instruments kaput - suggestions for wind direction indicator please

[Burnham Bob]

My wind instruments now show speed but not direction. I can't afford to have the vane removed, services and replaced at the moment although I may at the end of the season. (You can see that the vane itself has broken and I know I can get the unit serviced and repaired.)
Sailing this weekend I realised how much I misssed the direction indicator - especially when tacking. Without climbing the mast any suggestions?
A burgee up at the top on the flag halyard doesn't work - the wind shadow of the mast is too great. But maybe two ribbons up at the spreaders (I have a courtesy flag halyard on either side) might do the trick? I could always tie something to the backstay as high as I could reach but I'd like something I can look at forward.

Any suggestions that can be done cheaply without climbing the mast?

 

[TonyBuckley]

Personally I'd say none. Wind instruments are the least useful imo. I lost all mine some years ago on an old boat and my current tacktick system is useless.

My ears have become the best available system available.

There was a recent great thread about apparent and true wind which was fab for understanding the theory but it didn't change my sailing tactics and I seem to manage by judgement.

 

[dylanwinter]

Personally I'd say none. Wind instruments are the least useful imo. I lost all mine some years ago on an old boat and my current tacktick system is useless.

My ears have become the best available system available.

There was a recent great thread about apparent and true wind which was fab for understanding the theory but it didn't change my sailing tactics and I seem to manage by judgement.

I love my burgee

mechnaically is seems to be both sound and accurate

it has been killed in the odd tree though

one other advantage is that it makes finding the boat in a marina much easier

 

[James_Calvert]

+1 to burgee, but it does need to be on a stick like dylan's. You can have the stick as long as you like to get clear of the mast head clutter. Just space out the securing clove hitches enough and it won't wobble about too much.

But you'll get a crick in the neck if you have to look at it all the time....

 

[Caer Urfa]

My wind instruments now show speed but not direction. I can't afford to have the vane removed, services and replaced at the moment although I may at the end of the season. (You can see that the vane itself has broken and I know I can get the unit serviced and repaired.)
Sailing this weekend I realised how much I misssed the direction indicator - especially when tacking. Without climbing the mast any suggestions?
A burgee up at the top on the flag halyard doesn't work - the wind shadow of the mast is too great. But maybe two ribbons up at the spreaders (I have a courtesy flag halyard on either side) might do the trick? I could always tie something to the backstay as high as I could reach but I'd like something I can look at forward.
Any suggestions that can be done cheaply without climbing the mast?

Hi Bob

Maybe some food for thought !

Seven years ago as I do not exactly have an racing yacht (CW motor sailer) I contacted all of the wind indicator manufacturers with the same question, Whilst excepting the correct place for a wind indicator is at the top of the main mast what differance in readings would I get mounting it on the stern, 12' above water level and 7' from the back of my boom.

All said 1 to 3mph max, (in seven years I have checked and it averages 1.75mph differance) occationally 2 1/2 mph differance depending on direction of wind direction coming off the main sail.

I use a simple NASA target wind unit and in seven years sailing all year round in all conditions I have only replaced the cups and indicator once AND
it takes me twenty minutes to change it.

I made the ss mast from 25mm dia ss tube and fittings which also folds down horizontal by removing a pin at the bottom.

Hope this is food for thought!
Mike

View attachment 42289

 

[mrming]

My fancy Nexus wireless wind thingy has never worked, so I've been using telltales on the shrouds as a temporary fix for direction - basically a piece of thin rip stop nylon on each side. Hoping to fix the bleedin' thing this season!

 

[mrplastic]

Hi Bob

Maybe some food for thought !

Seven years ago as I do not exactly have an racing yacht (CW motor sailer) I contacted all of the wind indicator manufacturers with the same question, Whilst excepting the correct place for a wind indicator is at the top of the main mast what differance in readings would I get mounting it on the stern, 12' above water level and 7' from the back of my boom.

All said 1 to 3mph max, (in seven years I have checked and it averages 1.75mph differance) occationally 2 1/2 mph differance depending on direction of wind direction coming off the main sail.

I use a simple NASA target wind unit and in seven years sailing all year round in all conditions I have only replaced the cups and indicator once AND
it takes me twenty minutes to change it.

I made the ss mast from 25mm dia ss tube and fittings which also folds down horizontal by removing a pin at the bottom.

Hope this is food for thought!
Mike

View attachment 42289

That, is a very useful idea. I need to replace my masthead sensor and have already asked questions in this forum. I think I may well give this a try, I have a replacement system so have nothing to lose and it could well save a climb up the mast! Ta very much

 

[Champagne Murphy]

Facing the same problem at the moment. Masthead instrument has been overhauled but now I'm thinking there is a dry joint somewhere in the power supply so the next job is too run through the lot starting with the fuse connector which is rather elderly. I probably should have done it that way first but heigh-ho, we live and learn

 

[Javelin]

I like the look of this although it's not cheap, it's however cheaper than others and wireless - http://www.sailtimerwind.com/

 

[ghostlymoron]

I'm in favour of woolies on my shrouds. Cheap, accurate (ish) and you don't get a crick in your neck looking at it. Automatically shows apparent wind. For wind speed - start reefing when your hat blows off!

 

[Steve C Cronin]

Mostly I tack by watching those watery things that keep going past the boat. Oh, what are they called?
Ah yes: "Waves", or looking at my house flags/courtesy ensign. I know a few Scandinavians who have rigged a dinghy burgee on their stern gantrys (Bit like the "Boat Test Journos" do!). When sailing in Greece, you often can't see the masthead for the bimini!

 

[Uricanejack]

I have similar problem with my ray marine auto helm instruments.
Wind speed OK. Direction completely screwed.
Was 30 degree on STBD tack and 60 degree on Port tack Now reading right ahead and 90.
The Vane and arrows are a bit out.
I just use tell tales and sea state. a little ribbon of survey tape on the shrouds works well.
I suppose I could get them fixed. But I never had instruments before so I don’t miss them

 

[Andrew G]

+1 for telltails on the shrouds (and on the sails). Its not hard to repair the masthead gear but it does involve getting it down and back up again. Andrew

 

[john_morris_uk]

First of all I'm not too sure about all the replies that say don't bother. If the wind direction at the masthead is important to you then why shouldn't you mend it? I look at my masthead burgee all the time as it gives a try reading of what the true wind is doing. I can manage without, but why should I bother? However to answer your question:

The easiest answer is wool on the shrouds. The windward one is the most accurate and putting something on the backstay will NOT give you a very good reading as its often in the deflected wind from the main.

A burgee on a stick pulled up the masthead is a good idea - provided that you've got a burgee halyard to the top of the mast. If you haven't, and you've got to go and put one there, then you might as well fix your current system!

Which leads me to: what's the problem with going up the mast? Get some willing volunteers to help and beg borrow a climbing harness or a bosuns chair. (Use a spare halyard as a safety line and brief the people winching and tailing.) Unless the boat is tiny, it won't fall over. If you are genuinely scared of heights, get someone from the club to do it and pay them with a couple of beers. Going to the top of the mast is no big deal.

If you get to the top of the mast and you can't afford to replace the electronic wind direction indicator, take it down and look at mending it. If its just part of the direction arm that's broken, you've just got to make sure its balances and its free to rotate. Cobble something together with bits of plastic and glue. Add weight to balance it (I've used bits of lead in the past.) If you can't mend it and you can't afford to replace it, put a proper 'wind hawk' up there? They never seem to break (unless some seagull tries to sit on it.)

Good luck.

 

[Burnham Bob]

thanks - i'll try the steamers at the shrouds.

 

[Steve C Cronin]

I have similar problem with my ray marine auto helm instruments.
Wind speed OK. Direction completely screwed.
Was 30 degree on STBD tack and 60 degree on Port tack Now reading right ahead and 90.
The Vane and arrows are a bit out.
I just use tell tales and sea state. a little ribbon of survey tape on the shrouds works well.
I suppose I could get them fixed. But I never had instruments before so I don’t miss them

Mine has shown True and APP the wrong way around since it was new in 2001. The data sent to the chart table repeater (ST 40) has also always given a wind direction 90degrees out. It has now finally packed up completely, manifested in the needle just rotating constantly. The Raymarine agent in Levkas diagnosed it as a motor problem but he didn't have a replacement available. I bought a new ST60+ head on ebay and now await the results when I return to the boat in a few weeks time.

 

[Burnham Bob]

as for replacment if necessary, I know NASA seem to have a bad repoutation but so does every other make of wind instruments and at least the NASA unit is cheap

 

[PuffTheMagicDragon]

My fancy Nexus wireless wind thingy has never worked, so I've been using telltales on the shrouds as a temporary fix for direction - basically a piece of thin rip stop nylon on each side. Hoping to fix the bleedin' thing this season!

Not quite what I wanted to read today as my boat is on the hard and I am in the process of fitting a Nexus Start Pack 3 (Seadata plus Winddata via a wireless link). Could you please elaborate on the problems that you have had? Thanks.

 

[mrming]

Not quite what I wanted to read today as my boat is on the hard and I am in the process of fitting a Nexus Start Pack 3 (Seadata plus Winddata via a wireless link). Could you please elaborate on the problems that you have had? Thanks.

The battery in the wireless unit on the mast is a rechargeable unit powered by a small solar panel.

If you let the battery run down by having the mast down for a period of time then you may have to replace it as the solar panel isn't man enough to bring it back from completely flat.

You then have to pair the unit by holding it near the Winddata display before putting it up the mast.

I've got as far as buying a new battery and now need to fit it and pair the devices before putting the mast back up.

You should be fine as everything is new. Just remember if you take your mast down at the end of the season to put the masthead unit somewhere where it can get a bit of sun.

 

[Spirit of Glenans]

At the sailing school where I do voluntary keel boat instructing, the time-honoured improvisation is to purloin a J-Cloth from the kitchen and tie strips of it to the shrouds. However, if a lot of manoeuvres are performed, they have to be periodically uncoiled from around the shrouds
On my previous boat, when the cups arrangement fell off, I fitted the replacement using a titanium tongue-piercing barbell of suitable length and diameter, being in the business of wholesaling such items. I'm tempted to apply the same modification from new,to the NASA unit I'm about to fit to my current boat!