Recommend an Instrument Package for an Oceanis 351

[allendick]

My instruments are original and all that works now is the depth..I use Navionics and OpenCPN  on my phone for charts and speed, etc. and find that entirely satisfactory for my present purposes but would upgrade if choices were easy.

My old wheel pilot works reasonably well but is noisy and for some reason wanders and tacks me when i'm not looking if I am sailing close to the wind and the wind slacks a bit. The radar has never worked and the wind instrument is kaput.

In teaching,  I've used many systems and they all seem to work so I'm not too fussy about brands as long as charts are available for the Sea of Cortes.

I'm a DIY sort but I hate shopping for this stuff or even thinking much about it.  The choices are just too confusing.  I just want to find a basic kit to take home and install that works.

Does anyone sell a kit like that -- basic MFT, autopilot, depth and sonar, wind, and maybe radar all in a box?  I'd have thought somehow, that it would be a thing.

If not, are there lists somewhere of compatible equipment of various levels pre-selected for cruisers with 35-foot boats?  If so, I have not found them.

[slam.1956]

Easy answer - no.
Having said that most systems are a lot simpler to connect due to NMEA2000. cabling is plug and play.

If your replacing everything I think its worth sticking to a brand that covers everything you want.
Personally I like B&G, they make all the things you want. lots of people like to run a bit of stuff wireless these days and i think that things up the mast where possible benefit from this so go with a wireless wind instrument. I prefer the B&G stuff because they have some neat sailing specific features on their MFD's have a look at Youtube.
Lots of people like Raymarine because they make pretty much everything as well, Raymarine still have wheelpilots which B&G don't (as far as I know), but it's not so difficult to mix and match thanks to NMEA 2000 cabling. I notice lots of people in the USA go for Garmin stuff, but it seems to me more oriented towards fishing or pleasure craft rather than sailing.

You should write a list of your replacement needs and head down to wherever your favorite Boating store is that has a big section of electronics. 
There is always lots of heated discussion about equipment in boats and I'm sure lots of people wont agree with me but you seem to have a big job ahead of you which is going to need some research.

[slam.1956]

https://www.bandg.com/

On Friday, May 8, 2020 at 7:37:09 AM UTC+10, allendick wrote:

[slam.1956]

https://www.bandg.com/bg/activity/inshore-coastal-cruising/list/?ItemsPerPage=36&SortBy=Featured&page=1&DisplayOption=List

List of stuff for coastal cruisers

[allendick]

Thanks for that.  I was pleasantly surprised by the B&G site, but I had hoped to just go somewhere, buy a box of stuff, go home to my boat and install it.

I guess that won't happen. 

Has anyone re-done an Oceanis 351 lately who might want to brag or complain and share a list?

[mechone]

I did ,my boat came with old Raymarine that speed, wind and depth didn't work . The C80 chartplotter worked and I got the Radar to work. I bought the I50 wind, speed, and depth package 2 years ago, then a new auto pilot EV 100. My old pilot st4000 plus did work ,however not like the new pilot. The new pilot is amazing and everything talks to one another and will sail off the wind input. Very easy to install ,1 plug and daisy chain all the wind ,speed and depth. Pilot needs it's own plug.

Everything  talks to C80 and I purchased a new axion chartplotter ,but kept the C80 to keep the old radar. B&G or Raymarine you can't go wrong . However Raymarine auto pilot  is amazing. All Raymarine comes with 3 year warranty.

[Hal Mueller]

I just went through an upgrade for my Moorings 322 (aka Beneteau 323). The original electronics was all Raymarine, and I mostly stayed there.

TL;DR version, if you want to buy what I have in one shot:

Raymarine Axiom 9, with right-angle power cable and remote USB SD card reader

Raymarine EV-100 autopilot (includes p70s control head)

i70s multipurpose instrument display (I like this display a lot)

Raymarine Airmar 800 digital depth/speed/temperature transducer

Vesper XB-8000 AIS

Fusion stereo (still to be installed)

NMEA to SeaTalk NG adapters as needed

goof plate from Front Panel Express

When I bought the boat 3 years ago it had an ST60+ Tridata, an ST40 Bidata, and an ST6002 autopilot control head, driving the Raymarine analog autopilot and drive unit. All was connected by SeaTalk (version 1). ST40 was connected to an Airmar 800 analog depth-only sounder. Plotter was a Raymarine RC 435i, so old that it took CF cards. I added a Vesper XB-8000 AIS, used iNavX for electronic charts, and just lived with the setup the first year.

When the autopilot failed, I started the upgrade. I replaced the autopilot control head, control unit, and compass with the Raymarine EV-100 package, and ran SeaTalk NG from the helm, down to the autopilot computer port side in the stateroom, and then back forward through the lazarette to the navigation station, where I connect the AIS. I also replaced the plotter with an Axiom 9 MFD. Because the depth sounder was still on SeaTalk V1, I added a SeaTalk to SeaTalk NG converter. ST6002 control head was replaced by the p70s that was included in the EV-100 bundle.

This past winter, I replaced the analog Airmar 800 depth sounder with a Raymarine digital Airmar 800 depth/speed/temperature transducer. I hadn’t realize the previous year that Raymarine’s digital version of the Airmar 800 DST was through-hull compatible with the analog. I extended the SeaTalk NG cable to the bow and put the DST sensor on the network.

However, that left me with no use for the ST40 Bidata. It had been needed earlier, to drive the analog depth sensor, but the digital readings from the new DST weren’t visible on it. I wanted to be able to see depth information on something other than my chart plotter, so I replaced the ST60+ with an i70s. The ST40 came out too. Since there were no more SeaTalk V1 instruments on the boat, the V1/NG converter came out too.

The hole was too big for what I had in mind, so I had a goof plug made, by Front Panel Express. I used 3 mm aluminum for the goof plate (I actually ordered a pair, outside and inside). I’m happy to share or post the design file for this, if anyone cares. Then I added the remote SD card reader to my Axiom 9 plotter. This means I don’t have to remove my helm station to get at the Axiom’s card reader.

The i70s and p70s used the same size cutout as the ST 60/ST6002. But the holes for the mounting screws are in slightly different locations. The cutout for the Axiom was considerably larger, so that was just a matter of buying a beer for my woodworking neighbor with the band saw.

It would have been simpler to have done all of the work at once, but I was just getting to know the boat and wasn’t comfortable pulling everything out. In particular, the depth sensor swap would have been cheaper if I had skipped the stage of using the Seatalk V1 to NG bridge.

Hal

s/v Yard Work

[Daniel Ratko]

I second the vesper AIS.  Use that with my iPad, put a mount up and a couple usb outlets in cockpit, which are handy regardless, and it’s perfect.  Can even pre program routes in and have it follow with the autopilot.  

Probably most interesting part is that the vesper is a multiplexer too.  So can talk NMEA2000/183 and broadcasts all of it on WiFi.  Also it’s a “black box” so you can run it in  the background with low power for anchor watch/night AIS.  Lastly  it sends gps/instrument data to my radio for dcs/distresss calls over 183 which is nice, often this gets pulled from a dedicated plotter not the AIS gps.

If I were word cruising I’d want a dedicated plotter, but this works great for me.  iPads are like $300 and easy to keep up to date.  All instruments come up on my iPad or phone.  I had planned to install a plotter this year but I don’t fee i have any immediate need. 

Dan

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