Recommend Auto Pilot for a 1989 30' Catalina tall rig with wing keel

Mar 27, 2020
6
Catatilina 30 Brockport Yatch Club
We have a 1989 30' Catalina tall rig with a wing keel and we are looking to purchase an Auto Pilot.
Any recommendations?
Thank you!
 
Jun 3, 2004
41
Catalina 34MKII 1717 Merritt Island, FL
I have recently installed the Raymarine EV-100 wheel pilot. Seems to be working well. The boat needs to be balanced. The unit will only hold a course within 30 degrees. Anything outside of that the unit will give you an alarm and you will need to balance the boat or hand steer.
 
Oct 22, 2014
20,995
CAL 35 Cruiser #21 moored EVERETT WA
For your boat the EV100 by Raymarine is a good option. Favorable price, Easy install, low power demand, will integrate with most chart plot systems and mange most conditions.
All AP’s like a balanced sailing rig. If balanced it takes only little adjustments to keep the boat on course. The EV100 can do that. Put the boat in a violent storm with heavy wind and following seas the AP struggles to maintain heading. It is probably a time you want to be at the helm anyway.

Most of your install time will be spent sitting in the boat thinking about where to install the components and route the cables. Search “Auto Pilot” here on the forum and you’ll find teams of boat knowledge about auto pilots.
 

jviss

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Feb 5, 2004
6,745
Tartan 3800 20 Westport, MA
and mange most conditions.
No, it won't, in my experience. Any amount of seas >3.5' or so and winds >25kt. and it will give up.

There are really two directions you can go on autopilots: a fair-weather self-steering system (a wheel pilot) and a 'serious' (below decks) autopilot.

The former is about half the price of the latter. It will steer the boat all day long in fair winds and tides. If it gets rough, it quits.

The latter will not only steer almost regardless of conditions, and also provides a steering-system backup in the event of a steering system failure, since if connects directly to the rudder post.

(I've had both, so I speak from experience (AH4000 wheel pilot, Raymarine S2g below decks, Raymarine EV200 below decks, and now Simrad/B&G AP24/AC42 below decks.)
 
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May 25, 2012
4,333
john alden caravelle 42 sturgeon bay, wis
i'm with John. good assessment. it's prolly time to be at the helm any way.
takes allot of juice to autopilot through a blow. so new battery banks. now you have to charge those batts, new generating systems. lots more money, lots more maintenance. then, as the sea builds, the best ride is not a straight line. you don't ski straight in a mogul field. driving around pot holes on a bad road saves the ball joints.
hands on sailing in a good blow is a hoot.
jviss does give a good point about a back up steering system.
 
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Oct 22, 2014
20,995
CAL 35 Cruiser #21 moored EVERETT WA
If it gets rough, it quits.
If not quits it sure becomes ineffective. The linkage and the motor are just not designed for foul weather steering. I'v shared that multiple times over the years. Depending on your sailing waters, I favor the Windvane when in open water under most conditions. My windvane came with an emergency tiller.

There is no debate about the better power, improved linkage and capabilities of the below deck designed AP's identified by @jviss. This is a must goto for larger and heavier boats, or boats to be used in harsh conditions that need a reliable AP. These greater capabilities come at a higher cost (EV 100 unites are priced in the $1200 range - EV 200 in the $2500 range) and as @jon hansen shares greater internal boat systems to support the heavier power demands of the AP.

Nothing is more thrilling than to have your boat with her teeth in the wind climbing a swell in a 20 knot breeze building, feeling the boat shudder at the top and for moment surfing down the face, as you prepare for the next wave. Exhilarating! I prefer controlling the helm when I get this opportunity.
 
Aug 1, 2011
3,972
Catalina 270 255 Wabamun. Welcome to the marina
And for any ap installation, the rudder reference is a seriously understated and valuable accessory.
 
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Apr 5, 2009
2,774
Catalina '88 C30 tr/bs Oak Harbor, WA
No, it won't, in my experience. Any amount of seas >3.5' or so and winds >25kt. and it will give up.

There are really two directions you can go on autopilots: a fair-weather self-steering system (a wheel pilot) and a 'serious' (below decks) autopilot.

The former is about half the price of the latter. It will steer the boat all day long in fair winds and tides. If it gets rough, it quits.

The latter will not only steer almost regardless of conditions, and also provides a steering-system backup in the event of a steering system failure, since if connects directly to the rudder post.

(I've had both, so I speak from experience (AH4000 wheel pilot, Raymarine S2g below decks, Raymarine EV200 below decks, and now Simrad/B&G AP24/AC42 below decks.)
jviss, I have no doubt that if you tried a wheel pilot on a Tartan 3800 it was not up the the task. They are only rated for 15,000lbs displacement.
The OP asked about an auto pilot for a Catalina 30 mk2 which is listed as 10,600 lbs displacement but most are closer to the 15,000 limit. On this boat, there is no possibility of installing a below deck pilot becasue the steering is in a tiny well in the cockpit sole that is just big enough for the steering radial and nothing else.
There are only two makers of wheel pilots,
1. Raymarine EV-100 which has all the bells and whistles but limited power. and the
2. CPT auto pilot which does only one thing; point the boat in the direction you are aimed at but has greater power.
Any discussion other than about the merits of those two units would be best on a different post because it would not apply to the original poster unless he get a different boat. :facepalm:
 
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jviss

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Feb 5, 2004
6,745
Tartan 3800 20 Westport, MA
viss, I have no doubt that if you tried a wheel pilot on a Tartan 3800 it was not up the the task. They are only rated for 15,000lbs displacement.
I had the wheel pilot on a Catalina 36, which I had for 17 years.
 

jviss

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Feb 5, 2004
6,745
Tartan 3800 20 Westport, MA
Any discussion other than about the merits of those two units would be best on a different post because it would not apply to the original poster unless he get a different boat.
I would be surprised if no one has ever put a below decks pilot on a C-30, 'though I thin kit might be easier on a pre-1986 model.
 
Jan 21, 2009
253
Catalina 30 Lake Perry, KS
I have the EV100 on my Catalina and it does OK in lighter winds but in stronger winds it struggles. There really isn't room for a rudder reference without major modifications. It will interface with other instruments if that is what you need. If you want a more robust unit, several people recommend the CPT system. I think it looks like an erector set and doesn't interface with other instruments. It just steers the boat. CPT Autopilot Inc.
 

jviss

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Feb 5, 2004
6,745
Tartan 3800 20 Westport, MA
Yep, I was looking for some other choice. Guess I will just stick with my AutoHelm AH4000 till it dies. (yes it still is working after 32 years.) ;)
There might just be a way.

Take a look at the Simrad SD10 drive unit. Here are a couple of articles featuring installations in cramped quarters:
Problem: how do you install an inboard autopilot on a boat with such cramped hindquarters that finding somewhere to put a drive unit is next to impossible?

An autopilot for tight spaces
 
Apr 5, 2009
2,774
Catalina '88 C30 tr/bs Oak Harbor, WA
There might just be a way.

Take a look at the Simrad SD10 drive unit. Here are a couple of articles featuring installations in cramped quarters:
Problem: how do you install an inboard autopilot on a boat with such cramped hindquarters that finding somewhere to put a drive unit is next to impossible?

An autopilot for tight spaces
I have seen this article before and the key component is not Simrad, it is the Octopus Marine RS cable drive unit which can be connected to any control head. It looks interesting but their statement that the cable has an expected life of 200 hours is rather off-putting. It would also require drilling into and mounting to the cast aluminum radial and I have heard of other C30's having radial failure just under cable loads in a storm and the mounting post would add a lot of additional forces to it. Edson says that you should never mount an AP to the radial and there is no shaft exposed on a C30 to mount a tiller arm. Makes me nervous.
radial_failure.png

(Note: photo not mine and ripped from different site. Thanks to TJL)
 
Dec 28, 2015
1,837
Laser, Hunter H30 Cherubini Tacoma
I'm going with a CPT for the above reasons. I can't really see a reason to have it integrated into a plotter given I sail in the PNW. It would be "cool" but not needed. I need it to go straight and handle some strain when I need to leave the wheel to fix something when by myself. Wind direction integration would be nice though.....
 
Apr 5, 2009
2,774
Catalina '88 C30 tr/bs Oak Harbor, WA
I'm going with a CPT for the above reasons. I can't really see a reason to have it integrated into a plotter given I sail in the PNW. It would be "cool" but not needed. I need it to go straight and handle some strain when I need to leave the wheel to fix something when by myself. Wind direction integration would be nice though.....
The wind integration is why I will probably go to the EV-100 when my 32-year old AH4000 dies. I actually have a windvane for the AH but the control head does not respond to the signal. :facepalm:
 
Dec 28, 2015
1,837
Laser, Hunter H30 Cherubini Tacoma
The wind integration is why I will probably go to the EV-100 when my 32-year old AH4000 dies. I actually have a windvane for the AH but the control head does not respond to the signal. :facepalm:
Might have you beat. My Autohelm 2000 (not ST) works like a champ in calm, light winds or well balanced sails. I need something for the difficult times not for the easy times.
s-l300.jpg
 
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