Pelagic Ram with Raymarine Electronics

[Pete7]

John, I would sell all the bits you have and then start again. If you like the Evo system then one of the bigger systems would be a good solution for offshore work.

Pete

[seandepagnier]

You can get these actuators on aliexpress for a lower price.

I am almost certain that pelagic buys these, gets a quantity discount then multiplies the price by 4 and that is what they charge you.

https://www.aliexpress.com/item/4000833409994.html

It should not draw more than 7 amps unless it hits the end so I doubt current is an issue, but who knows what happens since raymarine does not share their schematics as they should. I supply schematics for my autopilot controllers, I have design for 7 amp and 30 amp controllers.

[johnjuliano]

I have a lot to learn.

Thank you everyone for your advice.

[sophiedaisey]

Originally Posted by johnjuliano

Who is scanner?

It’s Scanmar who makes the Pelagic Auto Pilot. Not scanner

[olaf hart]

Sorry, I meant Scanmar,

[andrzej0nl1ne]

I have have attached the Pelagic RAM to RM EV1 on my boat and have used it for 2 years as my tiller pilot. The only complexity was swapping the connector to a common plug.

[Matt Johnson]

Originally Posted by andrzej0nl1ne

I have have attached the Pelagic RAM to RM EV1 on my boat and have used it for 2 years as my tiller pilot. The only complexity was swapping the connector to a common plug.

The Pelagic hydraulic ram or the linear actuator? There is a pretty large difference in current requirements between the two.

Matt

[johnjuliano]

Originally Posted by Pete7

John, I would sell all the bits you have and then start again. If you like the Evo system then one of the bigger systems would be a good solution for offshore work.

Pete

Hi Pete,

The wheel drive seems to the only weak point. We generally use a Sailomat 3040 for self-steering, but there are times when I need and want the EV system. The wheel drive as you indicate really isn’t up to offshore, though the metal geared version did very well.

The Raymarine ram should work, but after the issues I had with the new wheel drive with all the cost-effective parts, I have become skittish about it. The EV software is quite good and integrates very well with all the third-party pieces we use. This year, we’ll only be doing coastal sailing in Prince William Sound, so there is plenty of time to think this through.

The Pelagic software, when I looked at it was very simple, so the question is whether I can take the best of both.

I’ll start reading, based on all the great advice I’ve received here, to see what makes sense. Given Pelagic’s new owners, perhaps the software will become more sophisticated (and the build quality will remain the same).

Thanks again for your thoughts… you are probably right, but I’ll struggle along for a while more.

[goboatingnow]

My experiences is the ray marine lineararm is quite durable. I did two Atlantic crossing with one.

My current upgrade is converting my ST4000 wheel pilot to below deck AP arm. I’m using the Jefa arm which is very high quality

[johnjuliano]

Originally Posted by goboatingnow

My experiences is the ray marine lineararm is quite durable. I did two Atlantic crossing with one.

My current upgrade is converting my ST4000 wheel pilot to below deck AP arm. I’m using the Jefa arm which is very high quality

What electronics will you use? I like the EV electronics and software very much. It interfaces very well with all the other products I use?

I will research the Jefa. Do you know offhand (I will research this) what the Jefa draws?

[goboatingnow]

The average consumption of the Jefa ld100 is 2A

The Arm is available with an integrated ray marine compatible rudder reference if one is not already fitted

It’s telescopic , so it can accommodate a wide range of mounting options.

[CarinaPDX]

Originally Posted by johnjuliano

The Pelagic software, when I looked at it was very simple, so the question is whether I can take the best of both. ...

Given Pelagic’s new owners, perhaps the software will become more sophisticated (and the build quality will remain the same).

I would expect that Brian is still involved. The last time I talked with him he was quite insistent on keeping things the way they are - simple and freestanding, with the exception of wind input. I asked for at least steering to waypoint, because I find it useful in compensating for leeway, but he wasn't interested. Even that seemingly small improvement would have added a fair amount of complexity to the firmware, and required dealing with various potential failure modes. Pelagic is all about simple, self-contained, and robust - hard to argue with that.

Greg

[Pete7]

Originally Posted by johnjuliano

Hi Pete,

The wheel drive seems to the only weak point. We generally use a Sailomat 3040 for self-steering, but there are times when I need and want the EV system. The wheel drive as you indicate really isn’t up to offshore, though the metal geared version did very well.

Oh I know. I sold a bunch of ST4000 parts that I couldn't get to work in my shed so decided not to fit it. Instead bought the EVO 1 wheel system package. Great and for us it has worked really well coastal sailing. However, those gears in the wheel and also I think the motor "gearbox" as you say are plastic, sadly the earlier Mk 1 black drive was mint with brass gears. Oops should have kept it.

However, note the Evo 1 has the power from the ACU whilst the larger models have a separate power supply. There will be a reason RM did that, likely on a cost saving measure. Also has a small fuse inside the ACU doesn't? perhaps 5A but its been a while since I fitted it.

Hence the suggestion to buy one of the larger units with clutch controls and a proper power supply. You only want to do this once and it must work properly if you are offshore.

I don't like spending someone else's money, but whatever you choose, make it bomb proof. I read Sir Robin Knox Johnson's account of his solo round the world trip Velux 5 race. He was plagued by autopilot problems that was only diagnosed when he got to Australia. Turned out the original fitter had used too small power cables which under extremes couldn't cope but worked in calm seas, so he spent many hours hand steering. That isn't something I ever want to do having done a couple of long trips as crew hand steering in watches.

[Jim Cate]

Originally Posted by goboatingnow

The average consumption of the Jefa ld100 is 2A

The Arm is available with an integrated ray marine compatible rudder reference if one is not already fitted

It’s telescopic , so it can accommodate a wide range of mounting options.

I'm quite leery of "average consumption" numbers like that. I don't really believe that what they think are "average conditions" can apply to all boats in all conditions... that's silly! A more important number IMO is what the maximum current can be under very heavy loading, for that is what the source and the wiring must be able to supply without excessive voltage drop. And a true "average" depends upon the specific boat and it's steering loads, and upon the sea state, etc, that is being navigated. All quite variable!

We have an Autohelm 4000 tiller pilot that came with this boat when we bought her. That drive ram was inadequate and soon perished. I replaced it with another at a cost of over 800 AUD at the time, and that one didn't last long. I have considered an industrial actuator similar to those posted above but have not yet done so, for this a/p is a last ditch backup to our main system. But, I think it is a far better investment that the crappy Ray Marine items at many times the price... one day soon, perhaps!

Jim