which Radar & Chart plotter ?

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homa

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I like the idea of the raymarine multi function stuff but it is so expensive.

Seems to me that I can get the same but cheaper by buying these items separately from other manufacturers. I like the idea of separate kit for separate functions, only downside seems to be space to put it all.

e.g. Lawrence appears to be highly thought of for a value plotter

and JRC or Furuno for stand alone radar??

As regards radar i'd like the option to upgrade to MARPA at some time in the future is this possible or do I have to buy the set with this capability now?

I'm sure there are many of you that have been through this buying process already... There just seems to be so much choice..
 
I have a JRC radar which for the money works very well. The main advantage to me was the size of the scanner 12"
 
It's a catch 22 though isn't it, the smaller the scanner the less detail, i.e. large horizontal beam width giving poor target discrimination at same range?
If I want MARPA then presumably I'd need better target definition and hence a bigger scanner ?
 
I'm going thro the same decision at the moment and currently favour the Furuno 1623, at the cheaper end standalone and seems to get good reviews from users on this forum. You can spend a hell of a lot more, but I'm not convinced its worth it given a restricted budget and how much use it will actually get. I just want to know in poor visiblility if there are any big hard lumps nearby and are they moving; the range of 16NM seems adequate to me for this purpose. 800 quid from cactus, but the quote for supply and fit I have had seems really high (double). Lots of stories about DIY cheaper, but I have also read that furuno wont guarantee unless professional fit.
 
I have a Furuno 1722C. Having colour display is really nice. As for Furuno service it has been great. Their online service always gives an answer within 24 hours. I also have a Furuno heading sensor that was passed is warranty period when it stopped working. I sent it back expecting to pay big bucks to get it fixed. They replaced it with a new one and even a new set of cables and shipped it back all free.
 
If you want MARPA...

If you want MARPA, either now or at some point in the future, your best bet would be the Raymarine C-series. The small JRC and Furuno radars don't have any MARPA capability. The big benefit of buying a combined radar/chartplotter such as the C-series is that you can overlay the radar image on top of the chart, making interpretation much easier. And, of course, you benefit from a high-definition colour screen. You can get a Raymarine C70 colour radar/plotter with 18" 2kW scanner and 15m cable delivered to your door for less than £1600. Although you might think Raymarine's prices are high, just check out the prices for similar kit from Simrad, Garmin, etc!

An additional point in favour of the latest Raymarine radar/plotters is that they are very easy to use, with well thought-out menu systems and simple onscreen prompts. Older Raymarine products, such as the RL series, aren't as easy to use.
 
Re: Radar without MARPA

OK then I suppose I could consider radar without MARPA if I could get a speed input and decent heading input to the radar, then I could use target trails to give an indication of CPA. Anyone use this set up as described ?
 
Re: Radar without MARPA

Bear in mind that target trails aren't selective - everything on the screen, including buoys and shoreline, will leave a trail. Could be confusing.
 
Re: Radar without MARPA

Better to set your EBL on the target. Most RADAR has two EBL which should be plenty for tracking purposes.

You can also plot by chinagraph, utilizing a small piece of perspex to write on.

Or

plot on to paper plotting sheets.
 
Re: Radar without MARPA

Speed & heading input would give me a stabilised display so that only moving targets would show a trail.
 
Re: Radar without MARPA

Yep I know, but an EBL for collision assessment would only work if I had a stabilised display. I'm looking for the cheapest and simplest option that would give me an indication of CPA.

What basic radar(s) give trails ?

To use an EBL without stabilisation would mean steering a steady course and watching the screen continuously, not easy in a seaway or when singlehanded.

If I could find a radar that had a stabilised picture & produced history trails this would enable me to glance at the screen from time to time and at least give an indication of any potentially dangerous target(s)

I'm not planning on going down the route of plotting with a chinagraph - not on a rolling yacht anyway - been there done that.
 
True motion...

What you're describing is generally termed "true motion" display, and you won't find it on budget radars. Raymarine C-series has it.
 
Re: which Radar & Chart plotter ?

Best to go for a single manufacturer cos when something doesn't work it will always be someone else's kit causing the problem.

We got Simrad kit - not cheap but you do tend to get what you pay for.
 
Re: speed & heading input

Ok tx for that

I had assumed I could just put a speed and heading input into any radar....
 
Lowrance accepts input of various ... so may be worth checking as to how the radar puts out data ?? Probably won't show on the LR .... who knows ?

Yes the LR plotters are getting good marks - as price deals are hard to beat.
 
Re: which Radar & Chart plotter ?

Try this;-
http://www.furuno.co.jp/english/marine/index.html

the 1832, is not colour, but is a good workhorse, and has trails.
It is used by a lot of commercials, and has been in production for a long time but still available.
There is an option to add an auto plotter.

The main problem with all in one systems is, if it goes down you can lose the lot, where as stand alones.
 
But it\'s over £2000!!!

The Furuno 1832 is over £2000 - hardly my idea of a budget radar. You must work to a more lavish budget than the rest of us!

Don't know whether you've ever actually seen an 1832, but it's a huge piece of kit, with a 10" CRT display and a 4kW radome.
 
Re: But it\'s over £2000!!!

I just bought one second hand for considerably less than that.
had it bench tested, and found it to be a good serviceable radar.
the size is a different matter, but if you can find room a 10" display will obviously give you a better picture.
As to power that is another problem.
The marine telecom company that checked it out for me, actually recommended it as one of the better sets made.
 
I've been through exactly the same agonies.

Started out looking at the JRC 1500 and, by the time we had thought about what we really want out of the system, have finished up opting for the "C Series".

When we talked about the ideal system that we would specify for a new boat, to equip it for short handed cruising, as I can see the kids coming less frequently from now on, it made sense to bite the bullet, rather than wish we had and be looking to upgrade.

My boatyard's quote for fitting the JRC was about £850.00, the £1600 that you have mentioned is nearer to the fitting cost for the "C Series" with heading sensor, new wheel pilot and extra batteries, and that includes the shuffle round of my existing instruments to make room on the binnacle.
 
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