Masthead lighting options to minimize shadowing

[Cyrus Safdari]

I have a less-than-12 meter sailboat and am running into problems allocating real-estate on my mast top for all the gadgets I want to install up there: Wind transducer (the old-fashioned ball-cup kind), VHF antenna, nav light and I want to install an Echomax Dual Band radar reflector that has an white all-around light built into it

At anchor, the white all-around light built into it will meet regs. no problem. There's no shadowing since the light is on top of the radar reflector itself.

While under power I have a steaming light near the spreader and a stern light, so again no problem there

But under sail: I've always preferred mast-top mounted nav lights (either tricolor, or red-over-green combined with stern and deck lights) because they're easier to see from a distance despite waves.) However even using the off-set bracket the radar reflector would shadow any mast-top lights.

Options are to rely on deck-level starboard/port lights and stern light (or at least move them up to pulpit mounted height, to provide a little better visibility, though not as good as having the lights on the mast top) - so there are no other lights to be shadowed by the radar reflector on the mast-head

Or ... ?

How about... installing separate white/green/red nav lights on the mast-head, each pointing in the right direction on or even around the masthead, and arranged so that there's no shadowing by the radar reflector? You can then turn them on and off with a single switch, much like a tricolor.

THis way you keep the height-advantage and stay legal without shadowing.

Or....
not mount the Echomax on the masthead at all and suspend as-needed, under the spreaders far away from the metal mast...??? I don't have the version with the built-in eyelets for suspending it but I can tie a loop.

[JPA Cate]

This is just a comment, based on what you wrote.

If you're anchored out at night, people in dinghies are not going to see your anchor light, if you go with the first plan, unless you have an additional one much closer to deck level. We have one we hang off our lazy jacks, for the low traffic. People just don't seem to look up, much.

You're sure right about masthead small real estate. We have the whirly type wind indicator, and a tricolor and an anchor light on the top, and the VHF antenna, as well. I don't really think you'll have more room. Our wiring is shared for the tricolor vs. anchor light, one has to select one or the other, or off for both via the central control panel.

Is the EchoMax actually a tiny transponder? Will it need the electricity? If so, maybe you could share with a spreader light wire?

If you're concerned about being run over by shipping, consider an AIS transponder. Makes you "visible" to others with AIS, if they're looking, and it's on.

Ann

[Cyrus Safdari]

I'm well covered in general lighting, and having an AIS transponder goes without saying nowadays (I have a backup entire nav/com system with separate transponder, VHF/AIS-tuned antenna with built-in splitter, a 12v power source, tablet with charts - in case of lightning strikes)

This is the Echomax Dual Band -- it is an active radar reflector about 2.5" thick and 2 feet high. It has a built-in anchor light (or mine does atleast -- you can apparently buy them with tricolors too) so it won't shadow the anchor light

An active radar reflector is a pretty good thing to have apart from AIS. It is required in the GGR I believe
https://www.landfallnavigation.com/e...-rte-7727.html

I also kept a relatively cheap car radar-detector in the cockpit. On numerous occasions it pickd up a radar signal well before the AIS