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Mast mounted radar location recommendations.

mgav451

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January 8, 2018 - 2:31 pm

Member Since: September 27, 2017

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Mast mount radar location recommendations..I've got a 32 cutter rig with the self tacker and Yankee. I've got the mast down and I'm considering moutning a radar dome on the mast. ( I can't lie a shakespeare seawatch 19" powered TV antenna they work great! Haha) I haven't sailed my boat yet so I'm not sure where I should best mount it to minimize sail slapping off it when I tack.

Scott Carle

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January 15, 2018 - 8:06 am

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Hmm... I'm thinking a post off one side of the transom. On the mast over the staysail would work but I have never liked how big a shadow the mast causes with it that close. 6 of one half dozen of other though... It's been done successfully either way many many times.

Scott Carle DE38 Cutter s/v Valkyr

Argyle38

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January 16, 2018 - 7:17 pm

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I struggled over this a bit as well. Mount it high and you get more range, but you lose some close in coverage. Mount it above the inner forestay fitting, and you'll block some of the foredeck light, under the inner-forestay and you have to deal with the staysail hitting it.

I ended up going with under the inner-forestay fitting. I don't really care about range with my raday. Seeing a distance is nice, but I've yet to hit anything that is more than 20 miles away. Close in radar coverage is much more important to me on low visibility. The staysail does brush across the dome when tacking, but I just put a friction patch on that part of the sail and haven't had any issues. When I have the staysail sheeted in tight for motorsailing in light air, the leech of the sail rests on the dome then as well, but it's really a non-issue.

-Argyle