T&T: Autopilots

[Chuck and Susan]

I simply can't say that should be a criteria for not purchasing an autopilot
from WH. Any company, including Simrad, can stop production, go out of
business or be bought out, Which happens quite often in the marine industry.
Will Hamm has employees that are as knowledgeable about these units as he is
and the bigger plus is that there are no proprietary parts or software and the
units can indeed be repaired by any knowledgeable electronics shop. The
consideration that ours is now over ten years old and has never needed any
repairs is a testament to the quality and construction of the product. If we
choose not to buy something because the company might go out of business then
we will never make another purchase. Chuck

To follow our adventures, go to
http://trawler-beach-house.blogspot.com/
http://sea-trek.blogspot.com/


---
On Sun, 7/26/09, Milt Baker <miltbaker at mindspring.com> wrote:

 
> Although
I've never had a W-H
> autopilot on my own boats, I have done several 
>
thousand miles including an Atlantic crossing aboard yachts
> with W-H
autopilots, 
> and I can attest to the fact that they do the job well and
>
reliably.  Biggest problem 
> with them, as I see it, is that Will Hamm, owner
of the
> company, is pretty much a 
> one-man show.  Whenever we had problems,
we telephoned
> Will and he told us 
> how to make the necessary adjustments. 
Once we had to
> return an AP for a rebuild, 
> and it was returned quickly
and working perfectly.
> 
> As admirable as that may be, the company has no
depth
> beyond its founder-owner-
> manager-chief technician, and the day will
come when Will
> gets too old to continue or 
> gets hit by a bus or sells the
company or otherwise
> disappears from the scene.   God 
> only knows what
will happen to those with W-H autopilots
> then.  And that's why I 
> DIDN'T
spec W-H autopilots for my boat.  
> 
> For the record, the Simrad AP26
autopilots aboard my boat
> have worked extremely well.  
> Yes, just as well
as the W-H pilots I was shipmates
> with.  And while there are no 
>
guarantees, I have more confidence in the longevity of
> Simrad!
> 
> One
guy's opinion.
> 
> --Milt Baker, Nordhavn 47 Bluewater, Southwest Harbor, ME