Boat Forum / Electronics / October 2004

This is the unit Garmin uses to transform the 182/182C and a bunch of
other GPS/chartplotters into a sounder/chartplotter/GPS.
I know they don't come with a transducer, but I'm wondering if they are
hard to hook up and if they can be placed in an engine room.

Does $700 sound like a fair price for a used Furuno 1720 with a 1.5kW
radome? The unit is in execellent shape and is fully functional. I think he
said it was a 1993 or 1994 model

I have a 7.0BCG Westerbeke.
Mine is 6 yrs old, with 650 hours (I personally put 200 on it since
last November, when I bought the boat.)
Last week, it ran down in rpms a couple of times, and then died. All

I have a number of C-map cartridges and need to use the same one on my
Raymarine chart plotter and also Raytech software.HSB2 is not an option.
Is there a way I can copy a chart onto a spare cartridge and use this in the
usb cartridge reader.

Hi, just got a boat that came with an old, run-down 12v battery.  I tried
charging it fast and my charger said "fault."  Then I charged it slow and it
apparently charged ok.  I topped off the water inside.  It's 70 Ah, Series
24.  I also have a new battery (105 Ah, Series 27) but ...

I now have a large collection of the Navionics Micro Chart Cartridges
(PCMCIA) for my Furuno RP110 plotter.
Most of these are over 10 years old and I was told there was a way to get
them updated (for a fee). I have searched the Navionics site and don't find

Is that a radio wire?
During the second Presidential debate on Friday, October 8th President Bush
adjusted his tie; a gesture which exposed a black object contrasting a white
shirt.

I am building a new 12V DC switch panel for my boat and have a load of
switches rated at 10A@125V or 8A@240V. Although they have 12V
illumination there is not a DC rating in the datasheet. Does anyone have
any idea what sort of rating can I assume for low DC voltage or are they

I just bought my first "real" boat, (the Santana 20 doesn't count),
and am wondering where you folks get your power panels.
The Blue Sea stuff offered by BoatUS seems kinda high priced.
Any pointers? Or a source for the better (complete) catalogs?

The LCD display on my JRC 1500 radar fogs on the inside of the front
glass window (not on the LCD itself). It seems that warm moist air
inside the unit condenses on the cold glass window. I returned it to the
service center during it's warranty but it still fogged afterwards, now ...

I am installing a 2meter/70cm unit on my sailboat. What would be a good
antenna for the marine environment to install on my radar arch?
krj

Can anybody recommend a small radio that would allow me to listen (no
transmit) to local SSB broadcasts without having to install a full fledged
SSB radio/tuner/stay antenna? This would be for a sailing boat. Any
suggestion on making a simple antenna? Some of the Sony World Radios ...

I now have a small boat (17 ft.) on Lake Oachita in Arkansas. I have
Lowrance Sonar and need to equip this boat with a GPS Mapping unit since
where I have my boat is very close to timber "Stickups". So to navigate into
the clear waterway, I want to be able to have fairly accurate ...

Can one use off the shelf PC printers on any kind of
boat?

I have looked at some more options, and am now considering the installation
details. My next question is the exhaust.  Most units have a wet exhaust.
Can I cut this into my engine exhaust or do I put a new outlet in?