[C38] (no subject)

[Glen Robinson]

Having had prior failures involving (1st) the cables and (2nd) the turning blocks of the Edson steering system on my C-30, I opted for a below-deck pilot, which could serve as a back-up steering system, as well as the "auto" function.
  I first installed an Alpha.  Be warned:  Don't make this same mistake!
  After a year of bullcrap and evasions by their service rep, Alpha directed me to one of their Bay Area dealers for an evaluation of my unit.  Their technician noted 17 different malfunctions in a 30-minute bench test, which was terminated when the unit began emitting a growing volume of smoke! 
  I then returned the unit, together with their dealer's test results and a demand for the return of my money.  Alpha kept the unit, kept my money, and have not responded to any communication since.  I filed a lawsuit, but Alpha moved to Nevada, then Washington, and I decided to go cruising rather than spend the money to pursue them.
  I then ordered an Autohelm 6000.  It took a couple of days to install, and we left for Mexico only a few weeks later.  During that cruise the Autohelm drove at least 90%, and has hardly missed a beat in over 4000 blue water miles.  I did have one small problem after 2 years.  Despite being beyond the warranty period,  Autohelm made the repair at no charge, and it is working fine today.  Autohelm now is Raymarine, and I highly recommend RayMarine--both for their quality and service.
  I will be happy to share details about Alpha for those interested.....
  Glen
  SNOWBIRD, C-38 #296
   
  Craig Steinkraus <Navion at charter.net> wrote:
      Les, I also installed the Simrad Wp on "Wings" about 5 years ago. Other than replacing the drive belt once, it has worked well for me for over 3500 KM.
   
  Craig Steinkraus
  C-38 #280 "Wings"
    ----- Original Message ----- 
  From: eyriepg at comcast.net 
  To: Catalina 38 Listserve 
  Sent: Monday, June 12, 2006 4:31 PM
  Subject: Re: [C38] (no subject)
  

  I installed a Simrad wheel pilot on Que Linda about 5 years ago.  It has worked well except for one time when I was docking and it locked up on me.  I wasn't able to disengage the wheel so I literally ripped the autopilot apart.  The US distributor for Simrad is nearby in Lynnwood, WA and I took it there for repair.  The replied that, yeah, they knew about the problem and had a quick repair for it.  I was a little put out that they hadn't recalled the lot, but they did fix it at no charge.
   
  If I were a bit richer, I would really think about a below deck autopilot.  The pedestal on my boat is only 3 inches in diameter and there is movement in the pedestal when the autopilot drives the wheel.
   
  Back to the Simrad, I am amazed that my Garmin GPS drives with my RayMarine chartplotter which is able to drive my Simrad autopilot.
   
  Phil Gay
  C38 049 Que Linda
  Everett, WA
   
   
  -------------- Original message -------------- 
From: "Les Howell" <hlhowell at pacbell.net> 
        Hi, Everyone,
      My trusty WP4000 has bought the farm and left me without an OTTO for JACE.  Has anyone used the SIMRAD WP32? or are there some other recommendations?
   
  Regards,
Les H
          Les Howell
Technical Specialist, Teradyne (retired)
hlhowell at pacbell.net
IM: OldETC (Yahoo)
Professional Profile
  

    
---------------------------------
    
_______________________________________________
Listserve mailing list
Listserve at catalina38.org
http://catalina38.org/mailman/listinfo/listserve_catalina38.org
_______________________________________________
Listserve mailing list
Listserve at catalina38.org
http://catalina38.org/mailman/listinfo/listserve_catalina38.org

-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://catalina38.org/pipermail/listserve_catalina38.org/attachments/20060612/08bb65df/attachment-0001.htm>