ST 4000 Troubleshooting

[Kevin]

My ST4000 does not appear to be getting heading info from the fluxgate. I have checked all of the connections and they appear to be fine. Is it common for fluxgates to go belly up? It is a "few" years old (according to the boats previous owner). Also, the drive motor only responds to the course adjustment buttons. Any suggestions? Thanks in advance.

 

[Bill Boudreau]

Ohm Check for Compass

You should try to "box" the compass to see if there is an obvious problem. With the pilot in STANDBY, the vessel should be swung throughout 360 degrees. Even if the compass is out of phase (out of calibration) you should see a nice smooth swing throughout the entire 360 degrees. A frozen compass heading indicates a problem with the compass input. Double check your connections. It would most likely give the same frozen indication even if the compass were disconnected. If a problem with the compass is indicated then this could either be due to the compass, cable or compass circuit in the autopilot. The following link will take you to an Adobe Acrobat document that will describe how to check the compass:http://www.raymarine.com/support/AP007.PDFYou are looking for a short or open. A or- 2 Ohm reading is allowed.If this check indicates a fault with the compass then you will be best served by replacing the compass. If no problem is indicated then you should send the compass and the course computer to a repair facility for evaluation.

 

[John Bannister]

st4000

Had exactly the same trouble with mine with exacly the same response from the dealer. Turns out after 2 returns to them that the control head needed updating. Nothing to do with the compass at all.I take it this has just started happening recently.Good luck