Adequate Tiller Pilot for 37’ 15000 lb Boat

[Leroy Radford]

Hi,

I recently bought a Santana 37 with a tiller that is 15000 lbs. I’d like to add an auto pilot, but there doesn’t seem to be a product that can handle the weight. Both Raymarine and Simrad spec their tiller pilots at 12600 lbs. Does anyone have any suggestions? Thanks!

Leroy

[KompetentKrew]

I use a Pelagic actuator with a Raymarine SmartPilot / ST4000 control head on my Van De Stadt Caribbean 40. It handles it very well, even in strong conditions.

I'm thinking of upgrading to a Raymarine Evo brains, which is what I'd use in your position.

[Leroy Radford]

Originally Posted by KompetentKrew

I use a Pelagic actuator with a Raymarine SmartPilot / ST4000 control head on my Van De Stadt Caribbean 40. It handles it very well, even in strong conditions.

I'm thinking of upgrading to a Raymarine Evo brains, which is what I'd use in your position.

This is exactly the guidance I was hoping for. Thank you!

[Sonrisa]

Pelagic makes a unit specifically for heavier boats:

https://pelagicautopilot.com/collections/solutions-for-tiller-steered-boats/products/pelagic-autopilot-system-with-heavy-duty-tiller-actuator

[Leroy Radford]

Originally Posted by Sonrisa

Pelagic makes a unit specifically for heavier boats:

https://pelagicautopilot.com/collect...iller-actuator

Perfect, thank you Sonrisa!

[ABJ87]

I was never able to get the pelagic to work on our boat, snaking issue that never got sorted out. They eventually took it back and we ended up with the Raymarine. The actuator was really nice, software needs some work imho.

[sailscubasurf]

Originally Posted by KompetentKrew

I use a Pelagic actuator with a Raymarine SmartPilot / ST4000 control head on my Van De Stadt Caribbean 40. It handles it very well, even in strong conditions.

I'm thinking of upgrading to a Raymarine Evo brains, which is what I'd use in your position.

I also have a Santana 37 and would be interested in seeing your set up. I'm not real technical, so can you explain matching the actuator with the control head?

[Pboogie]

And I also have a Santana 37. And I'm also following this thread because I too have been searching for an adequate auto pilot for a heavy tiller.

[dabizi]

I have an Islander Freeport 36 (~17000 lbs.) and several members of our owners group are using and recommending a CPT Autopilot.
They are very happy with the performance and are also praising their customer service (E.g. great technical assistance during the installation).
I'm also looking around for a replacement for my very old Simrad WP30 and this might be an option.

[roverhi]

A tiller pilots effectiveness has a whole bunch more to do with force to move the tiller than displacement of boat. If your boat has a semi balanced spade rudder tiller forces should be relatively small. If that's the case, any of the better quality pilots will work.

Have heard that someone used a standard Raymarine tiller pilot to sail their Westsail 32, not just power, from the East Coast, through the Caribbean, and half way to the Marquesas before it failed. A W32 has anything but a light force tiller.

Simrad TP32 is supposed to be able to steer boats up to 38' according to mfg.

[dabizi]

Originally Posted by dabizi

... recommending a CPT Autopilot...

Sorry, just noticed you're looking for a tiller pilot when I hit send.

[CarinaPDX]

Both the Santana 37 and the Van De Stadt Caribbean 40 have spade rudders, which would be balanced and not require much steering force even in heavy going. I think the standard tiller pilots will serve just fine. The Westsail 32, and my Cape George 31, have "barn door" unbalanced rudders and in heavy going can eat tiller pilots for breakfast. It is for these boats that Pelagic brought out the heavy-duty drive unit. Of note is that for the great majority of the time the better tiller pilots work quite well on these boats; it is only in heavy going, usually with quartering or following seas, that they are overloaded.

Whether using a standard or heavy duty drive the current required is normally small with a spade rudder under all conditions (i.e. the current required is a function of the load, not so much on the size of the motor). So using a heavy duty drive with the RMST4000 controller should work just fine with the Van De Stadt Caribbean 40. Put that same combination on a Westsail 32 would risk burning out the controller: it is not rated for anything like the current that the heavy duty drive could draw under heavy load. The Pelagic autopilot motor control was designed to put out high current (25A or 30A IIRC) so using it with the heavy duty drive works well. If anyone has a barn door rudder and wants to use an RM ST4000, X-5, or similar, with a heavy duty drive then a higher power motor control is required (essentially an amplifier for the ST4000 output). It is not that hard for an electronically savvy cruiser to buy an H-bridge driver from eBay or a Chinese market as the basis of a motor control (I have bought the parts but it hasn't been enough of a priority to finish up).

Greg

[sailscubasurf]

A follow-on question for a Santana 37.

Could I set up the pelagic motor/drive below decks attached to my steering quadrant as an alternative to paying the $3.5K or so for a raymarine EV200 with linear drive?

[CarinaPDX]

Originally Posted by sailscubasurf

A follow-on question for a Santana 37.

Could I set up the pelagic motor/drive below decks attached to my steering quadrant as an alternative to paying the $3.5K or so for a raymarine EV200 with linear drive?

Tiller drives are usually engaged manually, by setting the drive arm on a pin on the tiller, and disengaged manually by lifting the arm off of the pin. Below decks requires a clutch to engage/disengage the drive electrically. The Pelagic controller does have a clutch output, and they offer a couple of drives that are intended for below-deck application (and thus do have a clutch) but they are not the same as the tiller drives.

Greg

[KompetentKrew]

Originally Posted by sailscubasurf

I also have a Santana 37 and would be interested in seeing your set up. I'm not real technical, so can you explain matching the actuator with the control head?

My boat (the aforementioned Van De Stadt Caribbean 40) is about 25 years old, and I bought it last year from the first owner.

The Raymarine tillerpilot system was fitted when I bought it, but the Raymarine tiller drives are prone to wearing out (the older ones at least) and mine was knackered.

You've probably seen the kind of control head I have, and I have a SmartPilot brains down below. After consulting with Raymarine and Pelagic I simply replaced the Raymarine actuator with the Pelagic one.

The only thing I had to do was replace the Bulgin 2-pin connector on my boat with a 3-pin one - you can get these from Farnell electronics. I believe Raymarine upgraded the connector from a 2-pin one to 3-pin sometime in the last 20 years or so, to allow a shielded cable to be used and the shielding connected through that 3rd pin. I don't think the Pelagic cable is shielded, but I think it is supplied plug-in comparable with Raymarine.

I have since replaced the pin on the the Pelagic actuator with a stronger one, machined from a 12mm or 13mm bolt. I don't know if Pelagic is still making them the same as mine (mine's a year old) but the design was a bit flawed IMO, and it bent from the load.

Originally Posted by sailscubasurf

A follow-on question for a Santana 37.

Could I set up the pelagic motor/drive below decks attached to my steering quadrant as an alternative to paying the $3.5K or so for a raymarine EV200 with linear drive?

If I had a steering quadrant or was otherwise able to access the rudder stem below decks I would not choose a tillerpilot, Pelagic or otherwise.

A below-decks autopilot motor has a clutch and disengages automatically when the pilot is put on standby, whereas a tiller pilot hooks over a pin or post on the tiller, and has to be manually engaged or removed.

A below-decks motor would be far preferable IMO, as it would allow the tiller to be flipped up out of the way when the autopilot is engaged, leaving more room in the cockpit.

With a tillerpilot not only does the tiller take up space in the cockpit, but the actuator arm means that one of the cockpit fences cannot be laid upon full-length.

I use my tillerpilot for hours or days at a time, sailing from Plymouth to Portugal with it singlehanded.