Hello Gourmet Yacht Lovers in
Fountaine Pajot..
Some help please: I am
Single Handling a
Saba 50, and need to depend on the
Autopilot. This is for seasonal cruising up on the 150-200 islands inside the
Great Barrier Reef, sort of 1500 NM range north and south. My Wife is a bit crippled up, so I need to depend on the AP, to the point of running a second one so I can run this fine yacht. In the past, I have found the sum of backup replacement
parts, to be more or the same as a whole new system.. Hmmmm????
My
current Autopilot,
Garmin, has an
electric hydraulic
pump, running a ram, on the starboard side
rudder, cross over bar to the Port
rudder. The ram runs off the
hydraulic steering as well.
I have a spare hydraulic ram, an LS French one, and so I am thinking of putting in a completely independent
Garmin autopilot in the Port
hull. Each could free-wheel, it just means another autopilot readout instrument, and electronic
compass, and a new
electric hydraulic
motor running the ram in a closed loop...
I am on the right track? I was thinking easy peasy, turn off one and on the other one. Open one bypass valve, close the other. IYO am I on the right track??
I could fool around trying to replace the components one by one, I am just thinking that in a pinch I could just switch over the secondary. Like faster and easier, than trying to do it in a seaway...
Any comments or help?
Helia 44, now Blessed to have a
Saba 50...