Self steering

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G12

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Hi everyone,

I am considering doing the 2014 Jester. I will not be able to do next years due to a career change where I will have a substantial wage cut for 12 months and the boat (Shipman 28) will be stored ashore for that period. This will be good for working on her if nothing else.
I have many questions I could ask but the first relates to self steering. It is at the moment the most expensive single piece of kit I will need to acquire.
I would very much like a nice Hydrovane setup. I've not heard anything really bad about these except for the price which is rather astronomical. Maybe you do get what you pay for?
The actual question is - are there any cheaper systems/setups that'd rival the performance of a Hydrovane at a much reduced price. I am happy to fabricate things if required.
It is easy to look around the internet and see many designs but I thought I would ask people here based on their experience of the Jester.
All advice greatly appreciated.

Geoff.
 
Hi Geoff,

I have a Hydrovane on my boat and it has been very good. Only fault is that it doesn't like light airs downwind, so I have made a tiller for it and attach my Simrad tillerpilot to it, which has proved to be very effective. They are hugely expensive to buy, but when you come to sell the boat, take it off and sell it privately and you'll get your money back! If it's in good condition it will sell readily.

I had an Aries on my previous boat and that worked well. The main disadvantage is that compared to the Hydrovane there's a lot of string in the cockpit, but it's an immensely powerful system. Again, not brilliant in light airs, but it is also possible to attach a tillerpilot to the vane for those conditions.

I have a long keeled boat which is a nightmare to manouevre singlehanded in tight marinas - I then steer using the Hydrovane rudder (very powerful!) and have found that I can spin the boat on its own axis - impossible with the boat rudder. It is even possible to go astern with some semblance of intended direction. Additionally, the Hydrovane can be used as an emergency rudder if the main rudder is damaged, a good safety feature.

The Hydrovane is not perfect, but none of them are, but on balance I prefer it to the Aries. I don't have any experience of any other vane gears, but I'm sure someone else will volunteer some info for you.

Great to hear you'll be there for 2014!

Regards
Duncan
 
Hi Duncan,

Many thanks for that. I am going to the boatshow sometime next week and will also see what's available. I will definitely be having a chat to the Hydrovane people and will see what else is about. The Aries seems to have a decent following from what I can gather after a bit of google time although there seems to be a few questions about the availability of spares. This seems to be somewhat offset by the fact that a 2nd hand one can be picked up considerably cheaper than a Hydrovane.
I like the sound of being able to drive the vane with a tillerpilot in light air - I already have a couple of those so not too much drama to remount one further aft.
One other thing that cropped up since I looked at the Aries website is that it is 35kg. Thats a fair old chunk of weight to move aft (just under half my bodyweight!) - my fuel tank is in the lazarette too so I will see if the Hv is any lighter. I suspect they're all fairly similar though having been fairly well made to withstand their environment.
Thanks again for that Duncan.

G.
 
Have a look at the Pacific Windpilot!

It's only a matter of time before a few devotees reply to your thread.

You'll find it's considerably lighter than most alternatives.

I have a Navik, no longer manufactured, it's probably one of the lightest windvanes and worked for days and nights together during my Jester time but the pendulum rudder doesn't articulate for easy deployment and the adjustment of the vane is tricky when you have a transom hung rudder!!!

I'm working on that one...

All the best,

Guy.
 
Yes, another devotee of Windpilot.

I now have a boat slightly larger and went for the next size up. Couldn't really fault it before other than fickle in very light airs but then again what would cope well in those conditions other than something 'electric' and even then.....!
 
Looked at & liked the Hydrovane but funds not available! Found a second hand Sea Feather which has been excellent on my previous and current boat other than in light airs.

I have found that down wind in F3 or less attaching a supermarket style plastic bag to the vane to act like a paracutue helps.
 
Karouise said:
Looked at & liked the Hydrovane but funds not available! Found a second hand Sea Feather which has been excellent on my previous and current boat other than in light airs.

I have found that down wind in F3 or less attaching a supermarket style plastic bag to the vane to act like a paracutue helps.
Click to expand...

Found the same. There is a weight that can be raised that can make it more sensitive, although in the end I made a bigger vane out of ply (having a spare on a long trip is probably a good idea anyway), and it is much better.

Havn't tried the plastic bag, but will try it!
 
Anyone interested in an as-new unused Sailomat 601X contact me. It's gonna be a whole lot cheaper than a new Monitor.
 
Guys,

Many thanks for the further info. Lots of reading/checking out for me to do. The sea feather guy hails from my neck of the woods. Might arrange to visit him and check out a sea feather in the flesh - looks nicely made in the photo's but we all know how misleading those can be.

G.
 
Wheel steering

Hi guys

I have wheel steering in a wheelhouse, (Colvic Atlanta) I want to set up a self steering system any suggestions which one to use

Many thanks

David
 
BlackPig said:
I hope not I have one on order.
Click to expand...

From my experience you will not be disappointed.

BoatApr09002.jpg


Previous boat sea feather steering downwind - in any slop is when the plastic bag comes in handy.
 
self steering

Hi everyone,
Can't leave this without adding my bit, I'm full of praise for the Sea-Feather. Going to the Azores in 2008,I used it for 13 days it took me, apart from 36 hours with spinnaker up when I used a Raymarine tiller-pilot(take 2, you'll need one for spares)Only touched tiller briefly whilst making adjustments, the harder it blew the better it worked.Will be using it again in 2012 hopefully.
Happy New Year to all, Nick Bridges(Trapper501, 'Dolphin of Fowey') nick2e1eod@yahoo.co.uk
 
sea feather

Karouise said:
Looked at & liked the Hydrovane but funds not available! Found a second hand Sea Feather which has been excellent on my previous and current boat other than in light airs.

I have found that down wind in F3 or less attaching a supermarket style plastic bag to the vane to act like a paracutue helps.
Click to expand...

nicholas49 said:
Hi everyone,
Can't leave this without adding my bit, I'm full of praise for the Sea-Feather. Going to the Azores in 2008,I used it for 13 days it took me, apart from 36 hours with spinnaker up when I used a Raymarine tiller-pilot(take 2, you'll need one for spares)Only touched tiller briefly whilst making adjustments, the harder it blew the better it worked.Will be using it again in 2012 hopefully.
Happy New Year to all, Nick Bridges(Trapper501, 'Dolphin of Fowey') nick2e1eod@yahoo.co.uk
Click to expand...

I everyone.
know you the price about this equipment ? boat 25 feet.
thanks.
 
So for those of you with Sea Feathers, what maintenance issues have you faced? Are there any issues with things needing regular replacement or has your unit been bombproof? Also, what are your customer service experiences?

The thing that puts me off a smaller company is the spares availability issue in the future/reliability etc. On the flipside, I am happy to buy something from a smaller company though if it really works and is good value for money as smaller companies can often be better than the big players although Hydrovane's customer service is meant to be top notch.
 
G12 said:
So for those of you with Sea Feathers, what maintenance issues have you faced?
Click to expand...

Nothing broken on mine yet, although it has only been used for some coastal work so far. The wooden leg comes coated with 2 part varnish, but it is well worth putting a lot more on as it tends to catch the sun whilst in the marina. Most of the parts could be fabricated or found pretty easily in the case of failure, but I take your point about one or two of the harder components. A list of suppliers will eventually come in handy.

Paul is helpful. Might be worth putting that point to him.
 
LASSALLE said:
I everyone.
know you the price about this equipment ? boat 25 feet.
thanks.
Click to expand...

The quote I had was for 1700 GBP (ouch!), but this is dependant on what mounting brackets etc are required. Best if you go to the prices page of the website, and request a quote, specifying the boat type.
 
G12 said:
So for those of you with Sea Feathers, what maintenance issues have you faced? Are there any issues with things needing regular replacement or has your unit been bombproof? Also, what are your customer service experiences?
Click to expand...

No issues yet after 3 seasons although not a lot of use other than last season.

Am planning to make a spare vane maybe two and will speak to Paul at Sea Feather in time to get spares pre 2012 although dont see there is much to go wrong.

Considering I bought the kit second hand and not direct from Paul he has been a great help.
 
Wunja said:
The quote I had was for 1700 GBP (ouch!), but this is dependant on what mounting brackets etc are required. Best if you go to the prices page of the website, and request a quote, specifying the boat type.
Click to expand...

Ouch? Thats excellent compared to Hydrovane!

I asked Paul for a quote earlier and will get one from Hydrovane too and see how they stack up. I think HV is about 3.5-4k by the time all the brackets are added on and also VATman gets a fatter slice these days.
 
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