The marina I slip at also has a full blown technical weather station and with internet access one can get up to the minute weather conditions.
Wow, that's great! I may suggest this to my Marina.
Most use the mast head because of its freedom from wind disruption and it not getting fouled in the sails.
All the manufacturers are decent. There is the data buss issue however. They all want you to buy their products and so have proprietary data buss formats. So you can't use Raymarine SeaTalk protocols on Marlin wind instruments. You need to pick a manufacturer and stick with them. So research ANY future upgrades you MIGHT want to make so there is a clear upgrade path without buying "their wind instruments to make it work". NMEA interfaces are a joke. While you may get them to work nobody supports them in a consistent fashion. Doing your homework here can pay dividends.
12 volts is 12 volts. Most of these full blown systems draw less than an amp so start looking for data bussed that also provide power.....(Raymarine does)
I can't think of any other useful info. Do your homework and lay your money down or embrace the horror of going up the mast. Most of the install kits are pretty easy to install with one hand. The other being used to hang on with.:dance:
All good points, additionally... I was informed by my local boat repair professional that a wired wind instrument could not be install by going up the mast. You have to demast the boat and work on the mast on the ground. That is why I've been researching wireless solutions. The best I've found is TackTick for about $800
That handheld is looking better and better
