bigal.nz

Is there much variance in the brand of antenna? I have South Pacific just down the road.

Thanks IT. Replacing the coax is easy. Hope thats all it is. LOL @ 46mi intentions.

What sort of typical range should I expect from the VHF/AIS. I get there are some variables in this, but today for example I was only intermittently picking up the ferry on AIS when they were 2.8NM away with some terrain in the way.... see picture. AIS and VHF share an antenna with the appropriate splitter. (XB8000 and a Standard Horizon VHF - Furuno antenna (looks old))

Thanks IT. I may well take you up on that kind offer - not departing until next year. Would you recommend that external antenna? They aren't all that pricey and do seem to be recommended.

We are looking at the Island next year. We have Pactor III and if I can get my HAM license soonish, will use Vara as well. I have used the Pactor a few times in the marina to do a smoke test to the Australian station, but I am just not comfortable relying entirely on the Pactor, so we are also looking at the Go. The Go seems a expensive backup, so I am wondering if anyone here has one they would be happy to rent out? We would still buy an external antenna. Cheers Al

+1 Victron

If you need to rig your trisail does anyone here advocate dropping the boom (but leaving one end attached to mast) and lashing it to the deck?

Anyone want to sell there Iridium go yet? Looking to go offshore next year but Starlink will still be too far away

Actually all this talk of stern lines got me thinking - Motuihe (West Bay?) Its so bloody rolly, I think its because boats don't seem to sit with the waves. I wonder if a stern line there would help that.

Thanks for all the tips. It sounds like in many cases you don't need to have the thing rigged ready to drop at a moments notice. I think it might be good peace of mind in a blow as a backup if your primary let go for any reason. Anyone got one of those collapsible ones?

This is on the transom. As you can see the neck sits proud of the deck - ordinarily this would be a pain, but because of the placement of it, it will never cause a trip hazard. I felt that the proud neck also offers some protection against water ingress - those flush fillers are fine - but you are relying on the rubber ring in the cap to stop water getting in. Anyway when I took this one off - there was no gasket (this was a late 80s design and the filler had probably never been off. Looks like silicone *might* have been what was used and to be fair it had lasted well with no signs

Long story (wont bore you with the details) but I need to rebed the new fuel filler (Diesel). Butyl seems to be a favourite - except for fuel fillers (because it breaks down the butyl when spilt). Havent foumnd a clear answer on whats best for a fuel filler - Sika or Silicone seem to be an option.....anyone done this before? Thanks

We are looking to go offshore to Fiji, and one of the things on the checklist is the spare anchor, which we already have but its a horrible thing - I think the style is called fishermans anchor. Our primary anchor is a Delta, and we have so much chain I have never had to use the warp. We have dual rollers. I can think of a few situations where the spare would be needed, some in a hurry - some not so much. What are the usual scenarios where you would use the spare anchor and which of these situations would you have it in storage/dissembled vs loaded on the second roller ready to go

We are going with BG with a Tri Radial Warp cloth from Contender. Thanks for all the feedback - we were keen to support local, but did talk to an overseas loft during research. There was actually a lot of good local options.

Yes I have heard good things about them too. A little worried about getting stuff out of SL at the moment.