I had the same problem. Finally solved it by buying a new wheel unit on ebay. They are not sold separately by Raymarine, and you don't need a new control unit. In my experience, it is worth taking apart as suggested by other listers, and a piece of shock cord can hold the lever in one position or the other. But the new wheel units provide a more positive "click" in one position or the other, and you can adjust the clutch tension, but ultimately a new wheel unit solves the problem. Not a great design in my opinion.
Eric Frank Cat's Paw C&C 35 Mk II Mattapoisett, MA > On Sep 29, 2013, at 17:52, David Knecht <[email protected]> wrote: > >> I had a problem with my autopilot today I could use some feedback on. For >> the last few weeks, the lever that engages/disengages the autopilot would >> periodically release so that the autopilot ceased being able to turn the >> wheel. Once engaged, it seemed to work fine, but the initial engagement >> seemed to not always stay locked in. Today, as luck would have it, I was >> maneuvering in the 10 minutes before that start gun, engaged the pilot to >> make and adjustment forward, and could not get it to disengage. The wheel >> was effectively locked so I could steer with the autopilot, but not by hand. >> After futzing with it for a few minutes, (trying to not hit someone trying >> to start) I gave up, lowered the sails, threw out the anchor and proceeded >> to remove the unit from the wheel. We only started a few minutes late, but >> it was annoying to say the least. I have brought the unit home and I can >> see no way to get inside it to see if I can figure out what is going on with >> the connect/disconnect > lever. No disassembly instructions in the manual. Is this a "send it back > to the factory", "throw it in the trash" or other solution? Thanks- Dave >> >> >> David Knecht >> Aries >> 1990 C&C 34+ >> New London, CT
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