Doug,

If you have inspection ports, you can do what we did. These compasses run about $35 each IIRC.

See attachment

I see Claude dishing out some advice there.

Claude is a good person to be getting advice dished from.

With a large spoon. Remind me to tell you later what his first advice was to me. It basically involved my tent and a lake.

Tad:

The JCD is shaped like an L. I am going to get a piece of plastic or wood about 10 x 10 to mount it to and drill holes at ends. Run some rope through the lacing to mount it. That way I can see the Tacktick easy and use the count down timer. I might just get a pole mount for the Mystere 4.3. Will look more at it when I see it.

Doug

The pole mount is the way to go...except that you can't reach it to use the timer.

I am looking a the picture posted and am confused??? I've never seen a tick-tack mounted that far forward on a pole. Most of the time they are mounted much further aft on the pole. Since someday I would like to have a neat toy like that I would like to know reasons for mounting that far forward?

On my H-18 I have mounted compasses in the hull ports, they hurt when you sit on them!!! and I can't see them from the wire. But they are great with the magnum wings, the compasses are at your feet. Most the time I just suffer w/ my good ole' Garmin 12 around my neck. I haven't found a method/location that I'm confident will work and won't let the $$$tick-tack$$$ get torn off the boat by the jib-sheets of the big overlap P-19mx jib.

We have installed a self tacking jib on this I20. The red lines you see just in front of the tack tick are the jib sheets and they sweep back and forth, just over the pole, as we tack/jibe from port to starboard. They wouldn't be able to get around the compass if we moved them any further back. We made a conscesion to mount the turning blocks further back on the pole to allow room for the tack tick. They are usually mounted right at the bridle (actually this works out almost right geometrically for the tacker since the radius of the tacker is a little small). If we mount the tack tick in front of the bridle, the spin sheets will certainly send it to the deep.

Jake:

Does the tactical part of the compass work as advertised? I have never used it and look forward to trying it this year. I just don't want to have a sheet knock it loose as they are $600 now!!! I got it for $250.

Doug

Doug,

This is just a compass that has some dampning built in (to accomodate for wave action and such) and a countdown timer. As far as tactical stuff goes, you can tell if you are getting headed or lifted from the compass reading...but that's about it. The Race Master is much more advanced (and bigger) and although Carl brought his for the Tybee last year, we pretty much just used it as a compass (I didn't have time to study up on it - but I am pretty sure you have to teach it, through example and button clicking, your tacking and jibing angles and such).

Jake"

I was talking about the headed / lifted function. Does it seem to be accurate and it is any better than the look at a site on land method we always used before in the old days? I will try it anyway as it goes to that automatically after the timer goes to 0.

Doug

Fine looking cat. I'm intereted in getting an RC30. How many are are sailing in the U.S.? Anyone know?

Our Tactick compass is mounted on a fabricated L shapped bracket riveted to the front beam about a foot to the left of the mast base. Accesable and easy to read from both trap positions.

I live within 15 miles of Aquarius Sails. I believe they are good people doing the best with what they got. They are a small group of people, who direct their attentions and limited resources with the best of intentions, to where it is most needed.
The fews repairs I have needed for my 1977 Hobie 16 have been done by them. Once, I needed a grommet replaced in a sail. I showed up on their door step. They were in the process of building a carbon mast. He interupted the job, and in a flurry of movement..tool grabbing..and pounding, he replaced the missing grommet. He refused payment, as he didn't have time to mess with money and receipts. "Catch me another time," he said, as he rushed back to the carbon mast.
I felt a bit guilty for not being able to pay, and for interupting a mast building job, much more important than my tiny needs.
So, cut them some well deserved slack. They are more like you and me, than some faceless corporation. If an e-mail doesn't work, try the "real" mail or the phone. Or show up on their doorstep.

Sounds like a good company then - just really busy. Their products certainly seem to be fast and well liked by their owners. I'll contact them using traditional methods. I apologize if I incorrectly jumped to conclusion after the first two failed contact attempts.