There’s not much about my cruising life these days that would contribute significantly to the Blogosphere this time around except that I have taken my commitment to invest in Mabrouka fully to heart. Just so you know, my heirs have encouraged me in this regard.
While I headed to the US in May intending to attend my college homecoming and visit with classmates, a bout of pneumonia waylaid that plan just a few days after arriving in New York. Instead of going to Webb and then joining Rich and Greg and Jean and David visiting Steve and Melissa in their new home on Shelter Island, NY, I lay lashed to a hospital bed for three days by an IV and an oxygen tube. While my pneumonia eventually faded away despite the ministrations of doctor and nurse, the bummerness of missing my friends did not. A close second-best was achieved, though, when they came to me for visits and fine dining.
The secondary purpose of my trip to the US was easily achieved, …spending money! The purchases do bear somewhat on the afore-blogged mast projects in that I have bought a whole new navigation suite for Mabrouka. Not only am I replacing my more-than-decade-old wind speed and direction sensors perched atop her mast, but boat speed and water depth/temperature detection are being consolidated into a single probe sticking through the hull and a new autopilot system will be shoe-horned in under the stern lazarette. An AIS (Automated Identification System) which detects and displays nearby boats and ships, is being added. Except for the AIS, these are all RayMarine instruments with their own new displays that will also interface with the RayMarine chartplotter I installed less than a year ago. I will probably also buy a new satellite comms device to replace my dependence on antiquated single-side band radio technology. I am replacing my main compass, too. There’s an interesting reason for that which I may talk about some other time.
Needless to say I’m working hard to fill in the voids these bulky items leave in my luggage with various other household items ranging from bed sheets and pillow cases to galley items and t-shirts. I’ll get to describing the new nav system installation in an upcoming blog, but I just wanted to dispel any concerns among my readers that I’d gone dark on Mabrouka projects and might have gone soft on the campaign to drain my 401K.
S/V Mabrouka 
No one would ever think you’ve gone soft regarding taking care of your baby!
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Well, I’ve accused mySELF of that.
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Glad you’re recovered Roy! Luckily I’ve not bought the bug, but pneumonia sucks. Looking forward to tales of installations!
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Boats. Can’t live with ’em. Can’t live without ’em.
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But you CAN shoot them!
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Nice to hear about your projects. I look forward to the compass explanation and wonder if the new engine has influenced things, or if you just need a device that is easier to read. A new compass raises the issue of boxing it; what your plan?
The wiring diagram brought to mind the fact that the friends with Peterson 44 (that I mentioned when I forwarded Jesse’s ode to the ocean) did an interesting network installation during their upgrade. They both work for NASA, by the way. You might consider reaching out to share some experiences.
carry on.
stay healthy.
dh
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Hey! Yeah, that is a weird name, but I like it.
I hadn’t thought about the boxing process. I assume you mean compensating it and deriving a table of corrections. “Boxing the compass”, in recalling what my father related from his days at the naval academy, was to recite all the points of the compass in order. Anyway, while I really should develop a deviation table, practically speaking I only use my compass to have a ready visual reference for direction after I steer the boat based on direction from the chart plotter. Here we go, the lazy ease of digital navigation versus the prudent use of basic principle navigation.
Okay, I’ll go ahead and practice my description of the magnetic dip explanation I offered for the future blog. Maybe you’ll do some more research and expand upon/correct it. Anyway, picturing the lines of magnetic force generated by the Earth’s core, they emerge from the surface at gradually changing angles as you go from pole to equator. Once you cross the equator that angle has reversed. I guess this doesn’t happen with all compasses due to differing design and construction, but my on my old compass the card has tilted a very noticeable amount. It’s possible to get the old compass adjusted, but my compass is SO old that the technician couldn’t get the right seals to put it back together and actually thought the dome might crack in the process of dis/re-assembly. I’m replacing my old Danforth (not made any more) with a new Ritchie. They told me I needed to specify that the new one be compensated for Zone 6 to operate properly in my present latitudes.
I will reach out to Jesse soon.
Thanks so much for demonstrating your interest in my blog by commenting on it!
Roy
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sorry for the weird name this system seems to have given me. I will investigate how to change it.
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