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Old 19-07-2020, 17:17   #1
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Autohelm/pilot recommendations for Jeanneau SO35

Hi All,
We have a 2003 Jeanneau 35 with a Raymarine wheel autohelm.
Unless the sea state is almost flat it struggles to hold course which, as I regularly sail alone, creates safety issues I’d rather not have.
I have two questions.
1/ Does anyone out there have a success story of how they improved the performance of like autopilots. If so what did you do to fix it?

2/ If you replaced your pilot, what did you replace it with and has it been a success?

Cheers
Stew
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Old 19-07-2020, 18:06   #2
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Re: Autohelm/pilot recommendations for Jeanneau SO35

Hi Stew and welcome to the forum.

Have not used a wheel pilot of any brand but have several friends that have, some for long, single-handed passages. One cruiser I know has used the CPT on a 42 Pearson with good results. I think the Autohelm should work on your boat in more than flat calm conditions so possible it isn't working correctly or perhaps you need to trim the sails and balance the helm more carefully.

Did the Autohelm work well in the past and now not working so well or is this a new boat to you?

If you plan on a lot of long distance sailing, especially single-handed below deck autopilot is usually a better option. They are generally more powerful and more reliable. I have been very happy with my Simrad system.
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Old 19-07-2020, 18:35   #3
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Re: Autohelm/pilot recommendations for Jeanneau SO35

Quote:
Originally Posted by stewnz View Post
Hi All,
We have a 2003 Jeanneau 35 with a Raymarine wheel autohelm.
Unless the sea state is almost flat it struggles to hold course which, as I regularly sail alone, creates safety issues I’d rather not have.
I have two questions.
1/ Does anyone out there have a success story of how they improved the performance of like autopilots. If so what did you do to fix it?

2/ If you replaced your pilot, what did you replace it with and has it been a success?

Cheers
Stew
We had an Autohelm pilot and when it needed a new drive unit we upgraded to a Raymarine X5 smartpiot.

It actually is a bit too smart, and does not hold course as good as the old unit, but I really don't complain, it manages.

However, we don't use it much when the sea state is bad, 'cause that's when the wind blows and we're sailing. Upwind, downwind, it does not matter, and we use a monitor wind vane which works perfectly all the time unless the sails are badly adjusted and the boat is not in balance.

I'd guess that if your pilot can't hold a course, if you're sailing, maybe you've got some sails out of trim and a wave puts you out of balance and then the pilot can't catch up.
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Old 19-07-2020, 18:52   #4
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Re: Autohelm/pilot recommendations for Jeanneau SO35

Had a wheel pilot myself on my 30’ cutter, should be called a lake and pond pilot, I had the same experience.

This is more or less what I did, except I went pypilot and opencpn

https://mustloveboats.com/tag/autopilot/
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Old 20-07-2020, 09:23   #5
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Re: Autohelm/pilot recommendations for Jeanneau SO35

I have a 2005 SO 35 and just installed a new Raymarine EV100 unit on my boat and it works great. I even left the old wheel unit on after replacing the belt. The old unit having a sea talk failure so the new unit is independent of other electronics to keep that from happening with the new unit. The EV100 is easy to install and very user friendly. Pretty much plug and play.
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Old 20-07-2020, 09:29   #6
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Re: Autohelm/pilot recommendations for Jeanneau SO35

I sail solo most of the time--even when my wife is aboard--and I really, really dislike long distance steering. I have a below deck AP that is over spec'd for my boat, an Aries windvane, and three ST2000 tiller pilots. I use the AP in protected waters or when I'm motoring offshore in calms. I use the Aries offshore for everything but the calms. The tiller pilots are rigged to actuate the Aries servo pendulum in calms if the below deck AP fails.

For me, all that redundancy is the starting point for safety. I once had an AP fail way offshore, wasn't prepared, and had to hand steer for days. That was unpleasant, and I've spared no expense or trouble to avoid a repeat.

My below deck AP cost about $4,000. I installed it myself; it has been bulletproof for several years. I bought the Aries used (lift-up model) for $1000. It works well if you balance your boat. The tiller pilots are about $450 each. I've never had to use them to actuate the windvane, but they are there, just in case. It has been six years since that offshore failure and those long days of hand steering and heaving-to, and I've never regretted going crazy with the self-steering options.
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Old 20-07-2020, 10:04   #7
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Re: Autohelm/pilot recommendations for Jeanneau SO35

Hi Stew

I understand your situation. I burned through two wheel pilots before I gave up. I looked around for hydraulic units on eBay and was surprised to find all kinds of used autopilots. I bought a used hydraulic pump, control head and course computer, for about the same price as the lower end wheel pilots. The preformance has been outstanding. My used units are Ray Marine.
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Old 20-07-2020, 12:24   #8
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Re: Autohelm/pilot recommendations for Jeanneau SO35

CPT autopilot.

we had ours for ten years on our 20000 lb csy 37. thought about a below decks ap but the CPT worked so well i never replaced it.

easy to install. easy to use.

CPT Autopilot Inc.
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Old 20-07-2020, 12:36   #9
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Re: Autohelm/pilot recommendations for Jeanneau SO35

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Old 20-07-2020, 12:48   #10
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Re: Autohelm/pilot recommendations for Jeanneau SO35

I went from the st4000+ to the ev100. Both use the same raymarine wheel drive. These systems should steer your boat just fine. Mine worked well even before installing the rudder position sensor. A 41' x 25' catamaran is a big boat for a small wheel pilot, so I carry a spare. It steers the boat better than I can all be it a little squirrely downwind. Should work fine for a 35' mono. You should check your calibration settings and make sure that your heading sensor is not near any speaker magnets or large metal objects.
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Old 20-07-2020, 13:14   #11
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Re: Autohelm/pilot recommendations for Jeanneau SO35

here's a youtube video showing installation on a tartan 37 and then a gulf stream crossing to the bahamas. i'm beginning to feel like a cpt salesman but i do love the unit AND the company that makes it.



it.
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Old 20-07-2020, 16:47   #12
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Re: Autohelm/pilot recommendations for Jeanneau SO35

Quote:
Originally Posted by onestepcsy37 View Post
CPT autopilot.

we had ours for ten years on our 20000 lb csy 37. thought about a below decks ap but the CPT worked so well i never replaced it.

easy to install. easy to use.

CPT Autopilot Inc.
Have a friend that used a CPT on a 42 Pearson. Moderately heavy boat with a large, barn door rudder so does take a bit of steering. The CPT worked well for him except downwind in heavy weather.

From what I hear, the CPT is the strongest of the wheel pilots.
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Old 20-07-2020, 17:17   #13
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Re: Autohelm/pilot recommendations for Jeanneau SO35

I didn't like the only wheel pilot I had. I did have an Autohelm 5000 that directly drove the shaft below deck , it was OK. The B&G hydraulic was great. The best I had was the Alpha 3000, had it on 3 boats. Aircraft ballscrew power. No hydraulics.
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Old 20-07-2020, 17:27   #14
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Re: Autohelm/pilot recommendations for Jeanneau SO35

Another vote for the CPT here - great unit without all the networking , hydraulics , etc
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Old 20-07-2020, 18:43   #15
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Re: Autohelm/pilot recommendations for Jeanneau SO35

Quote:
Originally Posted by stewnz View Post
Hi All,
We have a 2003 Jeanneau 35 with a Raymarine wheel autohelm.
Unless the sea state is almost flat it struggles to hold course which, as I regularly sail alone, creates safety issues I’d rather not have.
I have two questions.
1/ Does anyone out there have a success story of how they improved the performance of like autopilots. If so what did you do to fix it?

2/ If you replaced your pilot, what did you replace it with and has it been a success?

Cheers
Stew
What does "struggles to hold course mean"?.

Does she make any attempt to correct her heading?<
Does she hunt around the set course?
Does she take wild sheers? In a prefered direction?
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