NavList:
A Community Devoted to the Preservation and Practice of Celestial Navigation and Other Methods of Traditional Wayfinding
Re: Lights etc.
From: Peter Fogg
Date: 2003 Oct 11, 10:20 +1000
From: Peter Fogg
Date: 2003 Oct 11, 10:20 +1000
On the poor radar signal offered by yachts, with and without an external reflector: I've heard that one of the most effective ways of improving the signal return is to stuff the mast with balled-up aluminium 'paper' sold for cooking purposes, that it works better than an add-on reflector which is a clumsy thing to have hoisted aloft. Why it should be so I know not, as the mast is usually made of aluminium anyway. An added advantage is the material stops the halyards clanking inside the mast while the boat rocks on its mooring. There is also an electronic device that amplifies the radar signal before returning it so the vessel using radar gets a signal that looks like an aircraft carrier, thus difficult to miss, and another with an adjustable audible alarm that warns of an incoming radar signal - a boon to solo sailors.
