Adding a chartplotter

Sumner · Dec 23, 2011

How much does she love you.........how much will she spend on you?

I'd get a shoot thru the hull. Other things to consider is if it quits are you sailing someplace that a compass would come in handy to get home? The speed will be probably over ground. That works for us, but you still need to be aware of currents and such on the boat if they apply.

We use SeaClear with NOOA charts on a computer and love it, but if I was buying a unit I'd probably get a Garmin 4" or 5" with a transducer (if I could get a shoot-thru for those models) and get one with charts for where I was.

Merry Christmas,

Sum

[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Our Endeavour 37[/FONT]

[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Our Trips to Utah, Idaho, Canada, Florida[/FONT]

[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Our MacGregor S Pages[/FONT]

[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Mac-Venture Links[/FONT]

seadaddler · Dec 23, 2011

76cx

WM had a deal a while back for the Garmin 76CX and a g2 for allUS really cheap so that is my new back up and I use it Kayaking also and it gives almost all the info my Ray C-80 gives,I use it on my Notebook for routing too and backup Charplotter with Homeport and Map source.
Nick

kpgraci · Dec 23, 2011

Trasnsom mounts can get knocked around, and I hate drilling holes in the boat, espically the bottom, so I would go with a shoot-thru, which should be fine in a lake.

Although I don't need it for navigatin either, I would feel naked not having a compass. What if the plotter was out and you were in a dense fog?

Merlin Clark · Dec 23, 2011

Sailors were mounting transducers intended for stern mounting inside the hull long before the manufacturers caught on. I have a thru hull type transducer (bought for a different boat and never installed) mounted with toilet wax and it works great.
I'd just use the transducer that came with your plotter.
Cool machine BTW! You must have been a good boy Toddco!

cephius (Dave) · Dec 23, 2011

I know this doesn't help, but your probe question popped a memory:

Back in the 70's aboard SES Malolo, we were required to make a log entry every hour. It included the weather conditions. We lost several buckets attempting to get sea water to read the temperature. I came up with an alternative solution. Pump fresh seawater into the head and take the temp there

Stu Jackson · Dec 23, 2011

Ever hear of soap on a string? Get a thermometer at ACE Hardware, and tie a string to it.

You could put it in the head or overboard.

Your boat, your choice.

Merlin Clark · Dec 23, 2011

toddco said:
Wow, Thanks for the tip! Does yours have a water temp probe and where in the hull did you mount yours? My inner hull is completely accessible.

I was told that wives like to check water temps prior to jumping overboard.

Mine is just a fishfinder. I like the head bowl method for taking temps! that would save on poking holes in the hull.
I mounted my transducer as far forward as I could, centerline and low enough to still be underwater in a decent chop. On my boat this was at the V of the vee berth. forward of that point is a water tank.
Where will you mount the plotter? Sumner has devised a great rig for his that you can see on his website.
I've never gotten my wife to jump over the side but she's thrown me overboard a couple of times

.

Merlin Clark · Dec 23, 2011

That's a cool way to do it too but this is Sumners: http://purplesagetradingpost.com/sumner/macgregor-navigation/Cuda 350.html
not trying to steal your thunder here Sum!

John23883 · Dec 23, 2011

Transducer

Todd,
I have a Lowrance chartplotter and it's great. The transom mount transducer can indeed be epoxied to the fiberglass hull but it will not penetrate more than 3/8 inch of fiberglass no matter what the instructions say. Guess how I know this. I now have a routed rectangular hole in my hull that the transducer is epoxied into. Secondly you cannot use an epoxy that has bubbles in it after it sets. Guess how I know this also. I used this marine epoxy from Ace hardware http://www.acehardware.com/product/...poxy&origkw=marine+epoxy&searchId=54239657464
because it is very thick and does not have bubbles. It has worked just fine. Once I had it in place and knew it was working I finished filling the area around the transducer so the hull is solid.

CaptDon01 · Dec 23, 2011

We don't have a chartplotter, we just use our Garmin Nuvi that we use in the car. I just put it in off road mode. Made a cheap little swing-out mount from a hook assembly I got from Home Depot and some rubber cable mounts. On our current boat, we just use the suction mount on the cabin bulkhead. We used the Nuvi for our off shore navigation, and in the harbor, the shoreline map is pretty accurate. It's also easy to load all the buoy locations from the charts.

Don

Bill Roosa · Dec 24, 2011

Only one comment on the lack of a compass. GPS is all fine and dandy but it has this latency thing during the update when going slow. The direction it says you are going is not consistent . so what instrument does the helms man use to hold a steady course? Perhaps the shore is always in sight and this is not an issue. What about low visibility days?

cephius (Dave) · Dec 24, 2011

CaptDon01,

I did something similar on my Cat 22. I used a hardwood swing arm that attached to the underside of the cockpit. It swung into the bottom center of the companion way. I just gave it a little push to go below.

I mounted a fishfinder I picked up reasonable from Gander Mountain. A great tool for sailing on a river lake where dead heads are the biggest hazard.

Sumner · Dec 24, 2011

Our boat came with a fish finder/depth finder....

....mounted in the bulkhead at the head of the cockpit. It was ok, but not good when anchoring especially in some light conditions. We anchor every night and usually on a new anchorage. As we approach a likely anchorage I go forward to the bow to deploy the anchor. Ruth is on the tiller as per usual and she tells me water depths as we move towards where we 'think' we want to anchor. With the depth finder so far forward of where she was it was hard for her to see the depth on it especially in some light conditions.

Now with it on the lifeline...

...right next to her she can see it easily.

If we are in other shallow water just motoring or sailing we can slide it forward on the ....

....lifeline like above and I can keep an eye on it. If we are going ashore for a couple days or leaving the boat on the trailer someplace on the road or at home it just unplugs and unclips and goes below.

We are really happy with this setup now. On a larger boat like our Endeavour the life lne is too far away from the helm, so on a boat with a wheel you would want it mounted where it is easier to see for whoever is at the helm and that is what we will do with that boat. For a trailer sailor though with a tiller the ..............

http://purplesagetradingpost.com/sumner/macgregor-navigation/Cuda 350.html

...........lifeline mount is really nice,

Sum

[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Our Endeavour 37[/FONT]

[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Our Trips to Utah, Idaho, Canada, Florida[/FONT]

[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Our MacGregor S Pages[/FONT]

[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Mac-Venture Links[/FONT]

Prime Time · Dec 25, 2011

toddco said:
Thanks All for the great advice. Sumner's boat looks like it may have a little more dancing room than my 20'. I was planning something like CaptDon's swing arm. As for low visibility, I still have my handheld map reading compass. The odds are that I will not be out of sight of land in Southern Illinois or Western Kentucky.

Merry Christmas,
Todd

Map reading compasses don't do well when it is rough. You could and should have a real compass on board. You can find one on eBay for really cheap.

On my old boat I had a simple solution for a mount for a plotter. I mounted the unit on a piece of wood that was shaped like an upside down L. On the inside and outside bulkhead I mounted pieces of t track. The head of a 1/4 20 bolt mounted thru the wood slides into the track. Wing nuts to tighten. This keeps the unit out of the companionway.

Happy, merry!