Raytheon ST4000 Plus Steering Problem

[K. Kuehn]

I have a 2001 Catalina 28 MKii. I would like to contact anyone who has experienced difficulty with having the Raytheon ST4000+ consistently and accurately steer a course, even in flat seas and low/no wind conditions. A slight power boat wash is sufficient for the autopilot to begin steering the wrong course. Yet, when we took the boat out under power, the technician who went with me said the unit is fine. However, he did recommend page entry settings which he claimed are needed, yet the manual says are only required if you have a rudder reference unit (which I don't). Yet, when I tried to utilize the steerer the following day, the same problem resurfaced. After some investigation, I'm beginning to hear that this problem may also affect other Catalina model boats.

 

[Jack Gilmour]

Over 200 miles and no complaints

I just finished a trip from Waukegan to Escanaba during which my ST4000+ wheel pilot steered over 200 miles without any noticable problem.Were you able to get an acceptable deviation during setup? Until my compass was relocated my deviation wouldn't work out and the steering was poor. Another possibility is a bad gimbal in the compass. It is a Hall effect unit and doesn't like being tilted relative to the horizon. This information is from my new Catalina 36 MK II.

 

[Jon W]

ST4000+ Performance

I have the same unit on a C310. When set up according to the instructions it had a tendency to hunt back and forth over a range of 10 to 15 degrees, and never seemed to settle down. I have read a lot about this autopilot and it's performance (or lack of) from other Catalina owners. Mine came with software version 11.??. I returned it to Raytheon for a free upgrade to version 14.?? (I can't remember exactly)I've also had the best results using the following settings suggested by another Catalina owner. "Drive type = 2" seems to be the key even though it's contrary to the instructions.Calibration Lock OFF Pilot Type 4000whl Rudder Gain 2 Response 2 Turn Rate Limit 20 Align Rudder 0 Rudder Limit 20 Off Course Alarm 20 AutoTack 100 AutoTrim 3 Drive Type 2 Variation 0 AutoAdapt nth Latitude ?? Rudder Damp 4 Cruise Speed A I'm getting performance I can live with now, but I still miss the Autohelm 800 tillerpilot I had on my 25.