Yacht Instruments! Raymarine Vs Navman Vs simrad

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woody001

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Hi,

Was looking at the log wheel today and notice a number of cracks, this is the last time i have buy nasa - i have had 2 boats with nasa instuments on, all brand all, all break!

So upgrade time! :-)

I like raymarine, not to keen on the expense, but can you have the depth transducer mounted inside the hull? Not to keen on drilling a hole out.


What are people's view of navman and simrad, how good are they? Again, i dont want to drill a hold for the depth tranducer.

How reliable are navman?

Any tips would be cool.

Rock On!

Simon
 
I was deciding between Navman 3100 series and Raymarine ST50 series last year at LIBS - bought the Navman for the cost savings, but had problems with condensation in *all* 3 of the display heads..... they are currently on their way back to Plastimo/Navman for inspection.

I'm sorry I decided to save the few pounds.... wish I bought the Raymarine kit which seems to be good quality.
 
I have used Raymarine kit on the last two of our boats and used it on a few others. Never had any problems but this isn't a very scientific sample. The B&G kit is very good but with a price to match!

I am sure that you can mount a Raymarine e/s transducer in an oil bath on the inside of the hull. Personally, I have never had a problem with drilling a hole for the transducer - but each to their own.
 
have you contacted NASA because they have very few problems usually. I recommend Raymarine but have heard varied reports about the Navman series but have no experience of these
 
No one mentioning Tacktick ?? reportedly good quality equipment and could be less cabling too (mast head wind is cordless 4 one ..)

we have raymarine st60 (thanks to a lightning strike!) and very happy with it ...
 
Forget the rest and buy the best! ...as they say! You will never regret splashing out on Raymarine products. You will still be enjoying their quality in ten years time!
My experience with other "me too" brands would fill a book!
Stick with the market leader. They are the benchmark products.
Yes of course you can mount ANY depth (or fishfinder) transducer inside the boat provided it is just a single fibreglass thickness. (ie. not balsa cored) Just snuggle it down into a big heap of silicone sealant. (B&Q - £2)
No connections with marine industry other than financing it!!!
Cheers - Peter
 
NASA instruments - the only brand we constantly hold spare parts in stock for!

As mentioned by Fireball, do look at Tacktick. Okay they are a bit more expensive, but,
the quality is good,
no cables in the mast,
you can move displays about the boat
and the chaps at tacktick are a good bunch as well.
Also look at the Triducer system. Speed, depth & temp in one skin fitting.
http://www.yachtbits.com/tacktick/tacktick_micronet_t103_speed_and_depth_system.php

As said by bikeman any depth transducer can be stuck on inside of single skinned hull, but use epoxy or put it in a oil bath for best results. Silicone will absorb signal.

Nothing wrong with Simrad, just tends to be overlooked.

kev
 
G'day Simon,

I seen and used just about every brand over my many years in smallish boats, and, worked on hundreds so my thoughts on what to install is only my opinion.

The only one I would advise is the the Raymarine range; because they are the most robust, most waterproof and by far the easiest to operate. They also have a good display with options for back lighting to suit all conditions. Their back up and service is second to none in my book.

As I said this is only my opinion.

Avagoodweekend......
 
I've had Raymarine on two boats and am happy with it.

I have had one or two problems, but I've always been impressed by their email support when you have queries, and the good service if you need to send kit back for fixing.

If I was starting from fresh though I would look seriously at Tactick. Saving all that cabling is a huge advantage. BUT they don't yet have an autopilot I believe, so that might be an issue - I personally don't like mixing kit.
 
When we bought our boat it had 10-year old, ST50-type or earlier, Raymarine (variously labelled Autohelm, Raytheon) kit.

The autopilot was upgraded as part of a conversion to wheel steering. Two of the displays have had their LCDs replaced as they had become washed out and were very difficult to read at night (fine by day). We needed to replace the bearing sub-assembly in the masthead wind transducer (note, not the whole transducer) a couple of years ago. The ST50 wind had been behaving erratically for a while and we could have gone for a PCB replacement but instead opted for a new, slightly more expensive ST60 wind (which also does VMG - a great way to wind up the helmsman/woman).

Overall the instruments function very well indeed. The displays are very clear. The integration over the Seatalk bus is simple and excellent.

The service and support is likewise excellent. The availability of spares at the detailed level is something one struggles to find these days and, what is more impressive, these are at reasonable prices. And if you get stuck, the telephone support from the chap (it always seems to be the same fellow, also at LIBS) on the technical support line is very good indeed.

So overall, although we have had our share of issues with the kit, the ability to maintain it, along with its base quality, makes me very happy with it. You can generally get a pretty good discount if you shop around. Our local supplier (Waypoint-1 at QAB in Plymouth) has always provided both keen prices and excellent service.

Alan.

NB. I have no connection, other than as a customer, with either Raymarine or Waypoint-1.
 
No experience of Navman. Our own boat has all Raymarine (Autohelm) kit about 10 years old. Raymarine support older products very well, still producing spares, not sure of the length of supporot though.

My friends boat has some Simrad kit on, thats what it came with three years ago when new. Last year when two years old the wind speed transducer failed, inspection showed it to be all corroded. He had to strip it down, clean off all the corrosion and repaint the anodised parts. He had contacted Simrad and gave up with them, they concluded that the corrosion was due to salt water! Yeh go on? Fit for the job springs to mind.

We looked at the Tack Tick kit at LIBS, looks good and not as expensive as you might expect. Tack Tick directors are ex Raymarine, so I'm told.
 
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