have you ever used a velocitek speedpuck? I do not wish to drill a through hull hole and was hoping to get a rough estimate of speed. Is this product worth the price?
Speedpuck
- Thread starter jamesstrobel
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I would think a handheld gps would offer you more versatility. You won't want to try and react to the 1/2 second speed updates anyway. The gps can give you useful info like how fast you are indirectly sailing to a point (VMG) that would include the real effects of set, drift and leeway as opposed to instantaneous speed over the ground. Just my $0.02.
Thanks Alan I love technology but hate to pay too much and as you mentioned there is a lag in response time. Any particular gps system that you might recommend?
James,
I'm like you trying to get the best value for the dollar. I haven't bought a GPS in a while, but have had good luck with Garmin. Check their website for ones that are in the same ballpark pricing as the velocitek. Even a simple one that you could enter waypoints by hand just using a chart or google earth to get the lattitude/longitude would be a good start. My first gps didn't even have maps. It was just a blank screen that I could see the waypoints I previously entered. It would record a breadcrumb trail that showed where I had been. Garmins are good because you can save that data on a laptop for the future and then push a recorded track back into the gps. I have tracks that are years old that I can put back into my gps that then allow me to repeat a route without danger of running aground or to avoid where I have hit bottom in the past.
Good luck to you.
Allan
I'm like you trying to get the best value for the dollar. I haven't bought a GPS in a while, but have had good luck with Garmin. Check their website for ones that are in the same ballpark pricing as the velocitek. Even a simple one that you could enter waypoints by hand just using a chart or google earth to get the lattitude/longitude would be a good start. My first gps didn't even have maps. It was just a blank screen that I could see the waypoints I previously entered. It would record a breadcrumb trail that showed where I had been. Garmins are good because you can save that data on a laptop for the future and then push a recorded track back into the gps. I have tracks that are years old that I can put back into my gps that then allow me to repeat a route without danger of running aground or to avoid where I have hit bottom in the past.
Good luck to you.
Allan
In San Francisco Bay where the water is always (it seems) moving over the ground in bewildering swirls a knotmeter provides additional information. It is the best way to get quick feedback on the effects of sail trim and when added/subtracted from GPS readings gives information about the currents.
James... the velocitek speedpuck is a tactical racing instrument. It is not a navigation device.
If you don't have a GPS, then that should be your first priority. A basic, handheld GPS will give you all the information (and then some) you'll ever need. The Garmin GPS76 series can be found on the internet for well under $200. You can connect a basic gps to a laptop with free chart and navigation software for more visual applications.
If you don't have a GPS, then that should be your first priority. A basic, handheld GPS will give you all the information (and then some) you'll ever need. The Garmin GPS76 series can be found on the internet for well under $200. You can connect a basic gps to a laptop with free chart and navigation software for more visual applications.
The speedpuck gives speed just as fast as a knotmeter as there dampened also and has a nice lift/header display
I use a speed puck and think it's great. It's true it doesn't provide as much info as a handheld GPS but it does do what it was designed to do very well. The large display is nice as well as the lift/header info.
We do a lot of chartering in a lot of different places and I take mine with me.
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