nautimatic autopilots

Biteme · 02-11-2001, 07:02 AM

I have a nautimatic tr1 liberator autopilot on my honda 9.9 kicker that will be 1 year old in april. for the first few months it operated flawlesly and allowed be to fish in areas where other people werent able to hold there boat straight. this is a huge advantage in sturgeon fishing in swirling currents where sea anchors dont work. Since about august I have been having problems with it, it seems to have a mind of its own, especially in reverse mode pulling against the anchor. It seems to be fine for a bit and as soon as i turn my back on it it decides to start turning to one direction or the other and wont remain on the desired heading. I have taken it in to Nautimatic in newport several times, they have been outstanding to work with but cant seem to get it fixed. they have replaced almost everything and it still appears to be picking up electrical noise or has some sort of brain f*&t. Has anyone else had experiences like this?

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Dennis H.

backlash · 02-11-2001, 07:57 PM

I was inquiring about the tr1 while at a popular boat dealership, they told me that they have had a lot of problems with them and that they really did'nt recomend that I spend the cash. I did'nt need to here anymore. Anytime a dealership is going to pass up a $1500 sale tells you something.

02-12-2001, 04:36 PM

Hi Dennis. Glad to see you registered! ... I recall your's having a bit of a mind of it's own out there. I fish sturgeon on occassion with Bill (SLUTGODDESS boat) and his seems to work very well - and has had it for awhile I think. He is president of the Oregon Whitewater Boaters Association and talks to lots of guys and I'm sure has heard feedback on this thing. I will e-mail him to check out this thread and add his opinion/suggestions. Later. - Steve - BTW, the deep fried sturgeon from our TV trip with Scott was excellant!

whitewaterbill · 02-12-2001, 06:07 PM

Hi Dennis,

I have had mine for 5 years and have had a few problems....Some of them were very interesting. Last fall I had one that may be similar....but maybe not. Most of the time it worked fine and then it would correct the wrong way and run in a circle. I finally woke up to the fact it was always giving me trouble in the 90 Deg area between south and west. The other 270 deg it worked fine. Had to buy a new compass. Best guy at Nautamatic to talk to is Doyle Helmricks. dhelmricks@nautamatic.com. 800-588-7655.

They are a great invention but do have trouble at times.

Bill