Why don't you go save someone. There must be someone somewhere who needs
saving.


=======
"Charlie Morgan" wrote in message
...
On Mon, 08 Jan 2007 21:41:38 GMT, "NE Sailboat"
wrote:

I am interested in a Voyager Windvane for self steering. If you know
about
this model, or product or have one??

Could you take a minute and give your opinion.


The hardware to mount it on imaginary boats is on perpetual backorder.

CWM

Save? Why save when it is easier to stay home and savage? Insults that
are only good for 6 days are not really meaningful. Even though they
apparently disappear, they live on in the minds of the participants.

Err... do ya know anything about windvanes?

No?


Then go take a ****.


==
wrote in message
ups.com...
Save? Why save when it is easier to stay home and savage? Insults that
are only good for 6 days are not really meaningful. Even though they
apparently disappear, they live on in the minds of the participants.

I really wonder if wind driven self-steering gear is better than electronic
gear.

A. Though electronic gear can fail, carrying a few spare units is less
expensive than the initial installation of a windvane system.

B. Though electronic gear consumes power, power generation is not a major
issue for many cruisers.

C. Electronic gear will probably fail at no greater rate than the
wind/mechanical system, and would be infinitely easier to replace a as a
complete assembly than would be a windvane and its associated gearing.

D. Electronic gear takes us much less real estate and leaves an already
cluttered transom untouched.

My two cents. Glad to hear other opinions.
Bill Longyard

On Tue, 09 Jan 2007 04:41:48 GMT, "William Longyard"
wrote:

I really wonder if wind driven self-steering gear is better than electronic
gear.

A. Though electronic gear can fail, carrying a few spare units is less
expensive than the initial installation of a windvane system.

B. Though electronic gear consumes power, power generation is not a major
issue for many cruisers.

C. Electronic gear will probably fail at no greater rate than the
wind/mechanical system, and would be infinitely easier to replace a as a
complete assembly than would be a windvane and its associated gearing.

D. Electronic gear takes us much less real estate and leaves an already
cluttered transom untouched.

My two cents. Glad to hear other opinions.
Bill Longyard


I've never owned either but it seems the wind driven models get more
efficient the harder it blows whereas the electric ones work harder
and demand more power.
I think there were disasters with the early powered autopilots too.
Racing boats broaching at the peak of a massive wave in the Southern
ocean and such due to computer malfunction.
I sailed with someone who ran under power in high seas while flying a
small foresail and had an electrical steering arrangement on a huge
quadrant. It was very noisy on board both from the weather, the engine
and the steering gears swinging around. The quarter birth was
unusable. We had no reliability problems though, even in very confused
seas. Someone had to sit in the cockpit and keep watch anyway, which
seemed weird and useless without something to do.
Also, the steering vanes all seem to have loads of lines and pulleys
led to the cockpit which just seems awful to me, taking up most of
the cockpit space. It seems like you'd be fighting all that rig to
attend to anything at the stern like handling a drogue, fish line,
skiff, anchor or such.
Be nice to hear the pro and cons of each from people who have lived
with both.

William Longyard wrote:
I really wonder if wind driven self-steering gear is better than electronic
gear.

A. Though electronic gear can fail, carrying a few spare units is less
expensive than the initial installation of a windvane system.

B. Though electronic gear consumes power, power generation is not a major
issue for many cruisers.

C. Electronic gear will probably fail at no greater rate than the
wind/mechanical system, and would be infinitely easier to replace a as a
complete assembly than would be a windvane and its associated gearing.

D. Electronic gear takes us much less real estate and leaves an already
cluttered transom untouched.

My two cents. Glad to hear other opinions.
Bill Longyard

Comparing a wind powered self-steerer to an
electronic autopilot is kind of comparing apples
to oranges. Although both will allow you to leave
the helm (under certain circumstances) they
acomplish this quite differently.

For example, an electronic autopilot is useless if
the main rudder is jammed or broken off, while
most wind powered steering systems have their own
rudder. However, the autopilot will continue to
work in very light wind, or when motoring when the
windvane is useless.

IMHO a well-found long distance cruiser will have
both, and they will both be in bristol shape.

In the past a number of boats have broken their
rudders while surfing down large waves and
starting to broach due to the lack of storm
drogues to slow them down. Some were consequently
rolled due to lack of steering capability, and
lack of a storm parachute anchor to keep the bow
into the waves.

A self-steering gear on the transom gives you dual
redundency should you ground and jam your rudder
shaft, or if the rudder is broken off. OTOH, I
like the autopilot as well.

YMMV,

Don W.