Ocean Navigator - Ocean Navigator

09 Nov

ON and Seven Seas announce partnership

Ocean NavigatorHome Page Hero, Ocean Voyaging, Web Exclusivecruising, ocean sailing, ocean voyaging, partnership, Seven Seas Cruising Association, SSCA

Ocean Navigator and the Seven Seas Cruising Association (SSCA) are partnering up. ON's great voyaging articles and SSCA's experienced membership make a natural team. The magazine and the cruising association are expanding their collaborative efforts to bering more value to ON readers and SSCA's members. The big announcement right now is that all SSCA members will receive ON digital editions as part of their membership. A great way for SSCA members, who sail the world over, to keep getting ON's useful articles. And further partnership benefits will be announced soon. Here's the official press release: Seven Seas Cruising Association announced…

31 Oct

Wide Open Throttle test

Ocean NavigatorPower Voyaging

A few years ago, I was carrying out a sea trial aboard a single screw trawler that a client of mine was considering for purchase. Part of the process involves running the vessel at full or wide-open throttle, what engine manufacturers often refer to WOT. In the case of this engine model, the manufacturer specified that a WOT test can be performed for 30 minutes without any ill effects. In some cases, there are no limits, in others the duration may be shorter. For professionals and owners alike, preparing a power voyaging boat for a cruise, whether that’s a day…

31 Oct

Bite Worse than the Bark

Ocean NavigatorOcean Voyaging

It was wee o’clock in the morning when we heard the first thump. It’s a seemingly universal passage rule that bad things always choose to happen in the middle of the night. Other such rules include “you’ll have spares for everything but the part that breaks” and “it doesn’t matter which way you head, the squall will also move that direction.” We were six days out from Vanimo, PNG, sailing slowly at four knots on our Privilege 482 cat Perry. Our route took us over the top of the island of New Guinea in mostly light winds. With a total…

31 Oct

Fifty Years of Diesels

Ocean NavigatorEngines and Propulsion

My wife Terrie and I built our first boat, an Ingrid 39 called Nada, in Louisiana, funded by a job in the Gulf of Mexico oilfields. A few years earlier Terrie and I were aboard my brother Chris’ boat — which was equipped with a hard-to-start Thorneycroft engine — when the boat was nearly sunk by a freighter in the English Channel. The image of that freighter bearing down on us, which had given me nightmares for years afterwards, was implanted in my brain. I was determined to have an engine that could be depended upon to start both electrically and…

31 Oct

An unlikely rescue

Ocean NavigatorNav Problems

The following sounds like a fairy tale, but it isn’t. Peter Warner wasn’t happy. He’d cruised more than 2,000 nautical miles from Australia to ask the king of the nation of Tonga for permission and the necessary permits to fish for the highly prized spiny lobster that thrived in those waters. The king had refused his request, and now Warner and his crew, aboard the fishing trawler Just David, were returning home. Passing a small island in an archipelago of 169 islands that make up the nation of Tonga, they passed the small uninhabited island of Ata. Scanning the shore…

28 Oct

Voyaging Tips, October 2021

Ocean NavigatorVoyaging Tips

When you head off on passage you leave behind access to stores, chandleries, and parts delivery; if you didn't bring it with you you're not going to find it at the mythical half-way barge. What you can do is plan ahead and bring repair materials along, including glues, tapes, adhesives and the like. Armed with these you can keep a fair bit of equipment operational. Note that there's little value in having materials without also understanding where and how to use them. Know where systems are located/routed on your boat and know how to use the materials at hand to…

15 Oct

An unlikely rescue – Answers

Ocean NavigatorNav Problems

ANSWERS A. 23 hours, 25 minutes GMT B. Ho 84° 06.3’ C. Latitude 25° 20.7’ S

01 Oct

Furuno leads the pack in 2021 NMEA Awards

Ocean NavigatorHome Page Hero, Ocean Navigator, Ocean VoyagingFuruno, marine electronics, NMEA, NMEA 0183, NMEA 2000, NMEA Awards

Most voyagers are probably most familiar with the initial NMEA as part of a networking designation, either NMEA 0183 or NMEA 2000. Maybe not as many could tell you that NMEA stands for the National Marine Electronics Association. Or that NMEA includes all the top marine electronics manufacturers or that the NMEA has a yearly conference at which the organization gives out awards in a variety of categories. This year marine electronics manufacturer Furuno was the overall winner, taking home seven awards, including the Technology Award for its NavNet TZT16F TZtouch 3 v2. The 2021 NMEA conference was held…

28 Sep

NMEA NAMES 2021 AWARD WINNERS AT ANNUAL CONFERENCE & EXPO

Ocean NavigatorIndustry & Company News, Press release

• NMEA Product of Excellence Awards presented in 18 categories • NMEA Best New Product Award goes to Shadow-Caster’s Light Commander • NMEA Technology Award goes to Furuno’s NavNet TZT16F • NMEA Manufacturer of the Year—Garmin Twenty products garnered top honors in three separate award competitions at the 2021 NMEA Marine Electronics Conference & Expo, held last week at the Orlando Doubletree Universal Hotel in Florida. NMEA members cast their votes online in 18 categories for the Product of Excellence Awards while a panel of independent judges named winners in both the NMEA Technology Award and Best New Product contests.…

20 Sep

Marine Electronics, September 2021

Ocean NavigatorMarine Technology

Under normal conditions, we can expect our starter and house battery banks to be topped off regularly by the engine alternator and solar panels, along with perhaps a wind generator and water generator system, depending on our charging array. But when we need to charge a nearly dead battery in short order, it pays to have a portable charger handy to get the boat’s electrical system back in shape as quickly as possible. If you are looking for a durable, inexpensive charger capable of starting your main engine and charging your cranking battery bank, the Stanley BC15BS is a highly…