Advice sought on ST2000+ cabling

[Ravi]

I've bought a Raymarine ST2000+ autotiller for the boat and plan to cable it in next week. I have the autohelm, itself, and the socket to fit near the mounting point but I need to get the cable.
I have read the manual although, and although it is written for those above my very limited level of electronics, I reckon that the only cabling of relevance to me is the circuit from the battery to the autotiller. Before I trot off to the chandlers, I wanted to ask if anyone has any pointers about things I should consider for the long term.

At the minute the boat only has a ST40 speed and depth logs in the cockpit so there is nothing to integrate but in the longer term I would like to have a compass display in the cockpit and a display at the chart table to show all three (speed, depth and heading). The way that things are going, I suspect that this chart table display might be some sort of tablet device. (I am unlikely to ever have wind instruments.)

Before I run a length of cable straight to power the autohelm, does anyone have any other advice about what sort of cabling will facilitate integrating the system in the future?

I am not clear about whether any future network would be a bus or hub network so any advice that you can give would be really useful and greatly appreciated.

Thanks. Rav.

 

[Tranona]

Don't think you can do much with the ST40 other than have a dual repeater at the chart table. I have that setup but TBH is not really a lot of use. You will have to make a decision whether you are going dedicated plotter or PC/tablet based, but not worth trying to use any data from your current instruments. Your Autohelm will be a free standing unit until you get a data source that can feed it so all you need is power from a fused source. Probably bestto take that from the main switch panel, either using a spare switch or from the instrument circuit.

 

[Georgio]

It is worth making sure that the power cable used for the ST2000 is of an appropriate size to avoid any voltage drop or it may start complaining about low voltage. This is particularly important if the cable run is going to be long. I expect the install manual will tell you the minimum size cable to use. Also worth buying tinned wire if you can get it but not essential.

 

[onesea]

Have you thought about hooking it up to your GPS/ Plotter so that you can got to a waypoint?

There are times when its very useful, I managed it and connected it to my wind instruments and I am really no electrician....

Although I also should state that this set up is apparently can be terrible slow and terribly dangerous/ bad seamanship to rely on in certain circumstances. I have been recently advice this on here .

 

[Ravi]

Don't think you can do much with the ST40 other than have a dual repeater at the chart table. .... but not worth trying to use any data from your current instruments. Your Autohelm will be a free standing unit until you get a data source that can feed it so all you need is power from a fused source. Probably bestto take that from the main switch panel, either using a spare switch or from the instrument circuit.

Thanks. Sounds like it will be relatively straightforward, for now. I like having a repeater at the chart table although, as you say, the use is limited other than to save popping up on deck to get the distance for entering into the log.

It is worth making sure that the power cable used for the ST2000 is of an appropriate size to avoid any voltage drop or it may start complaining about low voltage. This is particularly important if the cable run is going to be long. I expect the install manual will tell you the minimum size cable to use. Also worth buying tinned wire if you can get it but not essential.

I'll look around for tinned wire but I have always ended up using normal automotive grade wire because of the cost of tinned.

Have you thought about hooking it up to your GPS/ Plotter so that you can got to a waypoint?
There are times when its very useful, I managed it and connected it to my wind instruments and I am really no electrician....

Yes, eventually, which is why I was wondering if I should do anything fancy with the cabling for future contingency. I will probably leave a few metres length looped in case any future GPS/Plotter is further away.

Although I also should state that this set up is apparently can be terrible slow and terribly dangerous/ bad seamanship to rely on in certain circumstances. I have been recently advice this on here .

lol. The sextant brigade are an uncompromising lot!

 

[chewi]

I have an ST2000+, it's an excellent autohelm, though others here have condemned it for it leaking, you can treat it to a sleeve to keep rain away.
I've not had a problem with leakage in 15yrs ( touch wood).


You need good power & ground cables as said above, to avoid volts drop.

Any further cabling can be of a smaller gauge, so you can do it later as you say.

Steer to a compass heading only needs the power, but there are NMEA options to steer to a waypoint and to steer to wind.

Steer to wind can be insultingly good, but you need a NMEA windy, and I found you have to reduce the sensitivity.

Steer to waypoint I never found much cop, it won't steer to a series of points ( eg a chennel in fog) without you confirming the turn beyond a few degrees( for ssafety of navigation, so you dont turn into neighbours). but if you wire up NMEA at all you might as well wire windy & GPS & try it, but it only has one NMEA input, so you have have a switch to choose NMEA from the GPS or the Windy.

In regular use I just steer to compass , and use the GPS to see that I'm going whewre I want to, dressing the angle with the +/- buttons

 

[rob2]

I found the limitation in cabling size was the supplied connector, so used short cable tails of the maximum size that would fit, then the main supply cable was the largest wire I could get my hands on! Don't ask where it came from, but apparently power cables on aircraft are also tinned...

Rob.

 

[TonyBuckley]

I am unlikely to ever have wind instruments.

Good for you - never seen the point personally.

 

[rwoofer]

With my ST2000 on my old boat (RM880) I almost exclusively used wind steering. It meant my sails were always trimmed correctly and if the wind headed/lifted I would adjust sails and autopilot to new heading. Obviously upwind you just left alone until you wanted to tack.