2002 Carver 466 Autopilot

[BoatNoob]

Hello All,

I'm working on helping my father-in-law spec out a full upgrade of his navigation electronics for his 2002 Carver 466. Part of the upgrades would potentially include an autopilot. I'm attempting to appropriately size the hydraulic pump, but I'm struggling to find information anywhere on the volume of the hydraulic steering cylinder(s). I was hoping maybe someone had this information available, or could recommend a pump for this boat?

As of now, the plan is to use mostly Garmin gear so I'm leaning towards the Reactor 40 as the controller...but it seems like you can do it a lot cheaper by using an alternative pump like one from Octopus.

Appreciate any input!

Thanks,
Kidron

[Pura Vida]

You have some homework to do. You need to know what helm you have - you may need a dual piloted check vale, Seastar helms have these valves inside, you will need to understand the current hyd setup.
you will also need to know the volume of the rudder actuator (cylinders).
You will need to know if there is already a rudder position sensor, and understand if you want to wire one in.
Given that, i installed the raymarine EV-150...you may possibly need a bigger pump - but these systems do not require a rudder position.
This system works great with my garmin, but the specialize cables are a PITA - may be the same with other mfg's too.
here are a few good posts to help get started.

viewtopic.php?f=10&t=7561

viewtopic.php?f=10&t=8015&p=63303#p63303