Navtex-worth having?

[ditchcrawler]

I cruise the East Coast -Kent to Norfolk & might go to Holland.Is Navtex worth having.What will it give me that the web,radio & coastguard reports will not.

 

[sailorman]

there cheap for a nights sleep.
the nasa navtex pro + works well enough draws little power ( mine on all the time )
40 m/a i seem to remember.
very usefull to have

 

[FWB]

You can read the weather whenever you like....no need to be near a wireless at a particular time. Great piece of kit, broadband on a laptop is better but unlikely to work at sea.

 

[ShipsWoofy]

Navtex-worth having?

Yes!


Next?


/forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif

 

[Koeketiene]

Yes

1. Don't need to get up at ungodly hour
2. Don't need to rely on out of date marina forecasts (if they can be bothered at all).
3. You DO get up to date forecasts (and much else) from different sources.

 

[AliM]

Yes, definitely. For all the reasons above, and so that you have the weather forecast in front of you, in English, rather than scribbled down off a crackly VHF at inconvenient times.

Note that the VHF inshore weather forecasts in Holland are brilliant, in english every 4 (?) hours, and give quite local information.

 

[cpedw]

Another feature which I like is arriving at the boat and having a current forecast available immediately in case I haven't been paying atttention before setting out. It can help with choosing which way to go (or not!). I leave the Navtex on when not on board just for that.

Derek.

 

[Phoenix of Hamble]

Plus, detailed information on navigation warnings....

Useful rather than trying to catch lat/long when read out on the VHF.......

 

[davidbains]

A constantly updated and permanently available weather synopsis and forecast
frees you from radio skeds and poor propagation. If you can afford it get a Furuno set.

 

[Guest]

I have one ... but actually don't use it enough ....

In fact I considered de-rigging it and fitting it in my office out here as many a time our ships are delayed, affected by weather.

Use of the navtex .... as a casual "tripper" on the boat ... it is an overkill ......... a Xmas Pressy bought by ex some years ago when we still were together ... I couldn't think of anything else at the time ...
But if you are more serious and the Teletext Shipping forecast / weatherperson is not enough then yes it is a good tool.

I would like to get a PC based one for office .... now that would be handy ... but I can't believe the price for an antennae and a bit of cable ..... 120 quid ...

 

[temptress]

We have one and because we have it we use it. I've found in Mid -European waters (UK, Holland, Denmark, to Nothern Spain) I get the same information from other sources and don't need it. But in Norway or Spain or the MED it is very usefull.

So depends on where you are crusing and how long you are out for.

 

[Mirelle]

No

I have the same cruising range as you. Quite unnecessary here; might be worth while somewhere more exotic.

 

[Phoenix of Hamble]

Re: No

Not sure I agree Mirelle...... not essential for sure..... but convenient ... yes.... I for one, don't miss setting alarms on my watch to remind me to catch the Radio 4 or VHF forecasts...... or having to tell the kids to quieten down while the weather is being broadcasted, or trying to scribble down nav warnings, and hope that I've got the lat/long of the new nav mark in Vlissingen noted down correctly etc etc

 

[BlueChip]

I find it useful for all the reasons given above but also for the extended forecast given once a day.

As far as I know none of the broadcast forecasts give a 3 day extended forecast so when planning a long weekend away its always a bit of a lottery knowing what the weather will be doing when its time to come home. With Navtex you always have that look-ahead forecast to know if anything nasty is coming, that gives plenty of time to abandon the trip or come home early. It is available on the web as well but thats not a lot of use at sea

Here is todays extended forecast covering Wednesday - Friday
"Outlook for all UK Inshore Waters for following 3 days: strong to severe gale force south or southwest winds expected around the United Kingdom coastline through the rest of Wednesday, Thursday and Friday, with the strongest winds likely to be found around England and Wales."

The ICS/McMurdo Navtex doubles up as a very powerful NMEA repeater. I wouldn't be without mine
If you do get one, make sure its capable of receiving both 580 and 419 KHZ transmissions automatically

 

[Koeketiene]

[ QUOTE ]
If you can afford it get a Furuno set.

[/ QUOTE ]

Nothing else comes close

 

[LadyInBed]

Yes, I was quite impressed with your ICS, the NMEA repeater is useful.

But it is still a few items down my wish list.

 

[thalassa]

Addicted to Navtex ! You can taste the flavour by visting this:
http://www.navtex.nl/index.htm , which gives you current navtex messages for the Dutch and Belgian coast.

 

[ridgy]

Another vote in favour.

You also get the inshore forecast for all the areas along the coast which helps you form a better overall picture, especially if a low is coming through, or if you are near an area boundary.

 

[philip_stevens]

Nigel,
here's one off the internet
http://www.frisnit.com/cgi-bin/navtex/view.cgi?NAVAREA=1&action=browse&TYPE=24H

 

[Oldhand]

ICS Nav6 display is much nicer...