getting raymarine to repair dead tillerpilots

[dylanwinter]

both tillerpilots gave up last summer - it rained on them

they both went to raymarine for repairs

they charged £150 to repair each of them

it looks like one was replaced with a new unit

thought you might like to know

D

 

[sailorman]

cheaper to replace due to high labour charges.
the best tp i had was the Autohelm 2000 the ram was water tight with separate brains box mounted on the combing

 

[LONG_KEELER]

I did a search on YBW.

Seems cling film might be an option.

Or make a raincoat .

Also, cut the arm off an old jacket.

I'm getting my lovely wife to make a posh raincoat.

 

[prv]

the best tp i had was the Autohelm 2000 the ram was water tight with separate brains box mounted on the combing

They do still make a system like that, though the controller is now more installed into the boat rather than plugged into a socket and hung on a bracket. But I suspect the ram is the exact same one: http://www.raymarine.co.uk/view/?id=7679&collectionid=65&col=6603

Haven't checked the price but I suspect it's vastly more than a simple tillerpilot.

Pete

 

[Reptile Smile]

I've never had one - really intend to get one this season - but am absolutely speechless that they're not actually waterproof?!

 

[dylanwinter]

I've never had one - really intend to get one this season - but am absolutely speechless that they're not actually waterproof?!

that is one of the facts to store under the category of

"amazing but true"

they obviously have a well oiled system for bringing them back to life when they do get wet though

 

[earlybird]

The single unit tiller-pilots certainly aren't waterproof, as I know to my cost. I think that the major weakness of this type is that water is dragged into the housing by the reciprocating action of the ram. The seal is poor and add-on waterproof covers are difficult to arrange.
The system with a separate ram gains, IMHO, by having the relatively vulnerable electronics housed away from the elements, leaving only the electric motor to get wet.
This type now seems to have a high price-tag however.

 

[VicS]

I though every one knew they were not waterproof.

I am still using one of the early, if not original, Autohelms which I bought in 1979,

It's been repaired a couple of times. Once FOC because it was judged to be a manufacturing defect and once due to a electrical failure which was my fault. In the second case they managed to contact me at work because it was such an unusual failure.

I always cover it with a plastic bag in wet/rough weather

 

[AngusMcDoon]

The single unit tiller-pilots certainly aren't waterproof, as I know to my cost. I think that the major weakness of this type is that water is dragged into the housing by the reciprocating action of the ram. The seal is poor and add-on waterproof covers are difficult to arrange.
The system with a separate ram gains, IMHO, by having the relatively vulnerable electronics housed away from the elements, leaving only the electric motor to get wet.
This type now seems to have a high price-tag however.

Mine has a cagoule I made. The ram sticks out the end and gets wet, but the main body stays dry. 15 years of Irish Sea and Welsh rain and still going strong.

 

[ghostlymoron]

Is one manufacturer better than the other in this respect?
Perhaps they should market I cover, or improve the design. My old one didn't get any water in it. Too early to tell with new one maybe I'll make a cover for it.

 

[Reptile Smile]

L

I though every one knew they were not waterproof?

In fairness, it was only me that was surprised, and I know very little about anything...

 

[dylanwinter]

L

In fairness, it was only me that was surprised, and I know very little about anything...

until this year I thought they were waterproof as well

and I have been a sailor for half a century

 

[lpdsn]

until this year I thought they were waterproof as well

and I have been a sailor for half a century

Aye, but you haven't been to Scotland before.

 

[dylanwinter]

Aye, but you haven't been to Scotland before.

scotland is a bit wetter than Essex that is for sure

in my defence I have spent two summers ailing eboats in scotland

and it was wet - so I knew scotland was wet at times

I had noi idea about the inherent sogginess of tillerpilots though

one would have thought that they would have found a way around this design fault before now

an industrial grade see through rubbish sack is the answer apparently

D

 

[alahol2]

Is one manufacturer better than the other in this respect?

My Navico/Simrad TP10 is now about 10 years old. It goes outside when we get on the boat and stays there until we leave the boat. I have had to replace the Hall effect feedback PCB which cost me about £15/£20 five years ago. It is now starting to get a bit 'rattly' as it operates so it may need replacing soon.
The advertising blurb reckons it to be 'stormproof' and I think I would agree. I would use Simrad again.
Raymarine selling a tillerpilot that is not waterproof is an absolute disgrace.

 

[bluerm166]

I amazes me that these units can sustain the hard duty that they achieve.
To be fair to the manufacturer it would be useful to know exactly how old these units were,whether they were sized properly for the vessels involved over their life,if they had been used strictly in accordance with the instructions ( avoid dead downwind in a sea,bring the wind to 30 deg.etc.,we're probably all guilty) ,how they actually failed,and what renovation was carried out for the cost involved.

 

[lpdsn]

scotland is a bit wetter than Essex that is for sure

in my defence I have spent two summers ailing eboats in scotland

and it was wet - so I knew scotland was wet at times

I had noi idea about the inherent sogginess of tillerpilots though

one would have thought that they would have found a way around this design fault before now

an industrial grade see through rubbish sack is the answer apparently

D

You could argue that they are up to the conditions in which they are intended to be used. In other markets, you would expect this to kill their business (imagine a car that broke down when used in the rain) but for some reason yachtsman just accept it.

In one sort of way you can't really blame Raymarine (or any of their competitors). They can get away with selling stuff that was designed a few decades ago and charging significant amounts for the repair of it when it shouldn't have broken. If they were selling something else they'd have to invest in R&D until they solved the problem.

Just imagine if they did develop a tiller pilot that worked flawlessly year after year despite torrential rain. There'd be posts on here along the lines of: "I don't trust these new-fangled tiller pilots. They just keep working. At least with the old ones you knew when they were going to go wrong. I'm going to replace it with a refurbished Autohelm and a bin liner."

 

[JumbleDuck]

Mine has a cagoule I made. The ram sticks out the end and gets wet, but the main body stays dry. 15 years of Irish Sea and Welsh rain and still going strong.

My boat came with an old Navico which has worked perfectly in the five years I have had it, un-shrouded. It seems that Navico then may have known things about weatherproofing which modern manufacturers do not. Still, I have acquired another couple, just in case.

 

[JumbleDuck]

You could argue that they are up to the conditions in which they are intended to be used. In other markets, you would expect this to kill their business (imagine a car that broke down when used in the rain) but for some reason yachtsman just accept it./QUOTE]

As I posted before, I met a chap sailing round Britain single handed who had had two tiller pilots fail on him. The manufacturer said it was his fault: they were not designed to be used at sea.

 

[tillergirl]

Raymarine masthead transducers are not watertight either. They may be when vertical but not when horizontal such as when your mast is stored in winter. Having learnt that lesson at the expense of a repair I now remove it each winter. (Yes I know, very old fashioned of me to remove my mast each winter......)