Aries - Advice please

[tarik]

I have the chance to buy an Aries wind vane.

My boat( Colvic Atlanta) has a wheelhouse steering position, but also has in the cockpit floor a locator to fit an 'emergency' tiller position.

Would it be possible construct a tiller to work off the Aries, if I secured the wheel to a midships position??


Thanks for any help.


David

 

[Phoenix of Hamble]

Can't see why not, but you'd not want to lock the wheel unless it is an entirely seperate free spinning system from the tiller, otherwise you'd lock the rudder in place!

 

[CPD]

Agree with Neil. Try putting the emerg tiller in position and see if it operates independently from the wheel. It may be that it does, and you can lash the wheel, or it doesnt in which case you will have to leave the wheel alone. In theory it should be fine . . . . . .(always a dangerous thing to say !). Good luck with it though.

 

[Blue Fox]

I tried connecting a windvane to my emergency tiller, with the wheel moving with it (can't disconnect that easily). Don't do it - it makes the windvane too slow in reacting. So instead I made a wooden wheelpulley that works fine.

 

[tarik]

Many thanks for your prompt reply.

If I secure the wheel ( located in the wheelhouse) to midships and therefore the main rudder, would the Vane's rudder be sufficient to steer her by?


Many thanks


David

 

[Gunfleet]

I have an Aries. They do have a drum fitting which will work a wheel but this may be very difficult to fit in a wheelhouse. Though some wind steering systems provide a second rudder the Aries doesn't. It rpowers and guides the one on the boat.

 

[Phoenix of Hamble]

The Aries uses the main rudder to steer..... so no is the answer!

The Aries blade in the water simply provides input to the system to tell it which way to turn the wheel/tiller, rather than steering the boat itself

So you can't lock the rudder in any way at all...

The only well known system that doesn't use the main rudder is the Hydrovane, and that works completely differently from the Aries.