installation is fairly easy, the hydraulics just T into the lines coming off your helm and the wiring is hooked up to your GPS units nema output, an alarm horn, emergency shut off switch and a power supply. You need to mount a computer box and the pump which is a little noisy when it runs but is not unbearable. The wireless control works slick. There are better units available from Raymarine or Garmin but they will cost 2-3x as much, basically you're getting what you pay for and the S1000 is a lot better than not having any AP.

I would check with Jim at BOE Marine, he will give you good advice and sells all the different brands at great prices.