[CA] [CA11] SPX 5R autopilot Helm hard to turn.

[Ben123]

I have a SPX 5R autopilot on 1987 24 foot Grady Offshore powered by a 225HP, 4 Stroke Yammy. I got the unit second hand. After installation the unit worked great but the helm was hard to turn when the unit was in standby. Last year I returned the helm unit to Raymarine for repair and received a complete new helm unit. The new one is better but the helm is still hard to turn, (I assume this is just the nature of the helm unit). This is a real problem when trying to maneuver is a confined space. My question is can I replace the helm unit with a stand alone hyd. pump. My engine has a hyd cylinder # HC 5358 and has a capacity of about 136 cc. I see where your type .5 pump is rated for a max of 110 cc so my cylinder is a tad large for this unit. Will the SPX 5R handle a type 1 pump. If not what would be the result of installing a type .5 pump. Any other ideas would be appreciated. Thanks for your time. Ben Cataldi

[Chuck - Raymarine - Moderator]

Welcome to the Raymarine Forum Ben,

Q1. an I replace the helm unit with a stand alone hyd. pump. My engine has a hyd cylinder # HC 5358 and has a capacity of about 136 cc. I see where your type .5 pump is rated for a max of 110 cc so my cylinder is a tad large for this unit. Will the SPX 5R handle a type 1 pump. If not what would be the result of installing a type .5 pump. Any other ideas would be appreciated.
A1. Unfortunately The SPX-5 autopilot course computer was not designed for use with a hydraulic pump. Accordingly, it would not be possible to select a hydraulic pump from the list of drive types within the autopilot's Dockside Wizard. As the SPX-5 autopilot was not designed for use with hydraulically steered vessels, I can't even begin to guess how the autopilot may perform when mated to an undersized hydraulic pump / hydraulic steering system, but I wouldn't expect its performance to be very good. If consider a hydraulic solution, it would be recommended that a T70157 Evolution EV-200 Hydraulic be used for a vessel having a steering ram of the specified cubic capacity.