autopilot for 1988 mercruiser 5.0 alpha1 gen 1

[newtoboat101]

i am trying to put raymarine evolution autopilot on my 1988 thompson 240 with 5.0lx and alpha 1 gen1 with cable steering ,i talked to raymarine ,and they say i need to add octopus steering on my boat ,wasnt familiar with this ,and after a little research ,im a little confused on what octopus set up i need has anyone else added a evolution to a pre 1994 boat ,cable steer , is it the helm steering or type r octopus that i need to add

 

[Bondo]

Ayuh,..... Those both appear to be hydraulic powered after a quick duck duck go search,.....

I have a Raymarine Sport Pilot II on one of my barges,......
If yer lookin' to use it trollin'/ fishin', you might be disappointed,.....
I was,.....
With mine, it was Ok goin' down-wind,.......
Up-wind or side wind, with my big cabin, the wind blew the boat 'round, Much quicker than the ap could keep up,....
Even with the ele. compass, tiller sensor, 'n all the other bells, 'n whistles, it was lost, 'n wanderin' a few seconds after ya set a headin',......
Unless it was down-wind,.......
I wanted it to down-rigger troll by myself,.....
For what I spent on it, I coulda bought cases, 'n cases of beer, to feed one of my drunken friends to hold the steerin' wheel,.....

Anyways,....... Yer gonna need a hyd. cylinder tied to the tiller arm, as best as I could tell, without diggin' awhole lot deeper,.....

 

[Scott Danforth]

For what I spent on it, I coulda bought cases, 'n cases of beer, to feed one of my drunken friends to hold the steerin' wheel,.....

you buying?

 

[newtoboat101]

i think raymarine was talking about this Octopus Sterndrive System F/Mercruiser 1983-1993 & European Volvo Diesel From 1994 ,see picture , and if thats the case ,why not just switch to hydraulic steering?

 

[Bondo]

i think raymarine was talking about this Octopus Sterndrive System F/Mercruiser 1983-1993 & European Volvo Diesel From 1994 ,see picture , and if thats the case ,why not just switch to hydraulic steering?

Ayuh,..... I guess it depends on the direction ya wanta go,......

Either way is viable,.....

 

[dingbat]

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Customers seeking Raymarine autopilots for I/O applications are commonly referred to an Otopus autopilot drive dealer to determine the correct Octopus drive for their steering system. https://octopusdrives.com/

 

[newtoboat101]

thanx ,all .,Bondo the price for either octopus or hydraulic are about the same price ,so now which is better hydraulic or the cable steering that i have now , im thinking if raymarine makes there AP for hydraulic steering with no other parts (plug and play) then that would be more accurate, any thoughts on which is better

 

[Scott Danforth]

what are your intentions. as stated, if it is for trolling, save your money