• Untitled Document

    Join us on March 29rd, 7pm EST

    for the CBEC Virtual Meeting

    All EYO members and followers are welcome to join the fun and get to know the guest speaker!

    See the link below for login credentials and join us!

    March Meeting Info

    (dismiss this notice by hitting 'X', upper right)

Raymarine EV-100 noise

Geoff W.

Makes Up For It With Enthusiasm
Blogs Author
Hi y'all, I finished the functional install of my EV-100 installation (it's not pretty yet, but proof of concept is there) this morning and am surprised at the amount of noise the wheel drive makes even when the clutch is disengaged and the wheel should be spinning freely. Is this just the way it is, or am I missing something?

Also, the pin location for the pedestal - the instructions say don't let it get too close to the top of the hole on the wheel drive. What are the consequences for it touching the top of the hole?
 

Loren Beach

O34 - Portland, OR
Senior Moderator
Blogs Author
Suspect that "touching" is not the same as "jammed against". I have done two wheel drive installs - first time was Autohelm predecessor unit, and the replacement from Raymarine.
The current one can squeak while engaged, and washing it out with fresh water seems to be a good solution. Something inside must "wear into place" because the noise is less than it used to be, albeit still returning once in a while to baffle us.
Others have speculated for years that Raymarine never made any substantive design changes to the wheel drive unit when they acquired Autohelm. Just cover style and color. I certainly would not know, altho my old Autohelm did not squeak.
 

Geoff W.

Makes Up For It With Enthusiasm
Blogs Author
Suspect that "touching" is not the same as "jammed against". I have done two wheel drive installs - first time was Autohelm predecessor unit, and the replacement from Raymarine.
The current one can squeak while engaged, and washing it out with fresh water seems to be a good solution. Something inside must "wear into place" because the noise is less than it used to be, albeit still returning once in a while to baffle us.
Others have speculated for years that Raymarine never made any substantive design changes to the wheel drive unit when they acquired Autohelm. Just cover style and color. I certainly would not know, altho my old Autohelm did not squeak.

Loren, your current one is silent when not engaged?
 

Loren Beach

O34 - Portland, OR
Senior Moderator
Blogs Author
Loren, your current one is silent when not engaged?
Yes it's quiet. The noise happens when engaged.
I wonder if you plastic rubbing against plastic? Perhaps try pouring some fresh water over the big disc when it's working. (?)
 

Geoff W.

Makes Up For It With Enthusiasm
Blogs Author
Yes it's quiet. The noise happens when engaged.
I wonder if you plastic rubbing against plastic? Perhaps try pouring some fresh water over the big disc when it's working. (?)

I'll try that. I disassembled it and it looks like it might just be the noise from the plastic bearings that surround the belt wheel...
 

Christian Williams

E381 - Los Angeles
Senior Moderator
Blogs Author
Right, shouldn't make any noise or bind in any way when not engaged. It does make a clicking sound when in use. It's normal for, say, a 5-degree course change to sound like click-click-click-click-click. Whereas, with a large course change, say 30 degrees, the sound is continuous. Small changes click as the pilot adjusts one increment at a time (I asked Raymarine about this a couple of years ago and that was the reply).

If it's a scraping noise, yes, some plastic is rubbing, probably the halves of the drive circle. Troubleshoot the pin, the yacht's wheel (fore and aft position on the spindle), and confirm the installation isn't twisted in some way. Also that the clutch is completely disengaging, which is controlled by the screw on the clutch handle (that's the likeliest, check the manual).
 

Geoff W.

Makes Up For It With Enthusiasm
Blogs Author
I'll check the clutch tomorrow morning... maybe that's the source of other problems.

GF and I just motored for 4 or so hours with the autopilot and I was (maybe still am) ready to throw it overboard - we tracked a fairly straight line...swerving 10 degrees right to left over and over. It's like the autopilot doesn't know how to make the small "click" adjustments"... it just veers hard over, and hard over again to correct itself... and hard over again. Once it hits the desired heading, it just has to jump 10 degrees past it again.

Compass deviation is 2 degrees... I tried every combination of settings from Vessel Type to Rudder Damping to Hard Over Time to anything else... nothing seemed to work. The most acceptable option in terms of tracking straight was Performance Mode with Level 1 Rudder Damping. The various Performance Modes didn't seem to do much as far as chilling out the autopilot, it just introduced a delay in how long it would take to respond to its own swings.

I've read a lot about "hunting" and stuff, does this sound par for the course?
 

Christian Williams

E381 - Los Angeles
Senior Moderator
Blogs Author
It shouldn't hunt like that. It's winter, good time to check in at the Raymarine help site. I have solved most of my problems there. Often the topic has come up before and search works. With patience, a technician eventually will nail the issue (in summer the wait can be weeks).


Do let us know the magic solution when you find it.
 

GrandpaSteve

Sustaining Member
I'll check the clutch tomorrow morning... maybe that's the source of other problems.

GF and I just motored for 4 or so hours with the autopilot and I was (maybe still am) ready to throw it overboard - we tracked a fairly straight line...swerving 10 degrees right to left over and over. It's like the autopilot doesn't know how to make the small "click" adjustments"... it just veers hard over, and hard over again to correct itself... and hard over again. Once it hits the desired heading, it just has to jump 10 degrees past it again.

Compass deviation is 2 degrees... I tried every combination of settings from Vessel Type to Rudder Damping to Hard Over Time to anything else... nothing seemed to work. The most acceptable option in terms of tracking straight was Performance Mode with Level 1 Rudder Damping. The various Performance Modes didn't seem to do much as far as chilling out the autopilot, it just introduced a delay in how long it would take to respond to its own swings.

I've read a lot about "hunting" and stuff, does this sound par for the course?
No, this does not sound correct. Here is a video of me motoring after my initial installation.

 

Geoff W.

Makes Up For It With Enthusiasm
Blogs Author
Good news, it's reproduceable, and maybe there'll be some advice to come in 36-48 hours. I feel better knowing I didn't screw this one up somehow.

Delightful,

Good news. After receiving a similar report, we attempted and were able to duplicate the reported issue. Aside from the S-ing reported when in Auto mode, when running the Dockside Wizard, customers will experience the drive being power fully to the stops rather than pulsed in a direction when executing the motor phasing part of the Wizard. At this point of our investigation the problem appears that it may be rooted within the AC100 and/or its software. As part of the investigation, if you could supply us with the ACU100's serial number, it would be helpful. We are currently expecting a recommendation to come from the team with 36-48 hours. Please send me a reminder for a status update if I have not yet reached out to you.

I will say that the Raymarine forum tech support is thorough, detailed, and asks good questions. Not so much for the phone techs - I would skip it. One tech on the phone sounded harried and nervous, and recommended I buy more kit. Another tech's laconic replies sounded like I was interrupting his nap or something.
 

supersailor

Contributing Partner
This is good news! Earlier (like 2014-15 I couldn't get Raemarine to respond much at all. This was bad because they had the most expensive stuff out there. It's good to hear that service has caught up with the product. I may need some help as I integrate my AIS-B into the system.
 

Geoff W.

Makes Up For It With Enthusiasm
Blogs Author
Reviving my old thread to say that my issue was apparently solved in the newest release of ACU-100 software... the 3.11 update caused problems with the hardware, unless you have a rudder position sensor installed. I, of course, do not.

Now I get to uninstall my ACU and ship it back to Raymarine just so they can plug it in and update it. Or, try to figure out who on my dock has a Raymarine multifunction display that can be convinced to let me uninstall and reinstall software on it, and plug it into my own Seatalk network, not cough on it, etc... seems kind of a silly system in 2020.. grumble grumble
 

GrandpaSteve

Sustaining Member
Reviving my old thread to say that my issue was apparently solved in the newest release of ACU-100 software... the 3.11 update caused problems with the hardware, unless you have a rudder position sensor installed. I, of course, do not.

Now I get to uninstall my ACU and ship it back to Raymarine just so they can plug it in and update it. Or, try to figure out who on my dock has a Raymarine multifunction display that can be convinced to let me uninstall and reinstall software on it, and plug it into my own Seatalk network, not cough on it, etc... seems kind of a silly system in 2020.. grumble grumble
The lack of ability to update the software without a Raymarine MFD is a serious downfall of this unit, but it is the only wheelpilot available that can interface with anything.
 

lschill

Member I
I'll check the clutch tomorrow morning... maybe that's the source of other problems.

GF and I just motored for 4 or so hours with the autopilot and I was (maybe still am) ready to throw it overboard - we tracked a fairly straight line...swerving 10 degrees right to left over and over. It's like the autopilot doesn't know how to make the small "click" adjustments"... it just veers hard over, and hard over again to correct itself... and hard over again. Once it hits the desired heading, it just has to jump 10 degrees past it again.

Compass deviation is 2 degrees... I tried every combination of settings from Vessel Type to Rudder Damping to Hard Over Time to anything else... nothing seemed to work. The most acceptable option in terms of tracking straight was Performance Mode with Level 1 Rudder Damping. The various Performance Modes didn't seem to do much as far as chilling out the autopilot, it just introduced a delay in how long it would take to respond to its own swings.

I've read a lot about "hunting" and stuff, does this sound par for the course?


D
 

Geoff W.

Makes Up For It With Enthusiasm
Blogs Author
Finishing out this thread as I just got my ACU-100 back from Raymarine, two weeks there and back for a software upgrade. Yeesh.

That said, it now works well enough - it can do minute adjustments and holds a heading. 1000% percent quieter now that it isn't screaming from side to side. I haven't gotten to test it under sail yet, though.

If you happen upon this thread in the future, know that the ACU-100 software version 3.11 will mess you up unless you also have the rudder position sensor installed. Symptoms include sickness-inducing pitching left to right, and when you perform the "Dockside Wizard" it will try to turn the wheel all the way to the port/starboard limits, rather than just a small movement to each side.
 
Top