Raymarine 1000 vs 2000

[frankfurder]

Is the raymarine 2000 tillerpilot better than the 1000 for,a cd25d under sail? My old 1000 cannot hold a course in much wind/ heel angle. I understand that sail trim matters but with any main at all the weather helm is a factor.

Would the 2000 work better?

[Neil Gordon]

Are you thinking a new 1000 will work better than the old 1000?

I'd go bigger. You'll thank yourself when the weather gets snotty.

[Sea Hunt Video]

Frank:

This thread may offer some guidance and thoughts:

http://www.capedory.org/board/viewtopic ... 5D#p163025

I think the consensus was Autohelm 2000.

Santa Claus was good to me this year. At least no coals in my stocking. That was an improvement

Too much turkey, stuffing and cranberry sauce. It will be weeks before I can fit into my wetsuit again.

[sgbernd]

You might try borrowing one first to see if it is an improvement. I have the ST2000 (admittedly, on a larger boat) but if the wind pipes up or the sea gets bumpy, I end up having to hand steer because the autopilot either just gives up and freezes (in bumpy conditions), gets over powered, or, in the case trailing seas downwind, is unable to anticipate the next sea correctly and tries to gybe or broach. In mild conditions, it is fine. I therefore suspect you will find the same situation even if you upgrade.

Finally, I am on my second (and now dying) unit and considering my third unit. I find the RayMarine ST2000s work about 400-500 hours (about 5 years for me) before they get tired, lazy, and ultimately untrustworthy. So If you feel the need to upgrade, wait until it tires (it will) and then upgrade at that point.

s.g.bernd
CD28 #359
Valhalla

[Ken Textor]

Raymarine is a big advertiser and well known but there is also Simrad, which offers more options and, at first glance, appears to be less expensive. Anybody with Simrad experience? Recommendations?

[adamganz]

Hey hey!

I spent two years thinking about a similar decision and now wonder why I made it complicated. Unless someone else knows otherwise, I can't see any reason to opt for the less powerful device other than cost. And the cost between the Raymarine 1000 and 2000 is $100.

In my case I opted for the Simrad TP 32 over the Raymarine 2000. The TP32 seems to be the most powerful tiller pilot on the market (or that i could find) and is designed to work on a much heavier boat than my 28. The 2000 specs were cutting it a bit too close.

I'm glad i have the more powerful tiller pilot for sure, but the increased power doesn't resolve some of the basic limitations of tiller pilots: slow reaction time, over or under compensation, useless downwind or in variable wind, etc. You'll still need to pay close attention to balancing the sails.

My experience is that the pilot works great with full sails under 12 winds, same with a reefed main between 12 and 20 if the winds are steady. Nothing better than wandering around the boat while the tiller pilot does its job.

Adam

[mgphl52]

I just found this deal on Simrad TP32... - Beats W-M & Defender...

[adamganz]

that's about what i paid. when i bought it i was excited to use the remote control but then found that it isn't included...and costs another $275. really annoying as the thing is a glorified garage door opener.

[Ken Cave]

Hi folks:

As I have sold Dragon Tale (it was not a good day however) I have a Raymarine (Raytheon) 1000 that was a spare for our 28 foot CD.
and will be glad for anyone that can use it on their boat. I would like $100.00 and will pay for shipping. I can be reached at kcave@whidbey.net

Ken Cave

[Ken Cave]

Another great item for a Raymarine (Autohelm) is their service. I had a 2000 series that came with our boat, and
the first week it stopped "grunting" and started squealing like a pig. I sent it to their New Hampshire department, and
knew I would get a hefty bill. Instead, they sent it back and, even though it was out of warrantee, it should not have
happened. hence no bill. About five years later, the poor thing would not keep a course. I sent it back to New
Hampshire and they called me to tell me that they could find nothing wrong. As they had it, I asked them to
put in a new mother board in the unit which they did. Price was around $200.00-and it is still running like
a new model.

Hope this helps
Ken

[jen1722terry]

Ken's posting is interesting. We have a Raymarine wheel autopilot, circa 2008 or 9. Not sure of the model (we're presently in Nova Scotia and the boat is at Robinhood in Maine). The unit has functioned very well, even in rough weather.

We're now wondering if it would be wise to remove the unit and send it into Raymarine for servicing, or should we just wait for it to break. Also, are there any spare parts for this unit we should keep on board?

And thoughts will be appreciated and a very Happy New Year to all the owners. We'll see some of you at the Cabin Fever luncheon in February.

Jenn and Terry

[Ken Cave]

If it ain't broke, I would not worry about it. If you look inside, there is a motor and a mother board, and
a gear to work the arm. The unit is pretty tough and waterproof. Whenever I got "stuck" in lousy weather
I did enclose the unit with a garbage bag just to make sure no water gets in. My 2000 had to be "born" in
the 90s, as I purchased Dragon Tale in 2000. It still operating flawlessly!

Hope this helps
Ken Cave

[Neil Gordon]

Pretty much every problem I've had with the 2000 was eventually traced to a bad ground. The unit itself has performed well, within its limitations...

As stated, it can't look around and anticipate the next wave. It needs to go off course before it knows it's going off course, and then it will over steer to correct.

It can't put the helm "hard over," a reason that sail trim and reefing early is important. (Motoring directly into wind and seas has always been a challenge. As wind and wave forces combine, when the bow falls off, more rudder is needed to quickly correct than the unit can muster.)