| Al Hoskins (British Columbia Nautical History Facebook Group 21//06/2020) stated "We had an Iron Mike autopilot (Wood Freeman) on the troller Panda 2 when I started fishing with my uncle Eric Ostrom. It was basically an old Ford 12 volt starter motor hooked up via chain drive to the steering wheel, controlled by a Rube Goldberg kind of remote compass with sensors, solenoids, and mysterious other bits. It was very powerful, and it never got tired of driving the old mechanical steering system. The connection to the chain drive was through a brass clutch arrangement the same as on trolling gurdies, the handle of which usually was placed so you could operate it with your foot. In operation, the steering wheel would move back and forth in a regular rhythm, accompanied by a bit of groaning from the motor doing the work. This could be very mesmerising as the hours on watch ticked by, with the wheel constantly hunting back and forth, with some longer periods of the wheel going one way or the other to compensate for the boat falling off course. In a following sea, the boat would sheer off more, so the iron mike would try to compensate by ever-increasing groanings and the wheel cranking as much as 2 or 3 turns one way or the other.
One calm night when I was about 14, and steering while running to another spot, the constant drone of the engine and the rhythm of the iron mike was making me drowsy, so I lowered one of the wheelhouse windows to stick my head out for fresh air. No sooner I had my head and shoulders out there than the iron mike decided it had fallen off course to port, so it started correcting to stbd.... but one of the spokes on the wheel caught my pants pocket and brought me down to my knees, with the mike groaning furiously at the unexpected resistance. I couldn't reach the clutch as it was on the other side of the wheel, but I was saved from further damage when my pocket ripped off and the pilot carried on as if nothing had happened. I cursed like a sailor at it, but all I got in response was more Iron Mike grumblings." |
