Best Value Autopilt - Endeavour 37 ???

[BozSail]

What is the best option for a good value (reasonably priced) and good working, dependable autopilot for an Endeavour 37?

[Paul L]

You might want to adf a description of how you plan to use the AP. Offshore, sole self steering, in conjunction with wind vane, crewed, single hamded, etc.

[onestepcsy37]

my boat is about the same size and weight as yours (csy 37). ordinary wheel steering autopilots like the raymarine x5 are not strong enough. when i bought my boat 8 years ago it came with a cpt autopilot - also a wheel pilot. i was a bit hesitant at first, not thinking it could steer a boat that big, but it has really surprised me. they advertise it as capable of steering some pretty heavy boats - bigger than ours. our last trip to the bahamas i only steered in and out of anchorages - the cpt autopilot did all the rest.

their website is www.cptautopilot.com

[BozSail]

Most of our sailing will be double-handed (my wife an me). We will sail primarilly in Long Island Sound and also up and down the east coast of the U.S. I'm looking for an auto-pilot that can hold a course and also tack, so that I can set a 90 degree tack on the AP and then handle the jib winches without my wife's involvements (when necessary). I would also like the AP to integrate with our Garmin 740 GPS.

[BozSail]

Thanks onestep. I checked out the cpt website and called them on the phone also. This system seems like a pretty solid and bulletproof AP. One downside is that it's analog and won't interface with GPS. But it is less costly and is easily installed. Thanks for the suggestion. I'm not ruling it out.

[ShaunJ]

+1 on the CPT

[onestepcsy37]

nice thing about cpt is that, when you call them, you get the engineers on the phone - not customer service in india. the story i heard was that two engineers who had previously used the cpt bought the whole company a few years ago.

i called them when i decided to try using the cpt and they were really helpful. they suggested that i might want to send in the whole unit for service as it was at least a dozen years old. for $150 they tested and serviced it and that was about five years ago. we use it for all open water sailing, like crossing the gulf stream or the bahama banks. in close quarters i still prefer to steer myself, although i admit to enjoying just sitting behind the wheel and watching the cpt steer the boat....