SOS from the Caribbean

[capta]

Hi all
We've been having a marvelous time cruising the Windward Islands this winter, but now we need your help.
Our autopilot has died on us & as the drive unit is probably from the 80's, parts are not available through normal sources.
We desperately need a SHARP Seapilot SDU2 drive unit (pictures attached). We need the POWERCLUTCH, so if the motor is no good, that would be fine.
I'm pretty sure that SOMEWHERE there is one of these units, on a shelf, way in the back, left over from someone's upgrade.
We have contacted the manufacturer of the POWERCLUTCH, in the UK, but they no longer manufacture a suitable replacement. Sharp Auto Pilots LTD is no longer in existence either.
If any of you has the time and energy to help us find one, we would certainly appreciate it.

 

[Rich Stidger]

I did a quick Google search and an eBay search and found this dealer in TX that has some Sharp autopilot stuff. He doesn't have the item you need listed on eBay, but maybe he has it on a back shelf- possibly with a bad motor and can't sell it.

If it were me I would send him an email and ask.

http://myworld.ebay.com/preownedboatstuff2004/

Good luck.

 

[jimmcgee]

Your best bet might be sourcing a used unit. Some places you might reach out to:

Sailorman in Florida: http://www.sailorman.com/
Bacon's in Annapolis; http://baconsails.com/
Fawcett's in Annapolis: http://www.fawcettboat.com/ (not used but lots of stock)
Sailboat Junkyard in California: http://sailboatjunkyard.com/

If you're in touch with Sharp you might ask for a list of distributors and start trying to track down someone who still has parts.

Another tack might be to see of you can buy a used auto pilot (non-Sharp) off something locally. I'm sure there are boats in the local yards that are abandoned.

Best of luck,
Jim

 

[tkanzler]

What exactly is wrong with the unit? If you've stripped a gears, or damaged or destroyed some critical part, it may be more cost effective to reverse engineer it and have a new one made. I do a lot of this for work, though it generally involves very large components (think lift bridge gears and machinery for scale) and other specialty components, and depending on what needs to be replaced or repaired, it may be the shortest path.

 

[capta]

What exactly is wrong with the unit? If you've stripped a gears, or damaged or destroyed some critical part, it may be more cost effective to reverse engineer it and have a new one made. I do a lot of this for work, though it generally involves very large components (think lift bridge gears and machinery for scale) and other specialty components, and depending on what needs to be replaced or repaired, it may be the shortest path.

Thanks for the reply.
There are no gears beyond the one shown. The Powerclutch (an electric clutch) has failed & as I said Powerclutch UK has no replacement, nor does any other company they contacted.
I may try to have the solenoid rewound, but here in the Caribbean?????????
I'm just hoping that with all the members on this site someone may know somebody who has a unit.
Thanks

 

[capta]

After much research we have determined that we can use any rotary drive unit w/ 4 wires; 2 for power to the motor, 2 to the electric clutch.
Therefor anyone having a rotary drive unit (drives a chain not an arm) from an autopilot that has a bad control head or computer, PLEASE contact us ASAP.
Thanks again for your help.
Andrew & Nikki

 

[capta]

Thanks Jim; sent emails to all suggested; it took several hours; internet down here SUCKS.
Actually emailed Chuck @ Sailorman several days ago, but he couldn't help in this case, but he's been a great friend & very helpful for over 30 years.
We'll keep our finger crossed; a new autopilot will sure blow the cruising budget!!!!

 

[Witzend]

If it is just your solenoid, and I'm assuming you have ohmed it out, (a good one should be ~5-30 OHMs depending on the number of windings and gauge of wire, bad one will probably read open)....
Then... is it possible to manual articulate the plunger to engage. Without seeing the unit not sure how the access would be, but maybe the solenoid's opened end can be pushed in with a short wooden dowel through and access hole you may need to drill in the case. Not sure how you would hold it engaged, duct tape, maybe something more fancy if you have enough junk aboard......need junk!!!

 

[capta]

once again

Once again, thanks for the responses.
But it is NOT a gears problem, nor a solenoid problem, etc.
For the third time, the electric clutch has failed & even the manufacturer of this clutch cannot supply one or recommend an alternative. Sharp, UK no longer exists, period!
The only alternative to many grand's worth of new autopilot is a 12 volt rotary drive motor unit of suitable size (over 50 feet or 25 tons) w/ 4 wires ONLY!
Internet down here really SUCKS, it's taken several hours to post this reply, so PLEASE read what I've written as all info needed is in my posts.
Among the many thousands of you all & your friends, there must be someone who's autopilot control unit or computer died & has a drive unit that will do???????????????????

 

[Witzend]

Thanks for the reply.
There are no gears beyond the one shown. The Powerclutch (an electric clutch) has failed & as I said Powerclutch UK has no replacement, nor does any other company they contacted.
I may try to have the solenoid rewound, but here in the Caribbean?????????

Just going on what you wrote.

 

[ASK]

We have a Sharp Seapilot installed on our boat, which is functioning well. However our drive-unit is the SDU1. Nevertheless since I had to repair it recently I know how it works (the working principle should be same with both drive-units) and may be of help. All components are well engineeried, very solid, and well documented. Most components can be repaired or reverse-engineered at modest cost. Actually, it's worth repairing such a high quality system, rather than buying something new, since modern systems are mostly of lower quality.
The clutch of the seapilot drive-unit is energised in 2-stages. Initially it receives a strong current pulse to force the gear to engage correctly. Then, once engaged, the control circuit reduces the current to a much lower value just sufficient to keep the plunger in position. If the circuitry is not working properly, and the initial high current value is applied for more than some second, the solenoid will overheat and melt.
In such case, You need to re-wind the solenoid (any car-electrician can do the job), but also check the correct functioning of the control circuit and eventually repair it (electronic components are all standard and available on the market)

 

[RobertLangdirect]

Manual (via Google) at

http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=...58&d=1295315813&ei=D8B9T8X5HIqE8ASmksXzDA&usg

 

[RobertLangdirect]

WITZEND, Can you tell ME, please, what this means?

. . . no gears beyond . . . shown. The Powerclutch (an electric clutch) has failed . . . in the Caribbean?????????

Just going on what you wrote.

So I get the BIG PICTURE but do not see -- what is the electric clutch? I pulled up a manual on the unit but do not see the part, per se.

If it were, for example, similar to the part on my washing machine, it would be an eletrically actuate friction clutch. That would beg, what failed, the electric actuation or the friction. As separate items, neither is that hard to fix.

Regarding the Caribbean, well, it may be harder to fix there but if we could know the problem, maybe it would then become easier to fix, eh?

Oh, Witend, I note, this was not your post to start with but I ask the question of you as I certainly do not understand this and in that light, you appeared to have some ideas on how to proceed. Thanks!

 

[capta]

Thank you all

We want to thank you very much all for your help & suggestions.
We have not resolved the problem, but now that we are back in the USVI, we have telephone & reliable internet so we are hoping to do so before we head south for the hurricane season.
Raymarine has a type 2 rotary drive unit which may work, but their customer service tech really was very little help. After 5 emails (sometimes it took hours to send an email down island), he finally stated that the type 2 does operate on 4 wires; amazing! But my question regarding the horsepower of the motor they use in the type2 remains unanswered. Even though the specifications rate the unit @ 7 amps, this tech repeatedly stated that the unit operates @ 30 amps! I don't know many cruising boats that can afford a 30 amp autopilot?????
So we are still open to suggestions & can respond to any questions a bit more easily now.
Again, we want to thank you very much all for your help & suggestions.
Regards,
Andrew & Nikki

 

[ASK]

Re: Thank you all

It is probably possible to operate the Raymarine type 2 rotary drive unit from the Sharp Seapilot control unit, since both systems operate via 4 wires (2 wires to the motor and 2 wires to the cluitch). However, to operate correctly the Sharp Seapilot needs also the feedback information supplied via further 6 wires from the feedback plate assembly consisting of a potentiometer (3 wires) and two limit switches (further 3 wires) as described and illustrated by the circuit diagram of the drive unit on pages 40-41 of the Sharp Seapilot manual. I therefor recommend to recover and re-use the original feedback plate assembly also for the new configuration.
Otherwise I still believe it worthwhile to make an attempt to recover and repair the original drive unit, whiich is solid and probably easy to repair.

 

[capta]

autopilot woes

As I think that it is the power clutch which is not operating properly, I neglected to mention that the SDU2 drive unit is driven by a Robertson/Simrad AP22 brain & control head, with only 4 wires to the motor. The limit switches are disconnected.
When the pilot stopped operating it gave a message; bypass/clutch disengaged, which led me to the clutch, which I cannot get to engage when I put 12 volts to it. I haven't ohm-ed the unit yet, but will soon, now that I might find someone who could rebuild the clutch, possibly the person that did yours?
The unit worked flawlessly for two years of continuous sailing & I do agree that the old stuff is so much better than the new crap, so I'd much rather rebuild.
Hope this helps clarify things a bit.
Thanks for the interest & advice.

 

[ASK]

Well. It's me to repair our unit. Only the rewinding of the clutch solenoid was done by a professional electric motor repair service. Except for mechanical damages, the rest can be repaired on board by using elementary soldering equipment.
The solenoid MUST NOT be fed directly 12V - it's not designed for continuous operation at that voltage - it will overheat and probably burn in a few seconds. First, while supplying 12V to the normal clutch input terminals, You should measure which (whether any) voltage arrives to the solenoid terminals. Then disconnect the solenoid from the rest of the circuit (at least one pole) and measure its resistance, which should be about 2 Ohm. The outcome of these measures tells You where the failure is: in the solenoid? in the upstream electronic circuit inside the drive-unit? - or both?

 

[capta]

An update.
We were able to find a B&G autopilot drive unit of the same class & vintage (unused!!!) in Wales. Had it shipped to us in St. Thomas & it is now operational.
Thank you all for your input & my apologies if I was a bit short with a few who were trying to help.. Communication was awful down island & it literally took several hours of trying to send anything over the web, at times. We've purchased a "BadBoy" wifi antenna & will let you know if it works as advertised, if anyone cares.
Leaving St. T. for the Grenadines & Grenada soon, so if it doesn't work........
Thanks again, all,
Andrew &Nikki

 

[ASK]

We're glad if You solve Your problem.
If You decide to eliminate Your old Sharp Seapilot drive unit, please do not throw it away. It may be of use to someone else.

 

[capta]

SDU2 drive unit

Had no intentions of tossing it out; was actually going to try to get it refurbished some how, somewhere. But storage aboard is very limited & it's pretty heavy to ship. Don't really have anybody to ship it to, anyway, as full time cruisers w/o a home other than the boat.
I guess I'll put it in a waterproof container & find a nook????
A real case of one man's garbage, don't you think?
Thanks