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11

Navigation / Charts / NMEA 2000, 0183 & Signal K

Garmin GPS 24xd: inexpensive Heading data to stabilize charts, radar, and AIS

The Garmin GPS 24xd combines a high-performance GNSS receiver with a heading sensor though it only costs $50 more than their GPS 19x GNSS receiver. Thus it can inexpensively stabilize chart and radar views on your MFD while also ensuring that your boat’s AIS target is headed in the right direction even when it’s tied up. I’ve been testing one, successfully, and also investigating why the GPS 24xd is not a good replacement for a more accurate, faster-updating, and likely better located Heading sensor that’s appropriate for autopilots and radar ARPA/MARPA calculations.

9

Cabin & deck gear / Navigation / How-to

Helm ergonomics #2: Gizmo’s pilothouse

“Your boat should fit like a glove!” yacht designer Dave Gerr wrote in the 1990’s, and the 2020 refit of Gizmo’s lower helm is the closest I’ve gotten to that excellent advice yet. The ergonomically arranged array of displays and controls above are also a somewhat experimental mix of PC and tablet navigation tools with dedicated marine electronics and oodles of monitoring in the background. I could talk for hours about the gear choices and install details, but the focus of this entry is how well this helm layout works

8

Electrical & Engines / NMEA 2000, 0183 & Signal K / Monitoring & Tracking

Upgrading our house battery system, part 2; life is better with lithium

In part one of this series, I explained our motivations for upgrading to a lithium house battery bank, my choice of all Mastervolt components, and the pleasing results of early testing. Now let’s talk about what makes lithium different and what you need to consider if you too plan an upgrade. Active battery monitoring and control are critical to protecting other power components, for instance, and there are other important install details. Plus, I’ve got more real-world testing results to share.

21

Network & control / Electrical & Engines / NMEA 2000, 0183 & Signal K

Upgrading to lithium batteries & testing an all Mastervolt DC power system

Like many boaters, I treasure the peace of a serene anchorage, but not the sound and smell of a generator. So the high energy density and fast charging abilities of lithium batteries got me interested, and eventually led to an all-Mastervolt system that should also improve my 12-volt DC house power system in many other ways. This is part one of a series detailing the reasons for that decision, the installation, and how well it performs.

8

Sailing & Racing / What's on board... / Good Gear (non electronic)

SV Delos, much more than fun in the Pacific

“Another interesting bluewater cruising boat smartly visiting Camden in October,” I thought to myself, “but what’s up with that giant VSAT dome?” Yes, I failed to recognize one of the world’s most famous cruising boats until I ran into an excited passenger schooner captain/friend waiting for the Delos crew to come ashore. But many more boaters than I envision Delos perpetually adventuring to exotic Pacific locales; for example, check this 2014 Episode #22 video that’s drawn 4.3 million YouTube views…

13

Electrical & Engines

Mercury’s new 600hp Verado V12: truly different & surprisingly smooth

Mercury Marine’s highly secure and unusual Lake X facility has decades of history as a research, development, and testing skunkworks for the company’s many outboard innovations. So it was a fitting location, even on a gloomy Monday afternoon, for the unveiling of Mercury’s latest creation. And what an outboard they revealed: a 600 horsepower, twelve-hundred plus pound V12 with a two-speed automatic transmission, counter-rotating props, and a lower unit that rotates while the engine itself only tilts.

New Boat Network feature seen on iPad and Android phone versions of Cortex Onboard apps 36

Communications / AIS / The future / NMEA 2000, 0183 & Signal K / Monitoring & Tracking

Vesper Cortex update: Boat Networks, squashing bugs & more

Vesper Marine’s Cortex AIS, VHF, and monitoring system is the most innovative marine electronics product I’ve tested in a long time. But Cortex is also a serious challenge to review properly because it has so many useful capabilities — some of which look and feel strikingly different from their antecedents — and it’s also a system designed to evolve. That’s the justification for this update, even though…

3

Electrical & Engines

Zipwake interceptors, dynamic trim control installed and tested

Last fall I installed Zipwake interceptors on Panbo(at), my 22-foot center console, to help control motor torque trim, level the boat while running, and reduce some rolling. At first, I was highly impressed by the design and quality of the hardware, but I had some concerns about its automatic control mode. However, after some tuning by an Imtra field technician — Imtra is the exclusive U.S. ZipWake distributor — I’m sold.

11

Navigation / Charts

Garmin GPSMap 943xsv hands-on, X3 delivers

Last November Garmin announced new X3 versions of their mid-tier 7, 9, and 12-inch GPSMap multifunction displays (MFDs), claiming higher resolution displays, twice the processing power, and more features compared to the X2 models they replace. I installed the GPSMap 943xsv — the “3” is what’s new, while “xsv” indicates all the sonar processing built-in — and can report that it works well. And I remember how responsive an X2 series 1242xsv was. I expected an X3 to be an improvement on an already highly capable unit, and I wasn’t disappointed.

Temo 450 in action (photo ©Wind4production) 10

Electrical & Engines / Green Boating

Temo, unique electric propulsion with ancient design roots

The Temo electric outboard is wildly different from any other design, but it makes sense on first sight, and more so when you dig into the details. It’s small boat propulsion in the simple format of a single sculling oar, a modern brushless electric prop drive in some ways as rudimentary as a third-world longtail. So while the boaters above are enjoying quiet and highly maneuverable thrust similar to what a Torqeedo 1003 has pleasantly provided me for years, they’ve got it in a significantly more compact and portable package…