25D Stuff #3 (Combi is my copilot)

[Lou Ostendorff]

First, a little rhyme, then, the rest of the story...

When you buy an old boat,
The to-do lists begin,
After one thing is repaired,
The cycle starts again...
Inside the lockers,
And under the seats,
Lie devices of cunning,
That keep your boat running,
But I must make mention,
That they do need attention,
So lets get on with it,
There's no time to sit,
For sailing season approaches,
And fair seas, not broaches,
The necessary work turns into fun,
For those treasured moments out in the sun...

Autohelm, previously Nautech, was started by an Englishman, after he built his first autopilot in his garage. Boy, that story sounds familiar...Anyway, KARMA came with a 15 year old Autohelm called a "Combi" because it could steer via input from the "fluxgate Compass", or the wind vane. Yes, this baby was made in England, just like all the other Autohelms (now Raytheon Marine). Unfortunately, repair service and parts are no longer available. However, after calling the technician, he faxed me an assembly drawing, together with a schematic of the pc board inside, and said, "have a go at it, mate!" My other option was to purchase new, an Autohelm ST 2000+, for the princely sum of $695.00 US. Now, this story IS getting familiar, isn't it? Oh, well, I couldn't loose anything by taking it apart since it wasn't working anyway (making a thumping noise), so in I went.(By the way, I read all the threads on this board about autopilots, so those paying attention should really like what I found.)
The autopilot takes output from the fluxgate compass, passes it to the pc board where it is amplified and turns a motor on and off, rezeroing the compass while at the same time moving the control arm in and out in concert with the rotating compass... an ingenious piece of work for someone working in his garage...the end of the story is pretty good, however; after cleaning the unit up and wiping away the 15 year old grease and oil, the electrical contacts were clean and it worked like a charm! I think, eventually, it will have to be replaced, but for now, another piece of history restored! The moral to this story (if there is one): don't be afraid to 'dive in' to fix a problem yourself; you can probably do it!!!

Mr. Fluxgate
s/v KARMA
CD25D #63



louosten@ipass.net

[Bob Luby]

I've got 25D #95, also with an old Autohelm tiller pilot.

Old - but it works When mine falters, I'll take it apart. Thanks!



Rluby@aol.com