DoubleSix
Senior member
- Joined
- Aug 27, 2012
- Messages
- 138
- Cruising area
- Lyme Bay
- Boat name
- “DoubleSix”; “Blue Lias”
- Boat make
- Ring 21c; Pacemaker 21
- Engines(s)
- Opti 200; twin Volvo AQ110s
I bought a set of Bennett Tabs with the EIC with digital tab position indication, five years ago. Does anyone else have an issue with how the controls function?
The digital position readout is fine - The left digital indication shows the port tab, and right indication for the stbd tab. However, button operation is totally arse about face: the left button operates the right/stbd tab down by pushing the button upwards; and vice versa for the right button.
The Bennett idea and labelling of the buttons is that you are controlling what you want the bow of the boat to do i.e. stbd bow down = right hand button upwards (labelled “down”), however that operates the left tab down. Every time I use the tabs, even after five years, I still have to run the logic through my head to work back to what I want to do. I just want a control that I press left button down for port tab down and right button down for stbd tab down.
I’m not sure what I can/ should do, but I believe if I swap over the hydraulic output connections from the hydraulic power unit that will sort the handing of the buttons but not the up/down operation. Further, operation is by two wires for each control: Red and green for port and stbd valves; and blue and yellow for pump forward and reverse. So, if I swap the blue and yellow wires I believe I could change the direction of the tab movement against up or down button presses. I could also swap red and green wires to change the side of operation instead of swapping the hydraulic lines over.
The difficult bit comes in trying to re-label the buttons.
Does anyone have any advice or experience on the above?
The digital position readout is fine - The left digital indication shows the port tab, and right indication for the stbd tab. However, button operation is totally arse about face: the left button operates the right/stbd tab down by pushing the button upwards; and vice versa for the right button.
The Bennett idea and labelling of the buttons is that you are controlling what you want the bow of the boat to do i.e. stbd bow down = right hand button upwards (labelled “down”), however that operates the left tab down. Every time I use the tabs, even after five years, I still have to run the logic through my head to work back to what I want to do. I just want a control that I press left button down for port tab down and right button down for stbd tab down.
I’m not sure what I can/ should do, but I believe if I swap over the hydraulic output connections from the hydraulic power unit that will sort the handing of the buttons but not the up/down operation. Further, operation is by two wires for each control: Red and green for port and stbd valves; and blue and yellow for pump forward and reverse. So, if I swap the blue and yellow wires I believe I could change the direction of the tab movement against up or down button presses. I could also swap red and green wires to change the side of operation instead of swapping the hydraulic lines over.
The difficult bit comes in trying to re-label the buttons.
Does anyone have any advice or experience on the above?
