NMEA 2000 Tab Indication LMF-400

[george290]

i am looking at installing the LMF-400 using sensors for each main engine and one for the generator. i am interested in the Bennett trim tab indicator. could you send me the installation instructions also? i saw somewhere about drilling a hole through the transom for the sensor wire. that makes me a little nervious.
thanks
george

[Fletch]

I have them. The hole is no big deal. It's contained underneath the actuator mount so it will seal up nicely when you're done.

The system is an easy install. You have to install the nmea 2000 hinges on the actuators (or buy entirely new actuators that have the hinges already installed), drill the hole for the wires through the transom, reseal the actuator mount and then solder the Lowrance connector onto the wires. It's a little work but not difficult at all.

Once the connector's are on, you simply plug them into your network with a t-connector and it will automatically detect the tabs. You set the full up position and the full down position and you're up and running.

I have my tab position display setup as a "pop-up". Anytime I press the tab controller button and change the position of either tab, a window will temporarily pop up on one of my gauges. The window displays a vertical bar graph showing each tab's position and the percent of tab. After a few seconds, the pop up window will disappear and the gauge will return to its previous display.

[Cooper]

I also have the tabs hooked to my gauges, but not in popup mode. But I will next time I'm on the boat. Thanks for the tip, Fletch. I find that sometimes I have to recalibrate the tabs. Right now, even when they're both full retracted one reads 0% and the other reads 2%. The operation is unaffected though and everything else is fine.

[Buck Wild]

Will they only work on the Bennett's?

[george290]

thanks for the answer, Fletch. i like the idea of the popup. also thanks to Cooper for the Journal. that gave me a good look at how the tab goes onto the transom. it gives me a better feeling of how to do it.

[Cooper]

Duhh... I totally forgot that I actually have pictures of the installation!