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Old 06-26-2016, 11:58 AM   #16
oscar
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City: Bethlehem, PA
Vessel Name: Lady Kay V
Vessel Model: 1978 Hatteras 53MY
Join Date: Oct 2015
Posts: 1,098
Quote:
Originally Posted by Lepke View Post
Autopilots on cable systems have a motor that manually turn the wheel.
Not necessarily. My Catalina 42 had the Edson chain/cable system. I did have an electric wheel auto pilot as backup, but it was external on the pedestal, and disengaging it was as simple as removing the "rubber bandie".

But, when I started doing serious off shore work I added a separate quadrant (that's the official term for the "wheel" cardude1) to the rudder post, and it was operated by a hydraulic ram with a pump and small reservoir. All right next to each other in the lazaret with very short runs. The control head was at the helm, and it contained a position indicator.

The beauty of this setup was complete redundancy. If anything went wrong with the chain/cable/sprocket setup, I was able to engage the main autopilot and steer the boat with the turn knob. I've done it for fun and it worked like a charm. So short of the rudder itself or the shaft failing I was reasonable sure to have steering.
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