Do u use one? Do u find it useful? Where and how do u mount it? I'm thinking of one to use on my Nacra 5.2.
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2016 Hobie Getaway
1978 Nacra 5.2
1978 Hobie 16 (back in the day)
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tactician compass
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Posted: Sep 03, 2017 - 11:17 AM
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Posted: Sep 03, 2017 - 09:22 PM
Well, what I did is get one of these:
https://www.overstock.com…er/13403972/product.html
And I run this very simple app:
https://play.google.com/s…ltophoto.knotmeter&hl=en
My boat is an inter 20, and I made a mount that slots into the track on top of the front crossbeam so no drilling, and I paste the tablet to the mount with Velcro. It takes a bit of fiddling to get the tablet going, as it's so cheap because some of the instructions and apps pre-loaded are in Japanese. Nevertheless I figured it out and I'm no whiz at this stuff.
Bottom line is I'm happy with it, and for 10% of the price of a speedpuck. It'll run for at least 8 hours on a charge.
I can shoot some pics next time I'm at the boat if anyone is interested.
Best,
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Posted: Sep 03, 2017 - 10:05 PM
Are you asking about whether or not it is worthwhile to use a tactical compass for course racing?
In my experience, no it is not worthwhile and few if any top beach cat racers use them these days.
Performing well in a beach cat race depends on many factors such as getting a good start, having excellent boat speed, reading the fleet and the wind over the course, and having strong tactical skills and knowledge of the rules - not staring down at a compass.
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Posted: Sep 04, 2017 - 12:57 PM
i can defiantly see the value in having a nice large screened speedometer / VGM calculator on your boat during anytime except racing.
It can be a great resource for learning what makes your boat "tick"
you can see instantly the effect of sheeting, traveler, out-hauls, weight placement, etc
you can learn about best course for vmg and then use that knowledge during racing -
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Posted: Sep 04, 2017 - 01:44 PM
This is the exact reason I bought a SpeedPuck this summer. At the age of 67 and new to sailing, I don't have years to gain the expierience to get the most out of my cat.
After this pic was taken I added foam pipe insulation to protect any metal edges.
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Pat
Hobie Wave
Canadian side of Lake Huron
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Posted: Sep 04, 2017 - 02:50 PM
What is a speed puck? Ur picture didn't load for some reason.
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2016 Hobie Getaway
1978 Nacra 5.2
1978 Hobie 16 (back in the day)
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Posted: Sep 04, 2017 - 05:04 PM
It's a gps speedometer and more. Here is the link to their site...
https://www.velocitek.com/pages/speedpuck
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Pat
Hobie Wave
Canadian side of Lake Huron
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Posted: Sep 04, 2017 - 08:25 PM
I bought a refurbished Garmin Quatix GPS off ebay couple of years ago. Primarily use it for speed and distance. The feature I like the most that I use during an occasional race is the ability to mark the starting line and having it give you the time/distance to the start of the race. Let's you time your approach.
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Steve
Nacra Inter 20
Okemos Michigan
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Posted: Sep 04, 2017 - 09:20 PM
I agree with MN3 and others that having GPS speed (and potentially heading too) is super helpful to learn how to go faster. Also helpful in long-distance racing where you have less shore-reference points (so you don't have to stare at your GPS as much). Plus it's honestly 100% fun to see how fast you're going, as it was for us during Race to Alaska when we once started hitting 17kts, then 18 and finally 19.2kts under spinnaker -- we just looked at each other and laughed "did you see that?".
We mounted ours on the bowsprit, about 1ft behind the jib tack, using a custom mount (not to hard to build yourself, or can 3D print).
For around the buoys racing however I think Dogboy is right that it's more important to be heads-up and read the other boats, course and wind shifts visually -- though even in this case a race-legal compass can probably help fine tune your senses of when a windshift is happening (the pros feel stuff to a level of precision that amateurs can't since we don't spend thousands of hours on the water). At least that's my sense when racing bigger boats -- I haven't done enough around the buoys beach cat racing to confirm.
Edited by southstars2012 on Sep 04, 2017 - 10:20 PM.
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SL
Nacra Inter 20 (sold)
2017 Race to Alaska "Team Ketch me if u can"
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TeamKetch/
- Race video highlights: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YTWp4DP0VcA
Sausalito CA
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Posted: Sep 04, 2017 - 10:01 PM
[Note: this post is a longer review of various speed/heading displays -- 100% personal opinion]
For the 2017 Race to Alaska (long-distance race including night sailing), a good bowsprit-mounted speed/compass display on our Nacra Inter 20 was critical, so I spent a lot of time researching my options. Here's the run down, in case you are considering a similar display:
(1) Best all-around GPS speed/heading display: NovaSail NS360 Pocket v2 (MSRP $529)
(see here: http://www.nova-sail.com/…cket%20V2.php?buy=129832)
This is what we ended up using for R2AK, and I loved it (would absolutely reuse the same again). Not the best-looking display, but by far the most functional and flexible. The only standalone display that I know of that can do all of the following:
- GPS speed (speed over ground)
- GPS heading (course over ground)
- Magnetic heading
- Start timer
- Ability to simultaneously show any 2 of the above 4 data fields (for example: GPS COG + magnetic heading, if we were in a high current spot to determine drift; or GPS speed + COG, which we used most of the time to figure out our best speed/angle)
- Other features: Backlight for night use; long battery life (30-36hrs in our experience)
- Missing features: distance/time to start line (for racing)
- Note: probably not race-legal in most classes (uses GPS data) -- unless you show only magnetic heading + start timer (no GPS-based data fields), but then the class would have to trust you not to misuse the GPS fields while racing.
Full disclosure: Florent from NovaSail very kindly lent us the display for R2AK. It's a great product so I'm not shy of recommending it. He's a French guy running a tiny operation out of Hong Kong, so he's not well known in the US, but he was very responsive, and has more traction in Europe -- his display was used on the winning Diam 24 trimaran in this year's Round-France Regatta (Tour de France a la Voile).
More NovaSail links:
- Picture of the display (being tested in our car): https://www.facebook.com/…36522605/?type=3&theater
- NovaSail Facebook page (better than their site): https://www.facebook.com/novasail.hk/
- NovaSail display feature comparison table: http://www.nova-sail.com/en/Compare.php
(2) Runner-up GPS speed/heading display: Velocitek Pro-Start (MSRP $599)
(see here: https://www.velocitek.com/pages/prostart)
Very similar to the NovaSail above (and better looking), but less complete:
- No magnetic heading
- No backlight
Additional feature: distance/time to start line (stand-out feature, but probably not race-legal in class racing)
I have less to say about the Pro-Start as I've never seen it in person...
(3) Best heading-only display (no GPS): Velocitek Shift (MSRP $699)
(see here: https://www.velocitek.com/pages/shift)
Only 2 display features (no GPS speed/course):
- Magnetic compass
- Start timer
- Other features: Backlight; built-in solar power
- Note: probably race-legal since no GPS (depending on the class)
We bought the Shift for R2AK as our back-up to the NovaSail display (since our must-have feature for R2AK was compass heading + backlight at night), but in the end we didn't use it since the NovaSail display did the same and more. It's a very nice looking display overall, very legible, with a great backlight. If anyone is interested, I'm selling it brand new on Ebay for $600 ($99 under MSRP) -- I can arrange a bigger discount if you message me so we avoid eBay fees (plus I'll pay classified fees to BeachCats).
Runner-up race-legal compasses: Raymarine (ex-Tacktick) Micro Compass T060/T061 (MSRP $499) or Race Master compas T070/T071 (MSRP $849) - more expensive than Velocitek Shift for a given feature set (though you can find discounts at online sites like Defender and even Amazon).
(4) Best entry-level GPS speed/heading display: Velocitek Speedpuck (MSRP $339)
(see here: https://www.velocitek.com/pages/speedpuck)
Only 1 data field at a time (vs. 2 fields with the NovaSail or Pro-Start):
- GPS speed (SOG), or
- GPS course (COG)
- Note: may not be race-legal as a compass heading display since it uses GPS
I suspect the Speedpuck is Velocitek's most popular display - simple and easy to use, and many people are happy to just display speed (while judging heading by eye). If anyone is interested I have a second-hand one (barely used) that I'll sell if you PM me -- since I'm boat-less right now I don't need it, and if I get a boat I'd probably invest in the NovaSail...
There are certainly other options -- cheap tablet like Ericrayl suggested, or a GPS watch -- but I don't think these really compete with the ease of use and battery life of marinized displays like the ones above.
Edited by southstars2012 on Sep 04, 2017 - 10:19 PM.
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SL
Nacra Inter 20 (sold)
2017 Race to Alaska "Team Ketch me if u can"
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TeamKetch/
- Race video highlights: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YTWp4DP0VcA
Sausalito CA
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Posted: Sep 05, 2017 - 07:25 PM
Had one on my 5.8.... Look by my feet, yes it was very useful
Edited by JohnES on Sep 05, 2017 - 07:27 PM.
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John Schwartz
Ventura, CA
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Posted: Sep 06, 2017 - 03:02 PM
John, have you checked the accuracy on your SpeedPuck lately?
While mine was under warranty I noticed it was showing 20% slower speed than actual. I tested it against my car speedometer, a Magellan GPS, and the Motion-X app on my phone - all at the same time. The other three agreed to the mile per hour. The SP was consistently low for the entire speed spectrum.
I sent it to the manufacturer and was given a replacement, which went bad in the same way a year later.
The direction and mapping still work well, but the speed is the fun part and it disappoints.
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Sheet In!
Bob
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Prindle 18-2 #244 "Wakizashi"
Prindle 16 #3690 "Pegasus" Sold (sigh)
AZ Multihull Fleet 42 member
(Way) Past Commodore of Prindle Fleet 14
Arizona, USA
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Posted: Sep 06, 2017 - 05:24 PM
Don't have a speed puck... that is an old fashion flush mounted compass in the picture.
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John Schwartz
Ventura, CA
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Posted: Sep 06, 2017 - 06:24 PM
John, does the compass mounted that far down on the tramp get in the way? That is the compass model I am considering. How sturdy is the compass dome?
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2016 Hobie Getaway
1978 Nacra 5.2
1978 Hobie 16 (back in the day)
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Posted: Sep 06, 2017 - 09:26 PM
Nope, hardly knew it was there... It was mounted with nylon screws and nuts from Home Depot along with one of the white cutting boards that was cut down to a 4" X 4" as the backing plate... Don't use metal fasteners to fasten it..
Pretty sturdy.... I had it there for about three years and it started to yellow about the third year... but for $24.00 it was pretty cheap to replace which I didn't.. sold the boat.
Edited by JohnES on Sep 06, 2017 - 09:31 PM.
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John Schwartz
Ventura, CA
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Posted: Jun 10, 2018 - 08:06 PM
How much is the speedpuck and where can u buy it?
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Frank
Prindle 15/Hobie 16/Hobie 14T
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Posted: Jun 11, 2018 - 09:27 AM
