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Catalina/Capri 25/250 Sailor's Forums

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Navico Tillerpilot 2500

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delliottg
Former Mainsheet C250 Tech Editor

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USA
4479 Posts

Initially Posted - 01/19/2007 : 00:27:23

Does anyone have any experience with this auto pilot? I'm taking a look at one tomorrow and would like to know what you think about them? I know it's a pretty basic unit.

David
C-250 Mainsheet Editor

Sirius Lepak
1997 C-250 WK TR #271 --Seattle area Port Captain --

Edited by - on

sweetcraft
Admiral

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USA
816 Posts

Response Posted - 01/19/2007 : 05:54:15

I have had an Autohelm for years and it has made sailing safer for me. Installed from the tiller to the coaming and not the hatch cover. Used a 5" extension and ran the power cord into the hatch to a plug-in just back under the edge protected from direct exposure. This is an older model Autohelm and has a two wire cord which made for an easy install and only had to drill two holes, one in the tiller and the other into the coaming. Yes it is on the same side as the outboard but I have learned to adapt by quickly putting the Autohelm on standby, lifting it off, setting it on the cockpit floor and doing what ever I have to do and then setting it back in place without unpluging it and pushing the auto button and continuing the cruise. The Navico Tillerpilot, being newer, must have addition features which make it even easier to use. I feel safer as I can observe the water easier all around me and not be distracted by running the helm myself. With any autohelm don't get careless and leave the station without an observer, lots of stories where the boat goes aground or into an obstruction with the unit working perfectly. Hope you get a good price.

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tinob
Master Marine Consultant

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USA
1883 Posts

Response Posted - 01/19/2007 : 07:47:08

David,

I second much of what Jim has said especially the last two sentences.

Which remind me of a post some years ago in which the pilot of a catalina 25 equipped with an auto-helm stated ," I switch it on and go below for a nap". And this was on one of the great lakes. Made my skin crawl.

Val on the hard DAGNABIT, # 3936, Patchogue, N.Y.

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djn
Master Marine Consultant

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USA
1561 Posts

Response Posted - 01/19/2007 : 08:00:15

Hi Val, that is how all the Great Lakes Single Handed Sailer do it. When you are sailing for 80 hours straight by yourself, you set the helm and go below and nap for twenty minites.....fun stuff. Cheers.

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delliottg
Former Mainsheet C250 Tech Editor

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USA
4479 Posts

Response Posted - 01/19/2007 : 10:52:44

Thanks for the advice guys. Does anyone have an idea of a fair price for it?

Edited by - on

dlucier
Master Marine Consultant

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Virgin Islands (United Kingdom)
7583 Posts

Response Posted - 01/19/2007 : 13:21:43

A new Simrad TP10 tillerpilot is around $300.00.

Are you looking at a used unit?

As for sleeping at the wheel, I take the occasional catnap while on autopilot, sometimes inadvertently.

I do this when in open water and when I'm no where near the shipping channels. I once attended a seminar that covered sleeping underway while singlehanding.

Edited by - on

sweetcraft
Admiral

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USA
816 Posts

Response Posted - 01/19/2007 : 21:26:12

Is that when you have your anti collision light on and the quaritine flag up too? Our rule is no beer for lunch on those long legs.

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delliottg
Former Mainsheet C250 Tech Editor

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USA
4479 Posts

Response Posted - 01/20/2007 : 21:11:15

So I talked the guy down to $50 for it. Now I'm trying to figure out how to make it work (or even <i>if</i> it works, he swore it does). I managed to blow the fuse the first time I tried to test it, and then it took me nearly a dozen shops before I found a replacement fuse (bought four, all they had). Is there anyone familiar with British or Navico wiring conventions? There's a blue and sort of an orange-ish wire. It looks like it actually told you which was which right on the cord, but the lettering is worn off right where the "=" is on both rows, so it calls out the colors of the wires, but not the polarity. I'm guessing blue is ground and the orange-ish one is power, but if anyone knows I'd rather not be blowing more fuses than I have to simply to figure out which way to hook it up. Does anyone have a manual for one of these that they could photocopy for me?

Edited by - delliottg on 01/20/2007 21:13:03

tinob
Master Marine Consultant

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USA
1883 Posts

Response Posted - 01/21/2007 : 10:12:36

Dennis, if that is so, such seamanship is tantamount to being suicidal, and I think the ramifications of such behavior is obvious.

In the sixty odd years that I've been sailing I've come across one instance of a ship without helm watch and he was on a collision course with me. I think it might have been a case of big boat/ small boat, with me being in the small boat, but this sailor set a course( port tack ) across my (starboard tack ) course and then went below, perhaps to nap. Perhaps he had his sailing up bringing on the Great Lakes, though I think not.

Val on the hard DAGNABIT, # 3936, Patchogue, N.Y.

Edited by - on

dlucier
Master Marine Consultant

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Virgin Islands (United Kingdom)
7583 Posts

Response Posted - 01/21/2007 : 12:07:22

Speaking of sleeping onboard, yesterday my Cruising World arrived in the mail and in it is a lengthy article about sleep and safety.

Edited by - on

delliottg
Former Mainsheet C250 Tech Editor

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USA
4479 Posts

Response Posted - 01/21/2007 : 23:36:54

Well, the 50/50/90 rule held true while trying to figure out which wire was which, so I only blew one more fuse. Now I need to figure out how to attach it to the tiller and the cockpit. Do you attach it so that when the tiller's centered, it's at the middle of it's throw? That makes sense to me, so it has the maximum amount of movement in both directions to make course corrections. I also presume it must be mounted on some sort of pivot so you can immediately disconnect it if it's trying to drive the boat into something you'd just as soon it didn't.

Does anyone have a similar autopilot with photos so I can get an idea? Specifically how is it attached to the tiller? It's got about a 6mm hole in the end of the push rod that could connect to a pin coming out of the top of the tiller. I'm thinking a nylon pin with a bronze bushing or something along those lines.

(edit)
I found the install by Gary Norgan (GNorgan), which has helpful pictures. Gary if you're reading this, can you tell me if the ball joint pin that attaches the autopilot to your tiller bracket (third photo down) is something you made, or did it come with the unit? This is what I've been looking for in various stores, the closest I've found is the nylon pin I mentioned earlier. I suppose I could always turn one on my lathe as well.

Edited by - delliottg on 01/21/2007 23:50:57

dlucier
Master Marine Consultant

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Virgin Islands (United Kingdom)
7583 Posts

Response Posted - 01/22/2007 : 09:19:07

Maybe you can glean some info from the TP100 Manual.

[url="http://www.simradusa.net/index.php?option=com_docman&task=doc_details&gid=322"] TP 100 Manual[/url]

Edited by - on

delliottg
Former Mainsheet C250 Tech Editor

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USA
4479 Posts

Response Posted - 01/22/2007 : 13:50:28

Don,
Thanks, you got me pointed in the right direction. I searched Simrad's pages earlier but didn't find anything. I did a few more Google searches and noticed that the 2500 was frequently lumped in with the 1600. I went back to Simrad's page, looked for the 1600 instead of the 2500 and found the manual for both. Here's the URL: [url="http://www.simradusa.net/index.php?option=com_docman&task=doc_download&gid=323"]Navico Tillerpilot 2500[/url]

You will have to navigate to the Tillerpilot 1600 entry on the next page, I couldn't get the page actual download page to show up.

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The Officers, Staff and members of this site only provide information based upon the concept that anyone utilizing this information does so at their own risk and holds harmless all contributors to this site.