small boat small radar?

[chsintail]

maby somebody can help me out ive been trying to find a small radar system for my seaway i think the smallest ive found is like 24 or 28 N.M. my boat is only 17' the absolute farthest id go out on the nicest day would be ten miles tops on a wing and a prayer if anybody knows of a small system or where to look would be a huge help thanks

 

[Texasmark]

Re: small boat small radar?

Raytheon sold out to someone else. Maybe a Google of Raytheon Marine Radar would fetch the new owner.

Other company is Furno or something like that.

Both make smaller marine radars. How small, you'll have to check it out.

Probably a "small marine radar" search would fetch the two names I am looking for.

Mark

 

[steelespike]

Re: small boat small radar?

I'm pretty much in the dark on the exact purpose of radar on a small boat.
If it is for basic navigation wouldn't a good GPS unit do just as well or possibly better?As I undersrtand it a GPS can show position within a few
yards. Of course it wouldn't show other craft,but it could show your position
on a chart pretty accurately.

 

[Bondo]

Re: small boat small radar?

Ayuh,........

My 1st Question is,.....
Why would you want a Radar on a 17' boat in the 1st place..?...?...
And,......
Where are you going to mount the Radar Antenna so you're not shooting yourself with the Radar Waves,..??..??..??

 

[KCook]

Re: small boat small radar?

Is this boat a center console? Otherwise, as Bond-o already pointed out, mounting the radar gear is going to be tricky.

Kelly Cook

 

[thurps]

Re: small boat small radar?

A lot of small boats around here use radars and one of the best reasons for having one is the GPS. People think that because they know exactly where they are in pea soup fog they can rush from point to point, not like the old days when you shut off your engine and listened for the bells and horns. Besides it's only another $1200.00.

 

[tashasdaddy]

Re: small boat small radar?

personally, a 17 foot boat, has no business, being in open water, in a pea soup condition.

 

[Drowned Rat]

Re: small boat small radar?

Pea soup fog doesn't necessarily mean bad weather. And offshore in open water isn't the only place you encounter fog. There's no reason not to take a properly equipped boat that size in the fog. I think a radar on that size boat is useful for a different boating experience. If you live in an area that has fog often, it certainly opens up your possibilities.

 

[SpinnerBait_Nut]

Re: small boat small radar?

Pea soup fog doesn't necessarily mean bad weather. And offshore in open water isn't the only place you encounter fog. There's no reason not to take a properly equipped boat that size in the fog. I think a radar on that size boat is useful for a different boating experience. If you live in an area that has fog often, it certainly opens up your possibilities.

Or a lot of barge traffic,
Don't ask.

 

[SFT2]

Re: small boat small radar?

Don't forget one very important reason for radar on anything: it's really, really cool

How about putting it on top of a wakeboard tower?

And in a pinch it could be used to cook dinner

 

[Barnacle_Bill]

Re: small boat small radar?

I don't know squat about radar except my Lowrance LCX27 is capable of radar. Lowrance advertises a LRA 1000 rated for up to 16NM. Might be worth a look.

 

[Cessna210g]

Re: small boat small radar?

How about JRC Radar 1500MKII. I think they still make it.

Tim

 

[Wotam]

Re: small boat small radar?

>"personally, a 17 foot boat, has no business, being in open water, in a pea soup condition."

Ever been salmon fishing in the Pacific Northwest?

 

[puddle jumper]

Re: small boat small radar?

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
yup all the time.
Depending on your boat make sure you have a radar reflector so the other boats with radar can see you.
But i don't think i would go out 10 miles in a 17 footer on the ocean.
PS fog means calm waters just cant see squat. That's what my compass is all about.

 

[dingbat]

Re: small boat small radar?

Range and radar is one of those subjects that can be analyzed easily
(but incompletely) or completely (but without ease). I like easy -- it
gives a 95 percent correct answer, and the remaining 5 percent doesn't
have serious consequences.

First let's look at geographic range. This has nothing to do with
radar, mind you; it just gives the maximum distance the curvature of
the earth allows an observer to see. You can find a geographic range
table in Bowditch (Table 13) or use this formula:

Range = square root of (1.17 x radar height) + square root of (1.17 x
object height), where heights are in feet above the waterline.

For a radar installed 12 feet above waterline, the radar's geographic
range (which will be very slightly less than the radar range) is 4.2
nm. That means that your radar could see an object low in the water
only if it were closer than 4.2 nm. This usable range is independent of
a radar's stated range: It is a function of the installation height and
the earth's size.

For targets that extend above the waterline (like a ship or an
island), you have to add the geographic range of your radar to that of
the target. This is the second part of the equation. For any reasonable
height of ship (say 100 feet), the combined detection range -- when the
other ship just peeks over the horizon -- is 15 miles. So for ship
spotting, a 36-nm radar has more bang than you'll need. In fact, to see
something at 36 nm, with a radar just 12 feet above water, the target
would need to be nearly 800 feet high! So a 36-nm radar would allow
George to see an island greater than 800 feet tall at 36 miles, but
wouldn't resolve most ships until 15 miles or so.

One of the primary uses of radar is for collision avoidance. Assuming
that you pick up a target at 18 nm, what lead time do you have after
detection? Let's assume that your vessel is moving at, say, 8 knots,
and the other ship is moving at 22 knots. The worst-case scenario is 30
knots relative speed at a range of 18 nm; this gives you 36 minutes of
warning -- plenty of time to implement any avoidance planning you need.
Even if you have a longer-range radar -- say 36 nm -- your low
installation will not let you use that extra range. Of course, there
are power issues, too: a 36-nm set requires four times the power output
of an 18-nm set.

My first pick would be a Furuno unit with Raymarine and Garmin a close second.

The Ray and Garmin are attractive becouse you can add the dome to an existing multi-function display which helps keep the cost down. Having said that the Furuno 1715 at 24nm is a pretty hard to beat for the money if you have the room for a stand alone unit.

 

[Expidia]

Re: small boat small radar?

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
yup all the time.
Depending on your boat make sure you have a radar reflector so the other boats with radar can see you.

Expidia says: That's a good idea to store one of those on board. I never would have thought of using one of those until you just mentioned it. I have a GPS unit, but that's no help from another vessel running into me!

But a radar deflector certainly sounds like cheap insurance to keep a $25 collapsible one on board (and clip it to my stern light which is about 6 feet high) to use in the fog or an emergency in hopes that other craft using radar can steer clear of me.

I can just picture myself breaking down on NY's Hudson River and getting taken out by a barge moving through the fog. I'm going to pick a radar deflector up for an emergency. I would think it would make the coast guard or another vessel trying to locate job that much faster on a call for help over the VHF.

On radar with a small vessel . . . I don't like using my cell phone too much let alone one's head being constantly bathed from radar waves while pleasure boating in a small boat. I would guess there must be some info on the web about how close to one's body it would be safe to use radar.

Worst case, I'd shut it down if you start to grow "a third eye". Probably give you a nice tan though

 

[Boatist]

Re: small boat small radar?

GPS will tell you where you are but it wont tell you there is another boat 100 feet ahead headed right at you
or to your starboard headed at you with right of way. Radar will tell you. Out here on the Pacific Ocean
have dense fog every day from about May to October.

Radar is also one more way to find your way back in if GPS is not working and your will see the boats coming out
ever in the fog. All the buoys have refelectors so they show up good.

Furuno makes a 1623 16 NM radar with a 15 inch radome for about $1000.

JRC also has Radar 1000MKII which is a 16 NM radar also.

Lowrance also makes a 16 NM radar unit but I do not know how long they have been out.

Even if you only get your antenna 6 feet off the water and boat ahead is only 2 feet above the water
you can still see him 5 miles ahead. Furuno has a calculator for distance, put in you antenna height
then the height of the object you want to see and it will give you the distance.

Out here out of Bodega Bay many small boats 16 to 20 feet have Radar. I have seen all types of mount.
Most are on a pole that is mounted to the floor or deck Then have two smaller brace poles to the top of the
window or another part of the deck to support the main pole.

I have two friends I met at Bodega Bay and both have radars. One has a Raytheon and the other JRC.
The guy with the Raytheon was aalways picking on the guy with the JRC but the guy with the JRC always said
my unit works good and about 1/2 the price of yours. Well one day the guy with the Raytheon had some sort of
trouble with his unit, so when they got back in they took the cover off the Ratheon Radome and inside
every label said JRC on it. I think they just lubed the motor for the antenna and after that it was working fine,
but now the JRC guy is getting even asking why he paid twice the price for the same unit.

Both these guys have there Radome on a pole that is mounted to a plate with a hinge then two braces that
hold the pole in place. They take off a couple of wing nuts and Lay then down before hitting the hwy to
head home.

 

[Texasmark]

Re: small boat small radar?

Hey dingbat, thanks for posting the names I couldn't remember nor spell correctly.

Mark

 

[thurps]

Re: small boat small radar?

"personally, a 17 foot boat, has no business, being in open water, in a pea soup condition." Tashasdaddy, I guess I'll have to take my 13' Whaler out and scuttle her. It's foggy here 70% of the time in the mornings during the summer. Yes I have been out close to 10 mi. with pristene weather/water conditions.

 

[QC]

Re: small boat small radar?

Shoot, you need radar in Long Beach Harbor when the fog is thick, I don't care if it's PWC . . .