Getting close to stepping the mast - oh yeah.

[HanBan]

Hi guys!
OK, so we are getting close to stepping the mast. But I've got to get a VHF antenna and a wind vane thingy (?).
Should I just get any kind of VHF antenna, or is there something specific I should get?
The wind thing....I've got a raymarine wind thing on the binnacle (is this even a word)...what do you guys think I should get for this?
Hope you guys are having an awesome summer!
Hannah

 

[Tally Ho]

Hannah,

Welcome. Hope you enjoy your Bene.

For the wind “thingy”, there are 2 distinct things up there.
1) is a “windex”...a manual arrow that points into the wind. Every boat should have one.
2) if you have a RayMarine wind instrument at the helm, it needs a wind transducer at the top of the mast. It must be paired with the display unit. There are wired and wireless versions, but you have to make sure your transducer is matched up with your display unit.

Hopefully the Raymarine transducer is already installed...and make sure to connect the wires when you step the mast.

The windex is cheap and easy to install.
https://www.westmarine.com/buy/davis-instruments--windex-10-sport-wind-indicator--277983?recordNum=2

Good luck!

Greg

 

[jssailem]

What @Tally Ho said.
Two schools of thought on the transducer. New tech “go wireless “. Issue - How to power the thing. Batteries need replacement yearly.
Old tech “wired” These also needs maintenance but the technology is pretty solid. Been in use for many years.

I like the old school approach.

 

[BigEasy]

For VHF radio, checkout the Shakespeare Mariner 4200. Its a base loaded all stainless steel 3' antenna.
Might want to check out the cable too. RG-8X marine grade ( Ancor/Marinco) is good cable. I like soldered connections; however, the soldering has to be done correctly or the signal will be affected. The connector is a PL-259-8X for RG-8X cable. Use di-electric grease on the connector plug and wrap it tight with electrical tape to eliminate water intrusion into the connector. When stepping the mast you will have to decide if you're going to cut the cable and splice it inside the cabin under the mast to connect with the final cable run to the VHF radio or have a continuous cable run from the top of the mast all the way to the radio. (more splices and connectors = more signal loss). When I replaced my cable, I didn't splice it; it was only about a 12' run from the bottom of the mast (inside the cabin) to the radio. It was easy to pull the cable as I was able to attach it to the old cable inside the cabin and pull it to the radio.
Now is the time to clean up the contacts or replace the anchor and steaming /deck lights. Definitely want to change out the bulbs. Might want to consider converting to LED fixtures/bulbs at this time.
Good luck with restepping the mast!

 

[HanBan]

Hannah,

Welcome. Hope you enjoy your Bene.

For the wind “thingy”, there are 2 distinct things up there.
1) is a “windex”...a manual arrow that points into the wind. Every boat should have one.
2) if you have a RayMarine wind instrument at the helm, it needs a wind transducer at the top of the mast. It must be paired with the display unit. There are wired and wireless versions, but you have to make sure your transducer is matched up with your display unit.

Hopefully the Raymarine transducer is already installed...and make sure to connect the wires when you step the mast.

The windex is cheap and easy to install.
https://www.westmarine.com/buy/davis-instruments--windex-10-sport-wind-indicator--277983?recordNum=2

Good luck!

Greg

and this is why I check with you guys before I go buying things.

Thank you so much Greg!

 

[HanBan]

What @Tally Ho said.
Two schools of thought on the transducer. New tech “go wireless “. Issue - How to power the thing. Batteries need replacement yearly.
Old tech “wired” These also needs maintenance but the technology is pretty solid. Been in use for many years.

I like the old school approach.

I tend to break things or forget about them...so old school sounds good to me.

 

[HanBan]

For VHF radio, checkout the Shakespeare Mariner 4200. Its a base loaded all stainless steel 3' antenna.
Might want to check out the cable too. RG-8X marine grade ( Ancor/Marinco) is good cable. I like soldered connections; however, the soldering has to be done correctly or the signal will be affected. The connector is a PL-259-8X for RG-8X cable. Use di-electric grease on the connector plug and wrap it tight with electrical tape to eliminate water intrusion into the connector. When stepping the mast you will have to decide if you're going to cut the cable and splice it inside the cabin under the mast to connect with the final cable run to the VHF radio or have a continuous cable run from the top of the mast all the way to the radio. (more splices and connectors = more signal loss). When I replaced my cable, I didn't splice it; it was only about a 12' run from the bottom of the mast (inside the cabin) to the radio. It was easy to pull the cable as I was able to attach it to the old cable inside the cabin and pull it to the radio.
Now is the time to clean up the contacts or replace the anchor and steaming /deck lights. Definitely want to change out the bulbs. Might want to consider converting to LED fixtures/bulbs at this time.
Good luck with restepping the mast!

Big Easy,
wow, this is a lot of information...and I had no idea it was this complicated. Thank you for all of this.
Di-electric grease is something I didn't even know existed.
Hannah

 

[BigEasy]

Hannah,
Its really not all that complicated with exception of soldering the connectors. If you don't feel comfortable doing that you can always have an electronics guy solder them for you. There are some excellent tutorials on You Tube that demonstrate soldering VHF connectors. Need a high watt soldering gun, the average gun wont cut it. With a little practice and patience it isn't too hard; however, you have to be precise with the technique. If you have confidence in your existing connectors and cable, re-use it to really simplify things! Or, you can use the quick splice/screw connectors, that I am not too crazy about.
Good grease to use on electrical connections is Tefgel or Lanocote.

 

[Tally Ho]

What @Tally Ho said.
Two schools of thought on the transducer. New tech “go wireless “. Issue - How to power the thing. Batteries need replacement yearly.
Old tech “wired” These also needs maintenance but the technology is pretty solid. Been in use for many years.

I like the old school approach.

I have a Tac Tic wireless wind on my boat. I did not install it, but it does work. No battery replacement in 5 years. Not even sure the transducer has a battery (but maybe). Dropped the transducer in the drink once.... dried it out and all was well.

Raymarine bought TacTic and hasn’t really done much with it, I don’t think.

Greg

 

[HanBan]

Hannah,
Its really not all that complicated with exception of soldering the connectors. If you don't feel comfortable doing that you can always have an electronics guy solder them for you. There are some excellent tutorials on You Tube that demonstrate soldering VHF connectors. Need a high watt soldering gun, the average gun wont cut it. With a little practice and patience it isn't too hard; however, you have to be precise with the technique. If you have confidence in your existing connectors and cable, re-use it to really simplify things! Or, you can use the quick splice/screw connectors, that I am not too crazy about.
Good grease to use on electrical connections is Tefgel or Lanocote.

Big Easy,
Soldering is something I like to do with little projects around the house - but I'm not sure if I am capable of doing it on the boat. I'd hate to mess it up.
Tefgel or Lanocote? going to buy both of them right now, thank you.
I really do owe all of you a beer or few when she is all fixed up and sailing. You guys have been (and continue to be) such a wonderfully awesome group of people. I'm glad I bought the boat simply for knowing you guys.
Hannah

 

[BigEasy]

Big Easy,
Tefgel or Lanocote? going to buy both of them right now, thank you.
Hannah

One or the other is good; it will last a longggg time!
This stuff is also great when placing stainless steel fasteners into aluminum components to prevent seizing.

 

[jssailem]

I'm glad I bought the boat simply for knowing you guys.
Hannah

Don’t tell the hubby but you could have skipped buying the boat and just talked to us on the forum. Would have been cheaper but not has much fun.
So stick a mast on her and get out on the water. Send us pictures of her sailing.

 

[Gunni]

Check your mast for the wiring conduit, may need to add one if it wasn’t shipped with one. While everything is on saw horses on the ground is the time to get it all right.

 

[DougM]

Check your mast for the wiring conduit, may need to add one if it wasn’t shipped with one. While everything is on saw horses on the ground is the time to get it all right.

If your mast came from US Spars there will be two conduits in it. One goes all the way to the masthead, the other goes to the steaming light location just above the spreaders.

 

[Ron20324]

If your mast is still down, take some clear pictures of the fittings, lights, rigging attachments, down the open end of the mast, spreaders. Measure the exact length of the mast. Get the model numbers of the lights- and might be a good time to change to LEDs but keep the old ones for spares. You SHOULD have a log book to save all this info!

 

[Gunni]

If your mast is still down, take some clear pictures of the fittings, lights, rigging attachments, down the open end of the mast, spreaders. Measure the exact length of the mast. Get the model numbers of the lights- and might be a good time to change to LEDs but keep the old ones for spares.

Ron, it is a brand new mast, discussed here.

 

[Ron20324]

Ron, it is a brand new mast, discussed here.

Yes, I know. But it is obvious there are 95,000 others on the forum who could use the suggestion.

 

[Scott T-Bird]

I had my step son make the soldered connection. we checked for continuity between the cable shield and the conductor. Apparently, if just a strand of the shield touches the conductor, the radio can be "fried" when you make the first transmission. True? He says he has seen it happen to police radios where somebody tried to make the connection and goofed it up. He worked for a company that did these installations.
Have you bought the cable for the radio yet? I think it is typically sold with one end having a pre-assembled connector and the other end just cut off for the connector to be assembled by the installer. True? That's been my experience

 

[jssailem]

There is an old saying “Trust but verify “. True in electronics as well as international affairs.

 

[stevemitchell]

I just took my mast down on my 311 a few months ago and re-did everything. I ended up just replacing the Shakespeare VHF antenna that was there so I could re-use the bracket, but switching to an ultrasonic, but wired, wind instrument. I also replaced the anchor light with an amazing one from LunaSea.

I documented it all at https://sailbits.com/major-mast-work/