Just to follow-up. I did receive a response from Sven Hesterman (Mr. Vee)
today. So all these guys seem very responsive.
Here is a breakdown of the costs.
Mr. Vee
$1339.18 - delivered to Seattle by post (this included the vane and basic
mounting kit)
Pacific Light
$2350 - delivered to Seattle International Airport
Voyager (Canadian windvane)
$2421 (not delivered, price at factory - this does include a few spares. To
be fair the Canadian vane is larger than the other two, so it is bound to be
more expensive.)
By the way, a Monitor is over $4000 -- $4295 plus $75 for tiller
attachment. Shipping not calculated.
The only one I have used is the Monitor and it worked as promised. On my big
boat I used a Raymarine autopilot driven by the wind instrument. On my last
crossing I used a lot of power per day, but I was generating most of it with
a towed generator -- 7 amps per hour. I know on the Vega I won't get this
much power because it isn't as powerful or fast. (I am in the process of
building generator now by the way. Not sure how it will work with the
smaller Vega, but the cost is only a couple hundred dollars to build and I
can always sell it if it doesn't work out).
Chris
From: Chris Brown [mailto:svflyaway@...]
Sent: Monday, November 24, 2008 9:13 AM
To: '
AlbinVega@yahoogroups.com'
Subject: RE: [AlbinVega] Re: Windvane steering
This Canadian windvane is very well made I agree. It is too bad that it
comes in only one size - it is comparable to the Windpilot Pacific which is
one size up from the Pacific Light that has been fitted to so many Vegas.
One note, on the Windpilot (Pacific Light) webpage is a free download of an
excellent book on windvanes - their history, design, construction, use etc.
I believe it was written by the owner of the Windpilot company. If you are
new to windvanes, or even experienced, it is a good reference and quite
interesting. Find it on:
www.windpilot.de or if you wish
www.windpilot.com (either works). The book
is downloadable in five languages and is written by Peter Forthmann. It
isn't a long download with broadband -- it is only 7.5 mb.
One more note. On Saturday evening (PST) I entered my information into the
contacts page of the Windpilot site. Within two hours I had two emails in
response - neither was an auto-response. One gave me a quote of $2350 for a
Pacific Light delivered to Seattle International. Of course I will have to
deal with customs duty and maybe a customs broker, but that is to be
expected I guess. On Sunday morning I again wrote Peter with a specific
question on mounting and that afternoon I had a response to my question -
again this was a personal response. I was very impressed with this level of
initial support considering Peter is in Hamburg Germany (he must not sleep).
I have also contacted Mr. Vee but haven't heard back yet but I am sure I
will soon.
I have a Navik, but I want a vane I can more easily remove from the boat
every time I am in the slip (I would need a larger slip to accommodate any
overhang and that is $100/month more in my marina. I am leaning to the
Pacific Light. I think the Canadian vane is excellent and I had a Monitor on
my Crealock 34 (many years and several boats ago) but they are heavier (and
once a Monitor is installed it is pretty permanent). The Pacific Light seems
to have excellent reviews and only weighs 14 kg. Also it is easy to remove
with only one bolt as was reported earlier. But considering the stock market
I might just be keeping the Navik a little while longer.
Amazing how much interest there is in windvanes and also how many companies
are manufacturing them - there aren't all that many boats doing long
crossings!
Chris
From:
AlbinVega@yahoogroups.com [mailto:
AlbinVega@yahoogroups.com] On Behalf
Of Perry Basden
Sent: Monday, November 24, 2008 6:25 AM
To:
AlbinVega@yahoogroups.com
Subject: Re: [AlbinVega] Re: Windvane steering
Hi, everyone.
I've been following the thread concerning wind vane steering and noted that
there seems to be a large array of products available, some reliable and
some not so reliable. For those of you in Canada and the U.S.A., there is a
Canadian company manufacturing wind vane steering.... unfortunately only in
one size. I've seen the units and they are extremely well made and from the
users that I've spoken to they are also very reliable. The Voyager Wind
Vanes are made in Guelph, Ontario. You may want to view their website at
www.voyagerwindvanes.com.
I also don't own an Albin Vega but have been involved in rebuilding one
locally. One thing I noted during my work on this vessel is that they are
almost bullet proof.... extremely well built and well appointed. My own
boat is an Aloha 34 which I sail throughout the Great Lakes area. Perhaps
when I get too old to sail the 34 I may step down to an Albin Vega. I'm
really impressed with the boat.
Best regards
Perry Basden
Windsor, Ontario