Farking wind meter

[Bodach na mara]

Well actually it is a NASA instrument but when I was trying to connect it up this afternoon, my wife asked who this farking company was that made the instrument that was giving the problem. Now I know I should not have bought it and that Tactic was the way to go when I invested in it two years ago. I also know that they don't really like joins in the cable but you do need to have some sort of disconnection when the mast is removed.

I tried a Bulgin plug and socket but that was too cumbersome and gave problems with a bad contact. Then I connected the cable ends with a terminal block, but that seemed a pain to reconnect each year, so I fitted a 6-pin lockable plug and socket (from Maplin) as recomended in a thread http://www.ybw.com/forums/showflat.php?C...&PHPSESSID=
(Unfortunately the images in the post have been deleted from photobucket.) Now today I connect the plug and socket, turn on and get no speed reading. Sometimes there was a bit of movement in the vane indicator, but not as much as there should have been. I took both the plug and the socket apart and the wires seem to be still connected. It does look like a connection problem. So now for the questions.

What do you use to connect this thing up? Does your system work? If so, please spill the beans and make my language less "industrial."

 

[hightech]

Ken,

90% of the boats I work on use a cable gland on deck and choc block in a box on the inside, the biggest advantage is that it stays dry on the inside of the boat and there is no plug/socket to corrode and fail year after year. Dropping the mast is a five minute job to do. Use cable ferrules on the ends of the wires and you should have no problems. /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif

 

[neil_s]

I rigged up my NASA wind with Bulgin Buccaneer connectors, one pair at the deck and one pair at the masthead. I also bought the sealer caps for when the plugs are disconnected. My instrument was second hand when I got it and has been in service with me for seven years. I have just fitted replacement wind cups, cost - less than twenty quid. I have also found NASA to be very helpful with advise on the couple of occasions that the instrument has misbehaved. If you give them a ring or send them an e-mail detailing the symptoms, the NASA guys will give you tips on how to fix.

Neil

 

[flyingscampi]

About two minutes before the mast was lifted off the boat I realised that my ST50 cable disappeared through a deck gland into the headlining in my saloon. This lack of foresight meant that I could only pull as much cable up through the gland as possible and cut it. Turned out it ran straight through to the instrument so that meant that the mast had probably been up a loooong time.

Anyway I decided to solder the wires back together as I thought that they were too small for a connector block. Next time the mast comes down I'll unsolder them first...

 

[dam747iam]

both my nasa wind and vhf wires go straight to the units a bit of a pain as the mast comes down each year but worth it to me.

 

[Billjratt]

Hi Ken, I think our radar is by the same manufacturer!
I use 'chocolate bloc' technology in boxes above deck at the mast foot - a true recipe for disaster, but inherited and, so far, reasonably effective.
I was (especially for the radar) thinking of Plessey plugs and sockets if they are still available, as they had coaxial/signal/power pins in a high-quality shell.
If I had a real prob, I would eliminate with solder and tape for the season and plan for the future....

 

[Bodach na mara]

Thanks all for the suggestions. I think I will revert to chocolate block for this season but I like the ides of ferules on the wire ends. These wires are so thin and fiddly. I hope that works and that the problem is not at the masthead. The mast lying horizontally meant that the joint between the two bits of the masthead fitting was vertical and I suppose could have let some water in. Must remember to cover it next winter.