Autopilots

[Billy V]

It sounds like my old Raytheon autopilot has officially died and I'll need to start thinking about a replacement. What little research I've done leads me to think that it's probably going to have to be either a Raymarine or a Simrad. I have twin inboards with hydraulic steering. Anyone have any insight into one or the other of these AP's? Is there another brand that I should be considering?

Thanks!

[Valinote]

I've been using the Raymarine S1000 on my 30' Baha w/ twin inboards for 2 years now and love it. Most difficult part of the installation was changing the boat from cable to hydraulic steering. Price was right at <$1K, and it does everything I need for fishing. Wireless is great as it allows you to steer the boat to port or starboard when you're attempting to net a fish. The main advantage of autopiloting off the GPS instead of a fluxgate for a twin engine boat is that there's no rudder feedback sensor to get confused when you troll off just one engine. When you shut off one engine, the S1000 just compensates to keep you on course regardless of the position or your rudder. Same thing when you throw out the trolling bags. With the latest firmware upgrade I can troll down to ~1.5 mph without it losing course. Although the Autolearn feature does a good job of setting the autopilot parameters, I tweaked some of them manually to get a little better trolling performance in wind and waves. Pretty easy to change from the remote when you're on the water. Overall it's the most significant change I've made to my boat. Not sure how I ever fished without it before. Good luck shopping and kindest regards.

-Steve D

[Fishtails]

Bill,

I am in the same market and while speaking to Kevin Jerge @ Wilson Boatyard last month he suggested I consider the new Raymarine x series smartpilot. It's scheduled to hit the market sometime in July 08. I still have not really looked into it very deeply yet, but you may want to at least investigate it a bit. If you don't mind, keep us informed as to what you learn/purchase....I'll be interested in the outcome.

[Rich D]

Billy and Rod,

I would give Jim at BOE a call, he sells large numbers of units each year. He can give you a side by side comparison between units. JMHO, When I am in the market, that is where I will be going. Good Luck, let us know how it goes.

Rich

[Billy V]

Steve,

In looking at the Raymarine website, it says that the S1000 is for boats up to 25' long. I know that you run a bigger boat than that and I'm wondering if you've had any issues with that unit on a heavier boat. In talking to Hank (L&M) after he diagnosed my old AP as being dead he indicated that if I went with a Raymarine that I could use some of the old Raytheon parts that are already on the boat and that it should be a relatively simple installation given that the parts are interchangeable. I'm already running hydraulic steering so that's not a concern. Also, will the S1000 interface with my new Humminbird GPS or is it designed to work only with another Raymarine product?

Thanks again.

[Yankee Clipper]

Bill, my boat is only 22' so I can't comment on how it would handle a larger boat. But as for working with other GPS units - I have a Lowrance and it interfacesdwith it just fine. Its compatable with SeaTalk or any unit NEMA 0183 standards. The wirless contol is great and while I know that there needs to be someone at the helm for safety reasons I would think it would allow you to interact more with clients knowing you could make course correctiosn if needed from the back of the boat.

[Valinote]

I spoke to someone in customer service at RM before I installed my S1000. They told my it's not really the length of the boat that matters, but the capacity of the ram on the hydraulic steering. My ram is an SeaStar HC5312 which is about 118cc.; and the S1000 is rated to work with rams from 80 to 120cc; so 2 years of hard use in all weather conditions and no problems yet.

Raymarine provides either a DB9 connector or bare wires to make your own NMEA 0183 interface. I made my own adapter cable to go to my old school 1995 Raytheon V-850 and it worked fine. Now, I just bought a Lowrance LXC-113cHD and before I install it I will be cutting and soldering up a new cable to work with that.

As far as the slow trolling issues and the "Crazy Ivan" complaints, I haven't had any issues since Raymarine upgraded my software (for free). The age of the GPS can also a factor if you don't have control of the NMEA refresh rate and enable the correct sentences.

I may someday upgrade to a fancier AP, but until they provide the option to turn off the rudder feedback when trolling off a single screw on a twin engine boat, I'll stick with what I have. Especially since $$$ was right too!

-Steve D

[Billy V]

Thanks for sharing your experiences with that unit Steve. My research continues...

[coup]

What did you end up with for an auto pilot and how does it work?

[Billy V]

I FINALLY ordered a Raymarine ST6002 and it came to the house today. I'll install it over the winter and report on how it works in the spring.