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Setting Up My New VHF.


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I have been going through a similar issue myself. I started asking why isn't this working, and by the end of my fault finding I was asking how the hell did this ever work. I started with a micro sized aerial at the top of the mast, went down to a improperly sealed join that was full of water, next stop was the stupid cheap amfm/vhf splitter, and to top it all off the middle core of the plug into the radio hadn't been crimped or soldered in (someone had folded it over itself a few times and shoved it in the back of the plug!).

 

Also FYI pacific aerials don't do custom aerials anymore, I went through hi-tec aerials and they made me a whip aerial with a long enough tail to go straight to the vhf, no joins required :).

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An interesting thread. I repair and do installs for boats when in Marsden Cove and water in the coax is a very common problem, here's a trick to stop it. Leave enough coax at the top of the mast to put a couple of loops in it then connect to your SO259 connector 1/2 wave antenna. If water does get in (sounds like a tooth paste add!), it won't run the full lenght of the coax. Even better, cut the coax and add a SO259 joiner with 2 PL259 plugs about a metre from the antenna in a loop with the joiner at the bottom. Now its easy to replace the water logged coax and water can not get into the rest. Sealing is the trick however. After soldering a plug on, crimp or both, paint nail varnish anywhere where moisture can get in. Screw the plug onto the antenna base and use a liquid sealing rubber paint but I have had excellent success with a product called leakseal from a company called rust-o-lean, comes in a spray can. Spray the plugs and coax as UV eats RG59 after a few years although the shakespear coax seems to survive the best.

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Just a foot note..my own personal experience is that radio use when at sea is minimal (when healing over on the rare occasions the wind is not on the nose!) compared to under power approaching or leaving port. Mast mounted antennas are usually a 1/2 wave or small 1/4 wave which have no "gain" (most of the energy goes up into space) which is ideal when healed over but for distance, not that good. A base loaded 5/8 mounted on a transom will generally out do a "unity gain" antenna, is easy to get to for maintenance and the lower height isnt an issue.

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Our antena sits inside clipped on the cieling, works good in the harbour. We bring it outside and tempoaraily tape it onto the side stay if we go further out to sea. One day we might have IAS if it can plot to a cheap tablet or mobile phone somehow.

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Our antena sits inside clipped on the cieling, works good in the harbour. We bring it outside and tempoaraily tape it onto the side stay if we go further out to sea. One day we might have IAS if it can plot to a cheap tablet or mobile phone somehow.

You are in luck! Its a bit fiddly to get going but google Software Defined Radio and I am assuming its AIS you are wanting? It uses a cheap digital tv usb dongle as a receiver and the software for AIS reception "plugs" into the AIS operation programme using a virtual sound card. Trademe has them as does alixpress. Nothing cheap yet that will output NMEA for plotters but I have AIS on a Samsung Tablet using OTG and a cheap usb dongle. Portable VHF "slim jim" antennas can be made out of 300ohm tv ribbon, plans on the net.

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Yes, you can get an nmea stream from the TV dongle receiver set up. I use one in my office to provide marine traffic with ais coverage of the inner part of gulf harbour marina.

My experience of these is that they are rubbish. Short range, only one of the ais frequencies or the other, not both.

The cheapest way of getting a decent ais receiver is to by a new vhf radio with one integral.

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Yes, you can get an nmea stream from the TV dongle receiver set up. I use one in my office to provide marine traffic with ais coverage of the inner part of gulf harbour marina.

My experience of these is that they are rubbish. Short range, only one of the ais frequencies or the other, not both.

The cheapest way of getting a decent ais receiver is to by a new vhf radio with one integral.

I agree, they certainly are not reliable, its more of a hobby.
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An AIS RX only system won't need one nor will it ask for one, As for the MMSI it's for the boat not the device so use same MMSI on all devices on the boat.

 

RSM never did get back me about handheld MMSI's for tenders with DSC radios

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Is a MMSI the same one for VHF and the 406 EPIRB? 

 

The VHF is asking for one.

 

Back in the thread someone said AIS want it as well but it's not asked for it. The AIS is set up to run totally on it's lonesome independent of everything else but when I fire up the backbone it is connected into that. Is it possible it saw the VHF ask and thought 'I can wait and grab it from there'?

Yes and no. The MMSI number is exclusive to your vessel therefore epirb too but you need to register the epirb hex number with "registering epirbs nz" with your MMSI from Coastguard. The AIS will only work in receive unless its programmed with your MMSI number (warning, you can only do that once! Changing the MMSI requires a factory reset that the manufacturer has do so no mistakes!) The backbone will not send MMSI numbers to anything, they have to be manual entered into each component. Hope that helps?

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Thanks fellas.

 

Yes I noticed the AIS was in Ghost mode i.e receiving only.

I'll suss the manual on how to get the number into that, nothings been seen or popped up so far.

 

Hmmmm...I better ring CG. The website is as clear as road tar. Maybe they'll know my call sign as well, it was on the sticker by the old VHF that's now long gone.

Get a new callsign KM. Coastguard will do both.

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Chuck your name in here:

 

https://www.rsm.govt.nz/smart-web/smart/page/-smart/domain/licence/SearchCertificateAndIdentifierPage.wdk?fromHome=Yes

 

Under Licensee chuck in lastname, firstname should give you a list of callsigns under your name

think that only works if its commercial or you have already registered for a MMSI, if you have just got a bog standard CG callsign don't think you will find it there

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think that only works if its commercial or you have already registered for a MMSI, if you have just got a bog standard CG callsign don't think you will find it there

Yep. It will be on their system. You will need a "client number" (free).

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