Boat Forum / Electronics / November 2005

My son has just bought a second hand 23 ft motor cruiser which was very
basic to say the least, not even one piece of safety equipment with it,
however he has started to kit it out. I do not know anything about boats and
their equipments but my wife and I were considering buying ...

We sail Long Island Sound and nearby coastal waters.  Our sailboat has
a permanent VHF radio, but we do not have an FCC license.  Can we
legally use a handheld VHF aboard our inflatible dinghy, to talk back
and forth to our boat or others?  If so, what should we use for a

I fish year 'round off Cape Fear, in Onslow Bay, at the Frying Pan Shoals
Light Tower (yep - it still stands - inactive - at 118 feet) and in Long Bay
down to Lockwood's Folly.  I go off shore up to ~ 55 sm.  I am looking to
replace my ancient (but still very good) Garmin 65 ...

Looking for: CF85 cartidges for c-map:
H0211 LAKE ONTARIO; OSHAWATO GRINDSTONE ISLAND
H0212 LAKE ONTARIO:CLAYTON TO POINT BREEZE

Mine is kaput. Anyone know of a reliable servicer of these units? Can't get
any response from Simrad.

I consider buying a waterproof handheld VHF to be used as some sort of
reserve radio in case mast and antenna are lost, fixed VHF fails or
need to abandon the boat...
What about radios that use AA cells instead of rechargable battery

Can anyone recommend a thermostat that does not require a power supply and
can switch a 12v heater?

Does anyone have experience or comments on the "Follow Me TV" dish
aiming system?  I'm particularly concerned with durability and
reliability.
http://www.followmetv.com

 I have Maptech Ocean Navigator software (came with the CD)to show the
NDI charts and my GPS-based position. I don't like it. It's too big
(takes FOREVER to load!), too complex, and for all the features, I can't
figure out simple things like getting it to auto-load a new chart when ...

My new Sailing vessle (Beneteau 343) is on its way next year and it
will have twin backstays.
I like to listen to SSB and HF comms and have used active antennas
before on board with poor results always picking up more interferance

I'm looking to pick up a clamp-on ammeter/multitester on ebay.  Are
these ammeters AC or DC specific or do they read both as a matter of
course.

Apologies for what may be a simple question. Local chandler has 10 amp
regulators for only $10 more than the 6amp model. 10 amp is way above
my needs but other than $10 is there any downside to using the higher
rated regulator?

I'm looking to pick up a clamp-on ammeter/ multitester. Are these
clamp-on ammeters AC or DC specific of do they read amps universal.

I finally found the answer.  :-)
http://www.digitalfog.com/index.php/2005/11/why-is-a-ship-called-she/

I have a  battery set up consisting of  4 group 24's divided into  a
house bank of 3 and a starting bank of 1, controlled by a 3  position,
make before break, switch. The shore power charger is a Xantrex
trucharge smart charger.