On Wed, 2 Jun 2010 09:03:11 -0400, "Flying Pig"
wrote:

We thought long and hard about a watermaker, but the acquisition cost alone,
never mind the running costs, either in electricity or consumables, would
buy us more water, even at $.50/gal than we could foresee in our lifetimes.
That said, our buddy boat has one, which came with the boat, and love it,
running it whenever they're motoring.

I've priced out watermakers and the actual cost comes to well over 50
cents per gallon unless you are making huge quantities. In my opinion
they only make sense if you have small water tanks or spend a lot of
time in the boondocks.

"Wayne.B" wrote in message
...

If I try, I can usually get a Winlink connect at 1400 bytes/sec which
is a fairly good rate, even for longer messages. We download a 25K
GRIB file every day, usually with no problems. Winlink is very good
about piecing together broken messages. If the GRIB transmission
deteriorates to below 600 BPS, I disconnect and try another PMBO
gateway station. Winlink automatically picks up where it left off and
completes the transmission. It's a great service and a good example
of how ham radio can still be useful in the 21st century.

Interesting, indeed. Is there a setting for that, or is that perhaps just
downloads?

It's always uploads which are troublesome for me (don't download all that
much) and EVERY time I make nearly all the way through - including ALL the
way through other than the handshake/confirmation at the end - and I lose
the connection, it starts over from the beginning on my next successful
connection....

L8R

Skip, off Shroud Cay

--
Morgan 461 #2
SV Flying Pig KI4MPC
See our galleries at www.justpickone.org/skip/gallery !
Follow us at http://groups.yahoo.com/group/TheFlyingPigLog
and/or http://groups.google.com/group/flyingpiglog

"You are never given a wish without also being given the power to
make it come true. You may have to work for it however."
(and)
"There is no such thing as a problem without a gift for you in
its hand. You seek problems because you need their gifts."

(Richard Bach, in Illusions - The Reluctant Messiah)

"Wayne.B" wrote in message
news
There is one PMBO in Florida who almost never picks up on "5 rings"
but has an otherwise excellent station. I believe he keeps his rigs
on standby and requires a certain amount of time to get them back on
the air. If you connect immediately after he signs off with someone
else, his rig connects immediately.

The first 4 stations I try are in FL from this location.

Know which it is?

Thanks.

L8R

Skip, off Shroud Cay

--
Morgan 461 #2
SV Flying Pig KI4MPC
See our galleries at www.justpickone.org/skip/gallery !
Follow us at http://groups.yahoo.com/group/TheFlyingPigLog
and/or http://groups.google.com/group/flyingpiglog

"You are never given a wish without also being given the power to
make it come true. You may have to work for it however."
(and)
"There is no such thing as a problem without a gift for you in
its hand. You seek problems because you need their gifts."

(Richard Bach, in Illusions - The Reluctant Messiah)

On Mon, 7 Jun 2010 22:56:44 -0400, "Flying Pig"
wrote:

There is one PMBO in Florida who almost never picks up on "5 rings"
but has an otherwise excellent station. I believe he keeps his rigs
on standby and requires a certain amount of time to get them back on
the air. If you connect immediately after he signs off with someone
else, his rig connects immediately.

The first 4 stations I try are in FL from this location.

Know which it is?

Sure.

November Zero India Alpha in Deltona, FL. One of the best PMBO
stations on Winlink in my opinion but frequently slow to connect.

On Mon, 7 Jun 2010 22:20:12 -0400, "Flying Pig"
wrote:

If I try, I can usually get a Winlink connect at 1400 bytes/sec which
is a fairly good rate, even for longer messages. We download a 25K
GRIB file every day, usually with no problems. Winlink is very good
about piecing together broken messages. If the GRIB transmission
deteriorates to below 600 BPS, I disconnect and try another PMBO
gateway station. Winlink automatically picks up where it left off and
completes the transmission. It's a great service and a good example
of how ham radio can still be useful in the 21st century.

Interesting, indeed. Is there a setting for that, or is that perhaps just
downloads?

It's always uploads which are troublesome for me (don't download all that
much) and EVERY time I make nearly all the way through - including ALL the
way through other than the handshake/confirmation at the end - and I lose
the connection, it starts over from the beginning on my next successful
connection....

The speed settings are adaptive based on signal strength and error
rates. Use only Pactor 3 mode (P3) if at all possible. I rarely do
large uploads so I'm not sure if they will pick up again from where
they left off. Downloads most definitely do that however. Try
November Zero India Alpha in Deltona on 80 meters in Pactor 3 mode.
He's slow to connect but very solid.

On Mon, 7 Jun 2010 22:20:12 -0400, "Flying Pig"
wrote:

Skip, off Shroud Cay

If you have not yet done so, take your dinghy through the northern
most creek on Shroud Cay to the east side, find the trail, and climb
the hill. It's a great dinghy ride and a great view - best done at
high tide.

Personally, less complicated is better that is unless you are
the second typ of person who supports use of ssb tx

Are you kidding? HF is much simpler than sat phones.

No not at all.......... you see I do not look inside the case. I look
to reliability, expense, and ease of use. So when I say iridium is
more simple campoared to SSB I am not refering to the inside circuits
I refer to reliablity, ease of use, overall coast including
installation and maintainence hours.

Take the new cost of an Iridium phone, antina (dont you just love
phonics. every school should be using it)
Then take a typical ssb ham set up. Your taking how to ground: use a
plate bolted to the hull, rolling foil out everywhere ,or rigging some
mouse trap on the shaft. Then antina tunner, and longwire if you have
a katch or a back stay hookup. The radio just has toooo many ancilary
parts-connections-wires and that all equals:
labor to install
labor to trouble shoot when it goes fubar
labor maintain all the connections that will corrode and give SKip OCD
trying to trouble shoot.

The irridum is simply just simple, easy, and equally reliable compared
to ssb/ham for at sea comm/weahter fax/direct
contact to SAR/USCG? call your elderly wife in flordia etc.

Unfutunatly, there is a cohort of people with one foot in the grave
who love to tinker with crap because it makes them feel smart and they
love to do it. Ham Radio geeks...... like CB geeks in the 70s . No
difference. I say do your crossword puzzels and stop misleading people

and those same guys go around telling people they are not safe and
stupid to cruise with out a tx ham radio. Have your fun soldering
Heath Kits together but be realistic when it comes to reliable and
safe at-sea communication.

All I have to do is read your Signature. that tells me there that you
are very proud of your ham license and do doubt there is some way to
tell the date of issue from the alpha-numeric code.

So I will signe with
Bob 107/80
That number designates which commercial diving school i graduated from
but ya know I dont reallyh give a **** so i dont put it there.
Oh how about this
Bob, AB RFPNW
or BOb MS, BS, BSEd but I dont really feel I need to constantly tell
eveyone what a cool guy I am like you

and youre not a Sailing/Vessel you are a Sailing/Yacht (S/Y)

73 es sail fast, dave KO4MI
S/V Auspicious

On Tue, 8 Jun 2010 11:15:30 -0700 (PDT), Bob
wrote:

and those same guys go around telling people they are not safe and
stupid to cruise with out a tx ham radio. Have your fun soldering
Heath Kits together but be realistic when it comes to reliable and
safe at-sea communication.

Almost all of the pleasure boats that I know who engage in
offshore/international cruising have a marine SSB radio aboard, and
they are not necessarily ham radio operators although some are. Many
also have a sat phone of some sort and an EPIRB. We don't have a sat
phone but do have the SSB and EPIRB. If we were crossing oceans I'd
probably get the sat phone also, for redundancy if nothing else.

Almost all of the pleasure boats that I know who engage in
offshore/international cruising have a marine SSB radio aboard, and
they are not necessarily ham radio operators although some are. *Many
also have a sat phone of some sort and an EPIRB. *We don't have a sat
phone but do have the SSB and EPIRB. *If we were crossing oceans I'd
probably get the sat phone also, for redundancy if nothing else.

I comend your active mariner life! I also depart philosophically from
what is necessary to make ocean or NC voyages. I still believe SSB/Ham
installations adds too much clutter and potential problmes to boat to
warrent haveing one considering the alternative is has such a smaller
"foot priint" on a boat.

Yes, many "curisers" ahve SSB/Ham. But why? Tradition? The RDF is gone
I think inpart simply because no body could talk on it. LORAN is gone,
i think becuase no body can talk on it. BOth have been replaced by the
GPS and EPIRB, respectivly. THe only reason ssb on boats is stil here
is becuase there is a group of sprots/amature enthusisast who enjoy
jaw jacking and then tell everyone who owns a boat they have to have
one to be safe. Its like a cult similar to Amway or Scientology. Its a
club gone birkshire.....

I sail with:

Barometer
sextant
GPS
EPIRB
VHF
Iridium

HAM/SSB reciever only. I get ot hear you guys yack, glean info and
then turn you off!
I also get weather fax that goes to laptop. the receive only radio has
nothing but antina and wower supply and it DONT take no 40 Amp circuit
to run!!!!!!!!

So what happens when all the satalites fall outof the sky.............
sextant, DR, barometer, weather fax. Getter on Bra !

There is no purpose for a ssb'ham, or as my swedish step dad who
commercial fished all his life called it, the AM set
On a boat a SSB has no purpose except intertainment.
Bob Rexroth (disabled)
Dell tech support
Ogden UT

"Bob" wrote in message
...
Almost all of the pleasure boats that I know who engage in
offshore/international cruising have a marine SSB radio aboard, and
they are not necessarily ham radio operators although some are. Many
also have a sat phone of some sort and an EPIRB. We don't have a sat
phone but do have the SSB and EPIRB. If we were crossing oceans I'd
probably get the sat phone also, for redundancy if nothing else.

I comend your active mariner life! I also depart philosophically from
what is necessary to make ocean or NC voyages. I still believe SSB/Ham
installations adds too much clutter and potential problmes to boat to
warrent haveing one considering the alternative is has such a smaller
"foot priint" on a boat.

Yes, many "curisers" ahve SSB/Ham. But why? Tradition? The RDF is gone
I think inpart simply because no body could talk on it. LORAN is gone,
i think becuase no body can talk on it. BOth have been replaced by the
GPS and EPIRB, respectivly. THe only reason ssb on boats is stil here
is becuase there is a group of sprots/amature enthusisast who enjoy
jaw jacking and then tell everyone who owns a boat they have to have
one to be safe. Its like a cult similar to Amway or Scientology. Its a
club gone birkshire.....

I sail with:

Barometer
sextant
GPS
EPIRB
VHF
Iridium

HAM/SSB reciever only. I get ot hear you guys yack, glean info and
then turn you off!
I also get weather fax that goes to laptop. the receive only radio has
nothing but antina and wower supply and it DONT take no 40 Amp circuit
to run!!!!!!!!

So what happens when all the satalites fall outof the sky.............
sextant, DR, barometer, weather fax. Getter on Bra !

There is no purpose for a ssb'ham, or as my swedish step dad who
commercial fished all his life called it, the AM set
On a boat a SSB has no purpose except intertainment.
Bob Rexroth (disabled)
Dell tech support
Ogden UT





=======================[REPLY]======================


Right on, brother! Skippy has cluttered up his cruising experience with all
manner of unnecessary and burdensome crap. It indicates to me that he is
still loathe to cut the lubber umbilical that still binds him tightly to
shore side hassles.


Wilbur Hubbard