Info. on Auto Pilot and installation on Baystar Steering

[huntcaribou]

Looking for info. on or if anyone has Auto pilot installed on  a boat with Baystar Hydraulic Steering.

Most of the auto Pilot companies tell me it can't be done unless it's on  a Seastar Hydraulic unit.

Help?

[lost a lure]

Contact Seastar

 

[Brian S]

I did it on my Lund. I did however upgrade the rigid plastic baystar hydraulic tubing with the seastar hoses. Easier to work with and actually according to teleflex seastar( who also makes baystar) the better hoses improve steering response even more.

Anyway the baystar cylinder is just a bit smaller displacement but should work fine with most hydraulic autopilots. I ran the raymarine evo-100 with it. Worked awesome.

Sent from my SM-G975U using Lake Ontario United mobile app

[huntcaribou]

Thank you for your response, Do you have info. on those hoses  as far as the inside Dia., etc.

 

I heard that was the way to go. .Hate to be a pain in the ass but where on your boat did you mount the

different units of the system and do the hoses fit the baystar or are they a different size.

 

[Brian S]

I.D. of all seastar hoses I think are the same but I'm not 100% certain. The ends of the seastar hoses(swivel nuts) should attach right to your baystar steering cylinder and the existing ORB fittings coming out of your baystar helm where the baystar tubing hooks up right now. You need to get the length right though when ordering because you can't shorten or lengthen them and they aren't cheap.

I mounted the hydraulic pump, network backbone, and course computer under the driver console and the heading sensor/compass inside the in floor rod locker where I had additional space. The AP pump will have additional lines plumbed from your helm into it so that will be a factor in deciding where to mount it.

Tons of great information on Seastar's website to read through on adding an AP to their system. If you plan on doing the hose retrofit and an AP yourself, I would recommend doing it all at once. Unhooking fittings and hoses makes a mess, plus you'll only have to bleed it once.

When I did mine, I orginally converted the boat from cable steering to Baystar ( should have went straight to a Seastar kit). Then I upgraded the nylon tubing from the Baystar kit to Seastar hoses. Then I added an autopilot. And finally I moved the autopilot to a different boat. Yeah, I like playing in hydraulic oil.........

Thank you for your response, Do you have info. on those hoses  as far as the inside Dia., etc.
 
I heard that was the way to go. .Hate to be a pain in the ass but where on your boat did you mount the
different units of the system and do the hoses fit the baystar or are they a different size.
 

Sent from my SM-G975U using Lake Ontario United mobile app

[huntcaribou]

Thank you very much, Big help.

[stinger]

My Raymarine Sportpilot x5 drive head crapped out. Raymarine said they will not repair them any longer. I have BayStar steering and was thinking of using the Raymarine Ev-100 Power Evolution Autopilot as a replacement . My BayStar system has the stiff hoses so is there a problem using the hoses that the unit came with or is it necessary to change the hoses?  Also were would I get the additional hoses needed that would go to the pump from the helm?