Radar

[alan54]

I have had sitting on my boat for seven years a radar that fails to work ! The time for half measures is over and it goes over the side this winter. I never used it and have never used one.
The decision is whether to buy a new one 1500-2000 pounds (it must be Raymarine to match my new GPS/autopilot) or do without !!! and put the money into my pocket and buy a few pints of Guiness instead !
Are radar`s really worth it ? Can a novice really get the benefit of using one ? We normally sail short handed on our 48` ketch is it so wise to be sitting looking at a radar screen trying to fathom out whats going on instead of being in the cockpit ?
One foot note to this is last year we sailed from Spain to Gig in 50` of vis we couldn`t see the rock 20` away we nearly ran down the local police boat anchored close inshore. He shouted ``put your radar on`` I replied ``It dosn`t work`` Have I answered my question ?
regards,
Alan Jackson

 

[ccscott49]

Basically, Yes you have answered your own question, Its a personal opinion, but I consider, radar, GPS, echo sounder as the most useful bits of electronics on a boat. I would get a new radar, I'll bet there are numerous people around who will teach you how to use it, No kidding, I would speak to the motor boat fraternity, because they do things at a faster speed and so are usually right up there with the best when it comes to radar identification. Best of luck, most radars these days will talk to your other instruments!

 

[HaraldS]

Definitely get the radar. I would put it very high on the list of useful stuff.
Consider mounting it in the cockpit, todays units are really that waterproof or think about a repeater.
You not necessarily need a Raymarine one in order to make it work with the navigator as it will most likley also output NMEA GPS data.
Heading information from an electronic compass or autopilot may also be useful and is needed if you want to do things like north-up, but I prefer the regular display with the heading line up.
It is easy to learn to use it.

 

[Twister_Ken]

So, it hasn't worked for seven years, you don't know how to use it, and on the ocassion you nearly pranged you were in shallow enough water to anchor and wait for the vis to improve.

That's why they're called beer vouchers, not radar vouchers.

 

[billskip]

as cc says ask the power boat boys...especially the ones in the locks on the thames..

realy tho..I have radar and have never used it ..apart from showing how it works to friends(thats not often dont have many. .sad.) but feel much better knowing its there if needed ...replace it there easy to use..easier than some of these new tvs...

 

[Chris_Robb]

I installed radar last year (Ray marine) very much at the insistance of her in doors.
I used it in deadly earnest 3 times during the season.

1. Needles channel May bank holiday - sudden fog decended - hundereds of boats large and small around -
2. Going down the Cannel de Four at night in fog
3. Cross Channel in 1/2 mile visbility when we fouled our prop in no wind and thunderstorms in the east bound shipping lanes.

During the year we used it nearly everytime we went out in good visability, when you could see what you were looking at and therefore interpret what was on the screen. We soon got enough knowledge very quickly to make it a very useful tool.

We run my 40ft Ketch on a very tight budget, and I do not regret installing this particular peice of kit

 

[Guest]

I suggest you buy the best that you can afford. The display is much easier to interpret if the radar has a narrow pulse width and narrow beamwidth. The narrower the better, but more expensive. The cheaper sets are more difficult to interpret and you will need to spend more time at the screen.

 

[billmacfarlane]

Alan , why 7 years ? I'm a relative to radar but with my limited usage so far , I'm a fan. You can use it for so many different uses apart fron eyes in the fog, It's good for getting distance off an object , it's great for getting distave from ships at night and calculating their speed for collision avoidance and much more. I use Raytheon CLC72 , combined chart plotter/radar but you're not tied to a particular brand just because you got existing Raytheon gear.

 

[AndrewB]

The best you can afford?

I'm not convinced of this, having had both top range and fairly basic models. It rather depends what you want them for.

Top range models with CRT displays show good detail, for example of coastlines. If you want to use radar as your main navigation tool, this would be the right choice.

Economy models, with LCD displays, show ships and hills as less well defined smudges. This is quite adequate for collision avoidance in poor visibility.

Of course, the top range model will 'see' much further, but really 6 miles is more than adequate for a sailing yacht.

 

[Guest]

I've recently bought a radar (Ray SL72?), which talks to my gps and displays any waypoints on the screen together with the echos. I find this very useful as my destination is displayed as a picture on a screen and not just numbers counting down on the gps. A chart plotter would be nice for xmas though???

 

[Guest]

Essential equipment, although in your example you wd have had important and useful information from your depth sounder.

1 CRT displays are much clearer than LCD.
2 Your boat sounds though it might be big enough for a cockpit display. I have mine mounted so I can see the display from the companionway, but wd be better on deck.

 

[charles_reed]

I find the reasoning a trifle hard to follow.

Why doesn't your radar work - they are robust and old-fashioned devices that can be easily diagnosed.

Until you've found out the reason for the malfunction, this talk of throwing it overboard is surely premature and, if it's one of the Raytheon 10/20 or 40X models most unwise, as they are one of the best sets ever manufactured.

The only things that wear in an X-band radar are the micro-frontend (failure any time) or the magnetron (after > 1000 hours).

The magnetron replacement costs about £600 and a micro-frontend about £800 and any reasonable electrical handyman can fit them.

If you're just not getting power, the most likely cause is a simple blown fuse.

So action 1 get your radar working or, at least diagnose the reason for not working.

In my experience of having a radar, they are immensely worthwhile, though those who don't have one would dispute that (we'll they would wouldn't they).

For an all-weather coastal navigator I'd rate them below a compass but ahead of a GPS in the usefulness stakes and even more invaluable when you sail short-handed.

Raster screens are far easier to read than LCD screens, but use more power, and you should be able to fit the screen so it can be seen through the companionway as well as from the nav station.
As regards learning how to use one, a one-day familiarisation course, plus regular practice thereafter will make one an adequate operator.