Shawn, I worked at Edson for many years and we sold both mast and pole mounted solutions for radar. As such, I would get lots of feedback regarding the benefits and down sides of fixed vs. tilt arrangements along with the location. I’ve also got an ancient Raytheon 1200 series radar and dome on Half Magic (Landfall 35) on an equally ancient fixed mast mount.
So to start, there’s always the issue of sail damage while tacking with a mast mount. Even if you put a “guard” around the radome, you’ll always get some contact when tacking. Should your sail be one of those black jobs or a nifty molded sail that costs upwards of a college tuition, I would generally pass on mounting the dome on a mast. The other aspect of lofting the dome 25’ above the deck is the loss of radar “vision” when maneuvering through a crowded harbor in the fog. If the red nun that you’ve tracked on the screen disappears at 50 yards distance because your radar looks “over” the object, that can be a bit problematic. Fortunately for us, Half Magic’s dome is mounted at the spreader (only one set on the boat) and that’s only about 15’ above the deck. If I upgrade the radar I’m thinking I will probably install the dome on a pole that can serve double duty as a lifting hoist for the dinghy outboard. We ain’t getting any younger! The pole too has some limitations, specifically with the mast creating a blind spot on the screen. I don’t know if I spend enough time sailing in low visibility situations to justify a self levelling system. Most of the time when I need radar (fog, nightime), I’m not heeled over and more times than not, motoring. In part that is because my radar sucks so much power (an old CRT display mounted at the Nav Station) that I can run down the batteries very easily if I use the radar for hours on end. The issue of work hardening the wires on a self levelling gimbled unit is quite valid. Copper wire doesn’t like to be bent repeatedly and replacing cables every few years doesn’t sound attractive to me. Several folks have had issue with disassembly of back stay mounts every time they unstep the mast. I guess there’s issues with every solution, you just need to prioritize what you think would be better on Calypso. Good luck! Chuck Gilchrest S/V Half Magic 83 Landfall 35 Padanaram, MA From: Shawn Wright <shawngwri...@gmail.com> Sent: Monday, December 14, 2020 4:50 PM To: Stus-List <cnc-list@cnc-list.com> Subject: Stus-List Radar mounting options Hello all, During the rendezvous, there was a brief discussion about radar and mounting options. I'm interested in hearing your thoughts and experiences with radar, and which mounting location (mast, backstay, or on pole/arch aft of cockpit) you prefer, and why. Our 35 had a radome mounted on a pole just off centre from aft deck, supported by the pushpit rail. It had been removed when we bought her, and now with larger solar panels, I'm not sure this is a good location due to shading issues (although I might be able to resolve this with a re-designed arch, or push it far enough aft to prevent shading the panels. I've seen a few backstay mounts, but haven't looked closely at them. I imagine there will be some shading issues, but perhaps a bit less depending on how high the radome is mounted. Mast mounting seems fairly straightforward with the right bracket, and since I am planning to pull my mast soon for a re-wire and inspection, I will have a good opportunity to explore this option. My dock neighbour has his on a pole, and removes it for racing or when not needed, so this is one advantage of pole or backstay mounting - easy removal. I probably would leave it on for year round sailing, but would likely take it with us to our next boat unless the buyer specifically wants it. As far as brand, I went with a B&G Vulcan 9 package with wind, compass and DST, so this means I will need a Navico unit: 3G, 4G or Halo (Simrad, Lowrance or B&G). Although we've only had perhaps 5-6 days in the past two seasons where radar would have been useful, with a planned trip around Vancouver Island from June-August of 2021, we anticipate some foggy (or smoky) days in waters that will be a bit more challenging, and also new to us. Would love to hear your thoughts... Thanks -- Shawn Wright shawngwri...@gmail.com <mailto:shawngwri...@gmail.com> S/V Callisto, 1974 C&C 35 https://www.facebook.com/SVCallisto
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