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Auto pilots Basic question.

2K views 3 replies 3 participants last post by  nhsail 
#1 ·
I have a new boat being surveyed next week.
It has auto pilot, but not really sure what that means. If I set it to 45 degrees, it will hold it, but could drift sideways? Or, will it sail between two points on a gps chart plotter and correct for downwind drift?
I don't know the systems it has other than the ad:


Signet knot meter with log
Signet depth meter with adjustable alarm
Autohelm 900 wheel mounted autopilot with remote control
Garmin GPS/chartplotter 440 ('07)
New Autopilot
 
#2 ·
The auto pilot itself will either steer to a compass point, just press "auto" and adjust the heading display to your desired course, or once you've engaged press "auto" and "standby" at same time and it will steer to the wind if connected to a wind instrument and indicate apparent wind and your heading relative to it. If connected to the GPS it will steer to the waypoint you have set on the GPS. It may or may not be connected to the other instruments and if not it will just steer to the compass point as determined by it's fluxgate compass, probably 90% of the time this is the mode used anyway and you just manually adjust your AP course to match your desired course.
 
#4 ·
This is a modern version EV-100 Wheel | Raymarine.

Depending on your vessel and waters it may be entirely adequate, allowing you to set a course, and go forward to change sails, use the head etc or just sit back and read while keeping a lookout on a long passage.

More sophisticated versions will sail downwind in waves, tack and gybe on command, sail to an optimum wind angle for wind speed and destination based on polars, and return to a man overboard location, short handed sailing without one is a lot more tedious.

Given the improvement in computation, and sensing of the last decade(s) what you are getting is pretty much obsolete, though probably entirely adequate for day sailing.
 
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