Fitting tri lens radar reflector.

[Elessar]

Bought the medium sized one which is right for a boat of my size.

It comes with a thread top and bottom and a hole down the middle.

It comes with a mast bracket (no good for me of course) and a flush threaded bracket that you can put on a flat surface and just screw the reflector into it. As the threads are the same as VHF, TV and GPS aerials, you can put, say, a GPS on top of the reflector and run the cable down the middle. Very neat.

But if I put mine flush on the radar arch it will obscure my own radar.

I have a hoop over the top of my radar that has all sorts of clutter on it, but I could put the reflector where the GPS receiver is and put the GPS receiver on top of the reflector.

But the reflector has male threads top and bottom. You can get all sorts of devices to raise GPS and other threaded things, but they all have male on one end female on the other which doesn't help.

So - I either need a collar with female threads either end. It would need to be metal not plastic as the reflector is quite weighty. Where could I get one of these?

Or I could screw the flush bracket to the top of the radar dome itself (raymarine, 4kW analogue). Can anyone see any harm in this? (I would make sure it was bolted with short enough bolts not to foul the whirly thing whatever that's called)

Thanks!

 

[SimonD]

I'm no expert, but the GPS ideally needs to be as low as possible, consistent with an uninterrupted view of the sky. Putting on top of the reflector seems counter-intuitive. Conversely, the reflector needs to be as high as possible; but, you don't have a mast (sorry to here that). Is it possible to get a pole - even a metre would make a difference - and put the reflector on that. Re-siting the VHF aerial to it would also be beneficial.

Simon

 

[Elessar]

I'm no expert, but the GPS ideally needs to be as low as possible, consistent with an uninterrupted view of the sky. Putting on top of the reflector seems counter-intuitive. Conversely, the reflector needs to be as high as possible; but, you don't have a mast (sorry to here that). Is it possible to get a pole - even a metre would make a difference - and put the reflector on that. Re-siting the VHF aerial to it would also be beneficial.

Simon

Happy to get a pole and not touch the GPS - so where can I get a pole with a female thread? Strong enough to take the horizontal force of the trilens when i hit things (waves that is).

 

[SimonD]

I was afraid you'd ask that. How about: http://www.tcschandlery.co.uk/9855/TCS-Chandlery-Stainless-Steel-Extension-Pole-30cm.html

or:

http://www.marinemegastore.com/product.asp?pf_id=SMG_818_AEP075&jump=0&cat_id=

Might need a bit of imagination and/or fiddling about. Failing that, I'm sure a local fabricator could knock something up.

 

[Elessar]

I was afraid you'd ask that. How about: http://www.tcschandlery.co.uk/9855/TCS-Chandlery-Stainless-Steel-Extension-Pole-30cm.html

or:

http://www.marinemegastore.com/product.asp?pf_id=SMG_818_AEP075&jump=0&cat_id=

Might need a bit of imagination and/or fiddling about. Failing that, I'm sure a local fabricator could knock something up.

Thanks for trying - been looking at all these places - all poles say , "male and female fittings. Ideal for GPS and other antennas".

I need female and female. I just don't understand why trilens didn't put male on one end and female on the other, or supply an adaptor.

It is looking like I will have to resort to a fabricator, jsut seems crazy to have to. I felt sure at least someone would have fitted one of these things.