Has anyone done this?

We are in the process of installing a Tr-1 Gold on my 620 and I am looking for suggestions on placement of the E-H pump? Right now it looks like we are going to mount the pump in the starboard storage compartment forward of the charger/cranking compartment. This is going to take away some of my favorite storage, but we are out of other ideas.

Any other ideas? We have looked at the bilge area and the oil reservoir area but are concerned with water expsure etc... The starboard wall of the oil reservoir area looks good, but there is a hole that appears to let water esacpe through the wall...anyone know what happens if we cover that hole? Also, are there issues if the pump is exposed to water from the bilge...it won't be on the floor, but it would probably get wet.

Thanks in advance,

Mexico

Has anyone done this?

We are in the process of installing a Tr-1 Gold on my 620 and I am looking for suggestions on placement of the E-H pump? Right now it looks like we are going to mount the pump in the starboard storage compartment forward of the charger/cranking compartment. This is going to take away some of my favorite storage, but we are out of other ideas.

Any other ideas? We have looked at the bilge area and the oil reservoir area but are concerned with water expsure etc... The starboard wall of the oil reservoir area looks good, but there is a hole that appears to let water esacpe through the wall...anyone know what happens if we cover that hole? Also, are there issues if the pump is exposed to water from the bilge...it won't be on the floor, but it would probably get wet.

Thanks in advance,

Mexico

Mex:

You have to post a bigger fish picture if you are a super moderator. Just my two cents.

Tell us some more about this TR-1 gold. It sounds like I need one. Give me an update after you get it installed.

Mex:

You have to post a bigger fish picture if you are a super moderator. Just my two cents.

Tell us some more about this TR-1 gold. It sounds like I need one. Give me an update after you get it installed.

Mex:

Why go for kicker steering over trolling motor steering? Why not a Motorguide trolling motor? Come on, do not hold any punches, we are talking big bucks either way here.

I have run a TR-1 for 5 seasons (Tracker Tundra), have installed a few more for others. I think you will want to mount the EH unit in a dry area. There are some sensitive electtronics in the back panel, as well as all the wire connect plugs. The motor is not (on mine) waterproof, but water resistant. I mounted mine inside of the bottom half of an old tackle box, then mounted the box to the floor of my rear battery compartment. This protects the bottom and sides, and in it's present position, water can't get to the top area. The compartment is dry to begin with, but in heavy waves/rain, some water can drip around the lid a little. Not familiar with the room you have in the Ranger, but inside a box may work for you also if in a wet area. They do build up a little heat, so I'm not sure about a closed box. I have had great luck with my unit, great for setting lines, netting, salmon fishing, fishing alone. Like having a hired hand do all the work. Also take your time finding the location for the gyro-compass in the front. The further forward of mid-ship, the quicker the response.

Bassbuster,

Had to get rid of the Terrova...I loved it and it is definitely the way to go for one dimensional fishing...but as it has been said many times here before...position fishing is something best done with a cable drive motor...Maxxum 101 Pro with US2...life is good.

D&M is working on the install and I am hoping to have the throttle actuator this week.

Orchard Frank,

I sent Robert Voss at Garmin some photos of the transom compartment that I was planning on using...he thought the forward storage locker may be too far away for proper response time with the extra hydraulic hosing we would have to run...about 16 feet. The compartment now hosts my trim/tilt pump and my oil reservoir and tons of hoses...looks like Great America (6 Flags) in there.

Thanks and any other suggestions are appreciated...really hoping someone has mounted one in a 620...can't believe they haven't, but I am also calling Ranger today.

Mexico

There was a 621 for sale in the classifieds with a TR-1 installed might want to search through them and contact them on the how

If possible you shouldnt use more then the hose provided in a the kit. They provide the correct amount of hose for proper steering responce.

I have a TR1 on my salmon tournament boat and its mounted in the battery compartment and i spray it down sometimes with the washdown when im cleaning the deck. As long as i doesnt get submerged i dont really see a problem. Im not familiar with that boat but it just getting wet shouldnt be a problem. Robert Voss is really sharp when it comes to these autopilots if you have any questions he is the best resource to have. He is the guy Garmin hired on from Nautamatic who originally developed the TR1.

I have fished all season with the TR1 gold and now i dont know how im going to go back to fishing without it. It controls both speed and steering and no matter the wind or waves keeps your right on coarse and doesnt tangle any lines, even when were running our salmon tournament spread in 6fters.

http://i118.photobucket.com/albums/o103/hondam/220OP%20SCW/DSC_0049.jpg

Thanks...Robert has been great and Garmin should be happy to have someone that leaves such a positive CS impression.

Do you use a sterring bar between your big motor and kicker...does anyone or will the TR-1 keep the kicker from swinging around.

I've got a Merc 9.9 Pro Kicker and am guessing I will need to remove the steering link to the big motor for proper operation...the steering link from Ranger is not one that can be taken on and off.

Thanks again,

I think it will have to be removed, at least at the kicker end. Whether you have no-feedback steering or hydraulic on your main engine, it will not turn without the steering wheel being turned. The TR-1 would be trying to turn both engines at once. I do have a (quick connect) connector that I use occasionally in real rough conditions or if I am working a complex structure. What I do during those times is to leave the TR in the "Standby" mode and it will still operate the throttle (if you purchase the optional throttle control). Even in rough conditions, mine works fine in an up or down wind direction, but it has a harder time in cross wind passes.

Thanks...the Ranger linkage is either on or off...so I am hoping off works.

We don't get the big pounding down here so I am not too concerned.

As is the case a lot of times on boards like this people come looking for help and never come back to say how things went. :boxing:This is a post for any Ranger owners looking to install a TR-1 and hopefully provide some guidance. 2006 Ranger 620 and 2006 Mercury Pro 9.9 kicker port mounted with remote controls.

Robert Voss has been nothing short of top-notch customer service for Garmin...THANKS ROBERT. :cheers:

The biggest challenge was to determine the mounting location for the major components and try to do it all with the current cables. The unit was purchased used so we weren't in that great of a position to bargain for additional parts. http://www.ifish.net/board/images/smilies/wink.gif

We finally decided on a compass location in the front starboard storage compartment on the 620. It would be great access, easy mounting, forward of center and close to the water line. We had a space for drilling between the front baitwell and locker so we could drill holes...hopefully missing the plumbing for the baitwell. After the holes were drilled we ran both wires (compass wire and NMEA output) through where the Ranger light wires ran and the NMEA came out under the console and the compass wire was run in the second rigging tube down the starboard wall out to the back.

The E-H unit was mounted on the starboard wall of the transom compartment which also hosts the oil reservoir and Mercury Fleetmaster trim/tilt motor/reservoir. This area has a lot of hoses and wires but if you remove the access hatch lid completely by taking out the screws...ti makes life a lot easier. We had to clean the surface, re-apply marine silicone and screw back in but it saved a ton of time.

We drilled the 3 pilot holes and then set the E-H unit in place.

The throttle actuator (although a little scary for a clumsy tech to break with the cowling) installed easily and very solid. You need to keep an eye on it if you take your kicker cowling on and off at all. We ran the control wire through the grommet in the lower kicker housing at the front of the motor and into the rigging sheath with the rest of the wiring from the kicker. The antenna for the spark plug was a bit of a challenge on this motor as there isn't really a good place to mount it that is 1" from both wire heads. We are hoping our location works.

The mounting bracket and piston were the easiest...very straight forward. Just be careful not to completely rely on the pictures unless you have the same motor in the photos...I think there is a Yammie in the photos and the bracket looks like it mounts to the outside and not the inside or port instead of starboard on the motor. Once this was installed, we ran the hoses etc...and hooked everything up.

We did not mount the deckmount switch right away as we wanted to power up the system. Powered up fine so we ran the deckmount switch to the front of the port storage locker and through the wall of the locker facing the inside of the boat. Easy to see from the captains seat or back and easy to use for programming. We are still working on locking down the wires, but the box that the tach antenna and deckmount switch attach to almost fits perfectly into a recess near the back of the locker at the top...nice and clean.

After all of this was installed and we hooked up hoses...we could not fill and purge as the instructions noted because the hoses were full already from the previous install. We had mounted the hoses according to the picture and not by the instructions. DOH! Had to unhook at the E-H pump and purge again at the piston to clear the air. We did this a few times as it seemed like we were not getting all the air out. The unit would steer excellent one direction with no hesitation and about 3/4 of the way to the other lock, it would have a stall. Once we were satisfied we had gotten as much air as possible out we did some simple testing to see if it all moved the way it should. All was good...off to the lake.

Saturday we arrived into some mildly windy conditions 10-15 and went to the most wind blown corner of the lake. Pointed to the other side of the lake at a channel marker and turned on the unit and kicker about 1.8 GPS. Never missed a beat...perfect line straight into and across a mild headwind. The throttle actuator seemed to do its job but more on that later.

Sunday was very windy, 30 mph sustained winds and gusting. We had some nice chop as you can imagine and a lot of boat traffic mixed in as there were two bass tourneys going on. The kicker would steer from side-to-side aggressively in larger waves or abrupt "wave bumps" or wake conditions but not to the detriment of course. It just looked funny...

We did not set GPS north, calibrate the compass or learn how to follow a track on the GPS...that is for this Friday. Too windy to do a good job with North or calibration. Not sure if these items were not relevant or if they will help with the boat control...it seemed to work pretty well without.

Other questions at this point:

We had little throttle control at the bottom end...and then it seemed to jump up fast...like .5 mph instead of .1-.2. Any thoughts? We currently have a little slack in the string but it is basically not tight...if that makes sense.

The Humminbird 1197 did not seem to like the E-H unit actively running...we had an almost complete "white out" on the side finder when using the TR-1...any suggestions are appreciated.

We have not tacked down all the wires just yet as we wanted to see how the spark plug antenna worked as well as the location of other items. The controller is mounted on the console and has a hiding place under the dash when not in use. We don't have a ton of excess cable on the controller but it is enough to reach the starboard storage compartment ad works well when in the drivers seat obviously. When you are at the back rigging or fighting fish it is hard to use, but I was also solo this weekend so with two people it should be easy.

Thanks in advance for any help.

Make sure that your tiller handle is twisted all the way to "Idle" before using the TR-1 actuator. With the cowling off, check to make sure the throttle is in the right positiion when the tiller is at "idle" (should be a little space in the linkage before the throttle begins to move, in other words, your handle should have a little bit of slack before the carb linkage moves), then have someone actuate the TR-1 throttle, engine doesn't need to be running, and just watch for smooth movement of the threaded portion and smooth pull on the linkage. You can wiggle the bracket around a little to make sure everything is pointed right before tightening the bolts. (once we enlarged the bracket holes a little tiny bit to get more wiggle room so the threaded rod was pulling in a straight line). The rod should be straight, if it wobbles while it is running, it may be bent. A tiny bit of white grease (tiny bit) doesn't hurt, dry lube like graphite may work also. If the actuator is running smooth, it may be that the carb needs a good shot of QuikClean or SeaFoam. Mine had the same symptoms you describe a few years ago, it was the carb. You should be able to bump your speed by very small increments. With the tach, you can watch it bump 30-50 rpms per click, usually .1 mph at a time. One thing I'll bet on is that when you get it all tuned it, it will spoil you rotten.

It may be a sticky carb...I will try some Quick Clean. I've got a remote...no tiller so it is hard to do both...but I will get the wife outside tonight.

;)

I suggest hooking the NMEA 0183 wires from your GPS to the TR-1. You can navigate to a waypoint or a series of waypoints (create a route) with your GPS and the TR-1 will take the navigation directions and take you to the waypoint or follow the route. My biggest problem is to not look where I am going since I have the GPS in the transom and I can see myself on the map. I know where I am going but I have to turn around to see who I want to not crash into.

"Sunday was very windy, 30 mph sustained winds and gusting. We had some nice chop as you can imagine and a lot of boat traffic mixed in as there were two bass tourneys going on. The kicker would steer from side-to-side aggressively in larger waves or abrupt "wave bumps" or wake conditions but not to the detriment of course. It just looked funny..."

The default setting for the sensitivity for turning and/or maintaining a course is set at the highest level from the factory - I cant recall what it is called but it really whips that motor back and forth and gives your battery a thorough workout (drain) if you spend a long day on big water or windy day in general.
I sold my boat that had the TR-1 a few years ago but I did turn mine down quite a bit to a setting of 1 or 2 instead of 5 if memory serves and even then I had no problems maintaing a decent course on Lakes Michigan/Huron and saved quite a bit of battery juice in the mean time.

The throttle actuator had to be replaced on mine shortly after the 1 yr warranty ran out and then the mother board started to go soon after that. Hope yours lasts longer than my one year but for that year that it worked it was a very nice addition to my boat.

good luck
lobo1

Thanks Doc and Lobo.

Doc,

We tried to do the wpts and create a route...I just made it too big, the unit would not take a route with 80 wpts.

How many wpts do you normally make your route with?

Thanks again,

Mexico

Usually less than 20. I did have trouble once when I had a lot of waypoints. If you have waves you can set the SeaState lower to calm it down. Keep metal away from the compass and always bring the manual in the boat. I have the important pages laminated for reference. If the throttle doesn't respond as you like there are adjustments for the throttle reaction in the manual.