"Charlie Morgan" said:
Maybe if he learned how to use a RADAR set, he'd
appreciate what it can do.


Dave wrote:
I've gotta admit there are times when I sure wished I had radar--generally
coming back in a fog from a long trip. But it's always a tough call how much
money to invest in electronics for a smaller boat. There's a point where you
just can't justify the added cost compared to the value of the boat.

True. And electronics lose their contributory value very
quickly, after a couple of years people look at it as though
they expect to see you shovelling coal in at the side.

But there is also the value of utility... having it to use,
when you need it (or can just benefit by use of it).

... I can
think of maybe 3 times in 25 years of sailing when I've felt the need.
Generally, it's a matter of just staying in and waiting for the fog to
clear.

Seems to me the generally a radar on a 27' older boat is overkill. But I do
see more and more of them on boats of that size.

Partly because more & more people are carrying out a
childish attitude of bragging about their possessions, and
partly because the price of electronic stuff is dropping.

The tugboat is the first boat I have owned that had radar,
wlthough I have used it briefly (and not too effectively)
for years before on OPBs. It is a great tool.

One of the basic principles of *having* radar is to use it
often, and learn to correctly interpret the target display.
If you only turn it on when you need it, the little smeary
blobs on the screen will be meaningless.

The best lesson I had in using the radar was when a retired
Navy OS Chief came wandering by the boat, looking her over
approvingly, and accepted my invitation for a cup of coffee.
He showed me quite a bit about tuning, using the range
setting for different situations (our radar is also manually
tuned, and it needs to be adjusted each time the range is
changed), and of course interpreting the target display. It
was a big help.

Another big help, which most people skip, is to RTFM!

Fresh Breezes- Doug King