Hello all, While sailing with my autopilot engaged, I believe, one of my guests attempted to take the helm without disengaging the clutch. When it was reported that we were having trouble with the autopilot I found the clutch lever on the wheel pilot to be very loose moving up and down with no resistance. I assume the locking mechanism on the inside of the wheel has broken. Anyone deal with this before? I've called Raymarine and they have said that it should be sent in. In the interest of time and money I would like to effect a repair myself. Thanks in advance Tim
Raymarine ST4000
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Sure Fix for ST4000
Yes I had a similar incident happen to me. When I got ready to disengage the Auto Pilot, but the clutch lever just flopped up and down. I was force to unclamp the Auto Pilot ring from the wheel just so I could turn the wheel with out having to use a lot of muscle. I also thought about sending it in to them so they could repair it but didn't. Here is how I fix it. I went to RayMarine Web site and got an ecopy of the manual. Inside there is a 3D Blow up of the inner workings of the Auto Pilot. There are a couple of shear pins inside on the clutch lever. It shows you how to disassemble the auto and replace the shear pins. Total cost was $0.20. It works GREAT now. No more problems. I was also was able to give the inner working a good cleaning and lube. I have a soft copy of the manual if you need it
Yes I had a similar incident happen to me. When I got ready to disengage the Auto Pilot, but the clutch lever just flopped up and down. I was force to unclamp the Auto Pilot ring from the wheel just so I could turn the wheel with out having to use a lot of muscle. I also thought about sending it in to them so they could repair it but didn't. Here is how I fix it. I went to RayMarine Web site and got an ecopy of the manual. Inside there is a 3D Blow up of the inner workings of the Auto Pilot. There are a couple of shear pins inside on the clutch lever. It shows you how to disassemble the auto and replace the shear pins. Total cost was $0.20. It works GREAT now. No more problems. I was also was able to give the inner working a good cleaning and lube. I have a soft copy of the manual if you need it
Autohelm ST4000
My ST 4000 (1987) had the same issue when I left the brake on slightly with the auto pilot on and it broke the internal gear that rotated the internal belt. Raymarine has a repair kit that includes the gear and one that includes a belt. I now have two spares of each. The clam shell cover just "snaps" apart and back together.
My ST 4000 (1987) had the same issue when I left the brake on slightly with the auto pilot on and it broke the internal gear that rotated the internal belt. Raymarine has a repair kit that includes the gear and one that includes a belt. I now have two spares of each. The clam shell cover just "snaps" apart and back together.
The identical situation happened to me...
I brought the old one up to Raymarine in Merrimack, NH and they did an exchange for the ST-4000Mk2 for $350.00 in exchange. During my face-to-face the tehchie told me they don't service the oldies anymore, they simply exchange them for the upgrade. Cheers, Bob
I brought the old one up to Raymarine in Merrimack, NH and they did an exchange for the ST-4000Mk2 for $350.00 in exchange. During my face-to-face the tehchie told me they don't service the oldies anymore, they simply exchange them for the upgrade. Cheers, Bob
ST 4000+ Autoipilot
The lever that engages the clutch has a stainless steel roll pin that fastens the lever to a pin that it is connected to. That roll pin has probably broken and needs replacment. If you send the unit to Raymarine it will cost you about $200.00 + postage. If you call Raymarine and order the parts it will cost next to nothing. While you're at it order extra pins (they will break again) AND order a new lever. The shaft that the lever attaches to has a "D" shape but the older levers have a "O" shape that accepts the "D" shaped pin. Therefore, when the roll pin breaks the lever spins on the shaft. The new levers are keyed to fit the "D" shaped shaft so that if the roll pin breaks you can still disengage the drive. Make sure when ordering that you specify that you want the newer lever with the "D" shaped hole. The reason that the roll pin breaks (it's actually designed to breake when strained) is because the retaining pin that attaches to the pedestal and prevents the back half of the drive wheel from turning is not exactly aligned to 90 degrees. Being slightly off the working of the drive wheel back and forth elongates the slot that the pin fits into causing undo strain on the roll pin which then breaks. An emergency fix is a sewing needle that fits into the roll pin hole EXACTLY!! If the sewing needle is too thin it won't work. The sewing needle, being hard steel, will eventually break. You need a supply of roll pins. Hope this helps.
The lever that engages the clutch has a stainless steel roll pin that fastens the lever to a pin that it is connected to. That roll pin has probably broken and needs replacment. If you send the unit to Raymarine it will cost you about $200.00 + postage. If you call Raymarine and order the parts it will cost next to nothing. While you're at it order extra pins (they will break again) AND order a new lever. The shaft that the lever attaches to has a "D" shape but the older levers have a "O" shape that accepts the "D" shaped pin. Therefore, when the roll pin breaks the lever spins on the shaft. The new levers are keyed to fit the "D" shaped shaft so that if the roll pin breaks you can still disengage the drive. Make sure when ordering that you specify that you want the newer lever with the "D" shaped hole. The reason that the roll pin breaks (it's actually designed to breake when strained) is because the retaining pin that attaches to the pedestal and prevents the back half of the drive wheel from turning is not exactly aligned to 90 degrees. Being slightly off the working of the drive wheel back and forth elongates the slot that the pin fits into causing undo strain on the roll pin which then breaks. An emergency fix is a sewing needle that fits into the roll pin hole EXACTLY!! If the sewing needle is too thin it won't work. The sewing needle, being hard steel, will eventually break. You need a supply of roll pins. Hope this helps.
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