Autohelm

[Hooper]

I am debating on whether to upgrade my catalina 30 with an autohelm. I am not exaclty sure how the system works, Are they accurate and realible and how hard are they to install. What is the best type to buy? I wlould like to interface the autohelm with my Garmin handheld GPS. Is it really worth the 1000$. Thanks for your advice.

 

[patrick e. boole]

raytheon

get a raytheon st 4000. best investment you will make on your boat. it steers better then you can and downwind it is fabulous. interfaced with gps and sea talk. i have seen them on sailnet.com cheaper then west marine. no tax so that has to be a deal. patrick

 

[Mark Gale]

agree

I agree with Patrick. The ST 4000+ is the way to go. I found it not too tough to install. It is tricky to get it calibrated just right.Patrick, what do you do to get good performance downwind?Thanks,--Mark

 

[Bob Robeson]

 

[Bob Robeson]

I just finished installing a ST4000+ wheel on my Catalina 36.Installation is straight forward, but there is more to it than it looks. Now that I have installed one I would do a better job next time.Running the ST wiring, the power wiring, the compass harness and the NEMA interface wiring, remote wiring etc. I wish I had run a larger power wire, a 12-14 instead of the 16-18-gage wire.Yes, once installed the configuration is a bit confusing and I had to call Raytheon to get some answers. They were very helpful and easy to get to.I too have a Garmin GPS III and the interface was easy, but I did get the info from Raytheon, after buying the wiring harness from Garmin.I do think the ST 4000 is the best way to go.Good luckBob