Wind instrument as help to inexperienced crew?

[nherment]

Thanks you all for the insightful replies

To answer some of the questions:
- Autopilot: a new Pelagic autopilot has already been ordered
- AIS: this was already close to the top of my list. Most of you say it's higher priority than the wind instruments and that makes sense. I will actually go with a transceiver.
- The mast already has a windvane, which I've never been a big fan of (the neck does not like it). The windvane does not have tacking tabs.
- Charts: I have paper charts + Navionics on a tablet

Some takeaways from your inputs:
- Wind instruments are indeed quite helpful but not necessary. They are effective at night. (Personally never ever used any. We crossed the Northern Atlantic with GPS + compass)
- Telltales on shrouds + sails work well.
- I should not have an inexperienced crew do a night watch unattended. Now that you say it it makes sense. It is important for me to know and I will plan the trip accordingly. The first few days will be only day sailing. Depending on how I feel about the crew we may avoid night sailing altogether. It's not like we'll be short of anchorages.
- Good input regarding sea sickness. One of the crew will not be seasick and is a solid, reliable guy. The other crew might be sea sick. I know there is a 50% chance he'll bail out which is ok and planned for (I've known these guys for some time and done some good adventures with them).


I like my toys so I'll be on the lookout for wind instruments after the AIS is setup. I've noticed some B&G and Garmin on sale and will monitor if there are some further discounts before the sailing season starts.
If I get any new instruments, the intention is to standardize them to NMEA2000 so that I can put all the data in a logger (I'm a bit of a tech nut) to record and share. Then maybe in a year or two, plug all that into a chartplotter.

I will very likely share some pictures and a log of the trip

[gmakhs]

Wind indicators and expensive and kind of unnecessary , the new crew will learn really fast to understand when the boat needs to be reefed , small boats like mine as well really speak to you when it's time to reef .
I wouldn't spent the money on wind instruments .

[Gruz]

I thought that "wind instruments" are....


Flute

Oboe

Clarinet

Bassoon

[OS2Dude]

I prefer to have a wind instrument. I don't use it for forecasting, but it beats staring up into the sun to see the windex and is very handy when sailing at night. (Unlike those who think the anchor light is there to illuminate the windex… ) You can find some that also have air pressure and air temperature, so you could use those to see if a storm is brewing.

[thunderhoof]

Wind speed and direction plus a boatspeed log are useful in many ways, especially at night. The log will tell you if you are dragging kelp or whatever, for example. An apparent wind direction display is much easier to steer to in the dark in open water compared to telltales or a masthead Windex.

Making one or two knots less than you expect will really affect transit time. GPS heading and speed are useful in a long term sense, but not to steer by. I like using a navigation program such as Open CPN with an older laptop to track progress on a course.
That said you cannot give less experienced sailors better advice than to "keep their eyes out of the boat". Making good boat speed on course is useless if it takes you into a floating cargo container.

[gmakhs]

Originally Posted by OS2Dude

I prefer to have a wind instrument. I don't use it for forecasting, but it beats staring up into the sun to see the windex and is very handy when sailing at night. (Unlike those who think the anchor light is there to illuminate the windex… ) You can find some that also have air pressure and air temperature, so you could use those to see if a storm is brewing.

I wonder why they just don't use a flash light ??

[nherment]

Originally Posted by OS2Dude

Unlike those who think the anchor light is there to illuminate the windex…

Hahaha! I actually broke the old anchor light by checking the the masthead sheaves. After replacing the anchor light with a very cool led one, I am looking forward to see how it will light up the windex Not while navigating, of course

[Hoodsail]

NHerment - I added Garmin's GNX wired sail pack in May 2017. the displays, when working, have been helpful in my explaining to inexperienced friends, how to orient the boat to the wind (in addition to the routine sail tell tales, fullness of sail, heel of boat, etc). Also helpful as has been noted at nite. So overall a nice to have, not need to...One word of caution. My Garmin group was completely removed this year while the boat is on the hard, because the unit just would not work routinely. I uploaded a pic of the readouts - in the turtle position..After much prodding by the boat yard Garmin finally accepted the entire group back realizing their was a glitch in the system, somewhere - more detail from Garmin to follow.
thnks dave

[Yellow bird]

Good tools

A little uncomfortable to stay a couple of hours on watch upside down

[Uricanejack]

Originally Posted by nherment

Hi,


I am very junior when it comes to sailing: 3 years mostly on dinghies, crewing bigger boats and one longer sea passage (in really bad seas). The boat (recently owned) is an Albin Vega.


I am planning a couple of weeks of summer cruising with some friends (total 3 of us) along the Swedish west coast. We're all in our early to mid 30s and will mostly hop from anchorage to anchorage. There will be a couple of longer legs without stop (48hours maximum).


- The first crew is an experienced windsurfer from the Mediterranean sea. I expect that he will know if the wind picks up and it's time to call for more hands on deck to reef more.
- The second crew has no experience sailing. Sailing will probably not come naturally to him.




We intend to have some watch rotation during these longer legs,

The boat currently has no sailing instruments other than a basic GPS and a depth sounder.



I am asking myself if it's worth it adding more instruments (namely wind speed & direction + maybe a log). Cost is a non-issue and I would neither mind the installation nor the new shiny display in the cockpit. However it's not something really 'needed' and mostly comes down to: Will wind instruments help the inexperienced crew steer and monitor the boat when they are on watch?



It seems to me that with modern weather forecasts, proper planning and a bit of teaching, missing wind instruments will not make things more difficult. I don't have enough experience to know that for sure though.



Hence my question: In your experience, does having wind instruments significantly help inexperienced crew steer the boat and signal for changing conditions when they are on watch?

Not in my opinion. You don’t need them. By all means if you can afford them and want instruments get some. Your windsurfing friend will know how to figure out the wind. Your other friend is probably smarter than you think.

Tie some wool to the shrouds as “tell tails”and watch the tell tails on the sails. Along with feeling the wind on your face. Look at the sea surface for the true wind and thevtell tails will show you the relative wind. The new guy will find it easier and quicker to understand by looking at and feeling the wind.

Advise you get a book on basic sailing. Some of the RYA ones are very good simple and clear. Talk your friends into reading a bit about boats and sailing before you set off. It will help.
A book on simple coastal navigation along with some simple descriptions of the collision regs and lights vessels show at night will be good reading.

Prior to setting off. Spend a bit of time at the dock showing your friends around the boat, tell them what the various bits and pieces are called. Show them how to hoist, stow, reef, the sails along with unfurl furl the sails. It will be well worth it when you get out on the water. It will also help them to feel involved.

Before you set of each day take a look at the chart with your friends show them where you are going and what you expect to see. Ask them to keep an eye out for various features. By getting them involved they will understand what is going on.

Sailing at night is not a big deal. Talk about it first. Talk about the lights andvessels you might see on route. Your friends are smart people they will figure it out.

Sailing is safe fun and easy, despite what some would tell you you don’t need anything fancy in the way of instruments or electronics. Just Pencil ruler eraser a chart and compass. A watch helps along with a lead line.
All you really need is a bit off common sense and a bit of preparation and you will be fine.

The Swedish coast is beautiful and well marked for navigation.

Have fun there are no sea monsters.

[Hoodsail]

Black Eagle....it beats doing yoga!