Radar (What do I really need)

[Hank Kivett]

As I sit here planning my great journey in the fall I am planning on having up grades to my CS 30 and one of them is Radar...So you are thinking what is his intention and how does he plan on using this new art form. Well here is my mission...leaving NC and headed south to the keys and maybe accross to the islands. Will be single handed 100% (unless someone hitches a ride). I dont see it to be much of an asset going down the ICW unless I go outside for any time and distance at all or in the event i run in to fog or heavy weather but comming back outside is my desire. Now for my question ?...what kind ...best value...and location (mast mounted or stern mounted)...and yes money is an object...so i am ignorant so help me out guys....tell a old county boy what he needs...

[Cap Erict3]

I wouldn't consider traveling the ICW at night without radar. So far I am satisfied with my stern mount. It is about 14' off the water.

You will find that radar will increase your power consumption dramatically.


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[Benz]

Not having one at all is a perfectly viable option. Less cost, less power usage, less windage, less issues. Having one does not relieve you of the responsibility of keeping a good lookout. Save the money, spend it on coconuts.

[DDabs]

In terms of value, some of the lower priced radars are a Raymarine 18" radome for around $1000, or a 3G radar from Navico for around $1300.

Here is a thread about mounting options:
http://www.cruisersforum.com/forums/...nt-117676.html

[chuckr]

we have a stern mounted radar and love it -- i can get to it if need be without going up the mast -- YEA -
we use it for a variety of things -- looking for ships in our path, calculating the nearest approach of on coming vessels, we can see squalls early and prep early for them, fog as you mentioned, and getting into unknown harbors we can pick up markers sometimes
of course at night it is essential
we run a raymarine integrated system with overlay on our chartplotter --
hope this helps

[bobconnie]

Haveing grown up and learned to sail in the PNW, I go nowhere without a working radar! But then it's not really something ya need for offshore cruiseing! But for coastal cruiseing it's sure nice to have and I believe it's a great safety feature for most any boat ! But then Im old and get antsy when it's foggy or hard to see! LOL

[chuckr]

Originally Posted by bobconnie

But then it's not really something ya need for offshore cruiseing!

i do not understand your comment at all on off shore -- please explain as we have made a lot of offshore passages with our radar and use it extensively - am i missing something??

[markpierce]

Originally Posted by Cap Erict3

...

You will find that radar will increase your power consumption dramatically.

Don't most boaters use engines on the ICW? A proper engine's generator should provide plenty of electrical power.

[Dockhead]

Radar is especially useful for single-handers as it extends your watch-keeping ability. Set a guard zone to help back up your visual watch, from which you will inevitably have many, many distractions when single-handing.

Radar is now so cheap ($1000 -- $1500) and you don't need a separate display with modern MFD's. I can't imagine being without it, especially if I were to be single-handing.

One hour in a busy channel in the fog is all you need to be sure how much you need radar.

[smaarch]

question pleas: what radar system are posters refering to in the price range mentioned ( $1000 - $1500) thanks

[DDabs]

Raymarine RD418D 4kW Digital Radome

B & G Broadband 3G Radar

[goboatingnow]

Garmin is very good value in radar

Dave

[Sailmonkey]

Originally Posted by smaarch

question pleas: what radar system are posters refering to in the price range mentioned ( $1000 - $1500) thanks

This pricing assumes you already have the 1000-5000 Multi function display. Afaik Furuno has the lowest priced stand alone radar complete for 1400-1600

[Cuttyhunk]

I have the furuno 1623 (?) mounted on a pole at the stern of my Pearson 27. It is a standalone unit with a small monochrome display. It was under $1400. We put together the stern pole out of aluminum tubing and a small mast mount thing, plus a clamp onto the stern rail. Cost for that about $350, mostly for the mast mount. We mounted the display under the dodger. I have had a belowdecks radar display in the past and it's much better to have it in the cockpit if you can. This radar has a one piece, do not cut and splice cable, so it is not very practical for mounting on your mast. This is a nice little radar, and being a Furuno, I expect it will last a long time. I disconnect the display and store it below when I am not going out for a while.

I also have a Lowrance package HDS-7 gen2 display with 3G radar on my fishing boat. That is mounted on the cabin top. Check defender's price for this package. I bought it a couple of years ago at their warehouse sale in the spring, and they were offering an extra rebate at the sale. I like this unit very much, and it is expandable. We have a basic fish finder transducer now, and will probably add a fancier fishing setup this spring. It came with basic charts and last summer I got a Navionics platinum chip for my area, which is quite nice. I believe the HDS 5 display will also run the radar, but the good package deal is with the 7 inch display. It comes with a 10 meter cable, but longer cables are available.

On my new (to me) sailboat, there is an older ray marine analog radar. It works. When it dies I will likely replace it with a 3G or 4G lowrance. I may do this in stages, buying a display unit first, with fishing transducers, that can handle radar as well.

So, given my experiences, the little furuno on a homemade or secondhand stern pole is what I would suggest as a standalone unit. If you need a chart plotter as well, I'd recommend the lowrance package.

-- Beth

[AnchorageGuy]

Originally Posted by Cap Erict3

I wouldn't consider traveling the ICW at night without radar. So far I am satisfied with my stern mount. It is about 14' off the water.
You will find that radar will increase your power consumption dramatically.
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Traveling the ICW at night is a bad idea, especially for a single hander and I really don't know any cruisers that do. As to radar, we use it a lot on the ICW. If you head south in the fall, you will encounter fog a lot. In the spring and summer we use it every day to track rain and thunderstorms and often our radar tells us we need to find shelter OR that the squall will pass us safely and we can continue on without worry. I doubt brands are going to be a big concern for you. Buy the best that you can afford. Chuck