Tiller pilots

[psartes]

Is there any one out there that has a tiller pilot from either Simrod or Reymarine that has some imput for me. I have a 31' Seafarer that I am single handing more and more (I find I enjoy sailing more when there are no people around) , but it is difficult to run around the boat while holding the tiller. I see that the Simrod T-22 has a remote, but is less expensive than the Reymarine S-1000. I don't care about the $100 dollar difference, but I want to buy the best product for my boat and do the job once.

[George ( C&C 40 )]

I singlehand a fair bit and owned a Pearson Triton that I installed a "Raymarine ST-4000 +" autotiller in. I had talked to a lot of people about autopilots and decided to go with something that could easily handle a 10,000 lb fully loaded Pearson Trition in most conditions. A lot of people will say that an autopilot is only something to use when there is no wind and you are motoring -- and it is good for that. ( Good while you are fishing too ) However, I feel that an autopilot should also be able to handle a reefed down boat in 25 knots of wind. That's oftentimes when you really need it -- cold, tired, and still five hours away from a snug port. One of the problems of single handing is that there is no one to hand the tiller to. Plus, a strong autotiller is more likely to last a long time than an autotiller that's at the very limit of its displacement range.

George Jones

[D Wrate]

which seems to work well for us although we hardly ever use it unless we are motoring long distances

[Peter]

I have an AutoHelm ST2000 on my 24 footer. I also single-hand a lot. It allows me to fiddle around on the boat while it steers a lot straighter course than I can. Just trim the sails occasionaly and let "Auto" do the grunt work. It even let's the Admiral off the hook from steering.


It works well under heavy weather, sail, or power. The only point of sail it's a little wobbly on is a dead run.

The remote is nice as it allows one to sit up on the bow enjoying the scenery."Auto tack" is another neat feature ... makes beating up a narrow channel single-handed a lot easier.

As a saferty measure when I'm alone I tow a floating 50' line behind the boat that, when pulled, disengages the AutoPilot from the tiller.