krj wrote:
....
You can also "Print" out the charts you download from the above site.
They are the most up to date charts around.

Well, I've made "flip" books of electronic charts and they are great as
a cockpit piloting aid. However, for the pencil navigator they have
some problems:

1) Having them printed full size will likely cost more than buying full
sized used charts.
2) Printing them less than full size makes them harder to read, harder
to work on and results in less accurate chart work.
3) Printers can introduce errors including distortions, skipped areas,
smudged areas and ghosting. Navigators using LORAN need to take
particular care.
4) Paper and ink quality are likely to be inferior and less water
resistant than government printed charts.
5) Printing at home takes time and if high quality paper, ink and
coatings are used can be expensive, too.

So, buying used charts makes a good deal of sense to me when new charts
are not in the budget or as a back-up to an electronic chart plotting
system.

-- Tom.