www.iFourWinns.com

I am considering installing some useful electronic items to the Chap. I have done a fair amount of research and have come up with a package i believe will suit my purposes.
Here is the criteria:
-GPS/Chartplotter
-Fuel monitoring (useage and economy)
-Water depth and temperature

In the past we have boated in mostly deep and familiar waters, but hope to venture into new unexplored areas hence the chart plotter.There isn't a lot of space at the helm so this will have to be a more compact unit. The fuel monitoring is something I would like since we only have a single 220 gallon fuel tank and I don't want to trust the guage. Plus (as depressing as it may be) being able to see the MPG should help me optimize fuel consumption. The current depth finder (QT-206) is missing the transducer and I am unsure of it's condition if I buy one and connect it.

I have a system in mind... What do you guys think would make a good system?

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Marc, Kathlin & Nathalie


'89 Chaparral Laser 32

'93 Vista 245, 5.8L w/ King Cobra

Former Boats
'01 H260, 7.4 VP Duoprop
'98 H200, 5.0 GL w/VP SX drive

My buddy has one of those fuel monitors and that is about the most depressing guage you will ever read (as you have already anticipated). Ignorance is bliss I suppose. Good luck with the additions.

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Norris Lake, Stardust Marina, Andersonville, TN
2005 Four Winns 230 Horizon 5.7L Volvo Gi/DP
2001 Maxum 1900SR 5.0L V8 (Sold)
2011 Nissan Armada Platnum

Yeah, our new boat has a Navman Trackfish 6500 with a fuel monitor on it. So far, I am not really impressed with it at all. The good news is that we will only be on ONE lake with this boat that is land locked, so its really only valuable to me at night for navigation.

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Current Boat:
2004 Sea Ray 320 Sundancer "Nauti Luvin'"

Previous Boats:
1999 298 Vista "Seas The Day"
2008 H200SS "Nauti Luv"
2006 Tahoe Q4

Not impressed with the performance of the device or the bad fuel mileage it is showing? I see where a chartplotter would be pretty much useless for you but I can leave my dock and go for thousands of miles in many directions.... I plan to just travel a few hundred of them though.

_________________
Marc, Kathlin & Nathalie


'89 Chaparral Laser 32

'93 Vista 245, 5.8L w/ King Cobra

Former Boats
'01 H260, 7.4 VP Duoprop
'98 H200, 5.0 GL w/VP SX drive

The unit...just not impressed with it. Its strange to navigate through the menus and such. Yeah, other than at night (to avoid underwater trees and shallow areas) I dont need a chart plotter.

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Current Boat:
2004 Sea Ray 320 Sundancer "Nauti Luvin'"

Previous Boats:
1999 298 Vista "Seas The Day"
2008 H200SS "Nauti Luv"
2006 Tahoe Q4

I'm looking towards a Garmin 531. It has the capability to add a fuel flow meter to it as well. Just not sure if I want to drop $500 for a chartplotter on this boat when my handheld works fine.

Chartplotter/rader is a great reason to upgrade

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2007 358 T-5.7GXi IB
Previous Boats
'08 H240, '08 V318, '04 268, '04 225

I guess I should also add that I want to have a NMEA2000 compatible system so that future upgrades are possible and easy. From my research this is the newest standard that all future items will be built to. I have seen the project's that Al over at boat-project.com has done and he seems to be having compatibility issues with different brands and the NMEA0183 stuff versus the NMEA2000

_________________
Marc, Kathlin & Nathalie


'89 Chaparral Laser 32

'93 Vista 245, 5.8L w/ King Cobra

Former Boats
'01 H260, 7.4 VP Duoprop
'98 H200, 5.0 GL w/VP SX drive

It would be nice to have, but not a "must have" for us. We had GPS on our 268, and I never turned it on 90% of the time. I'll just print charts when we go to unfamiliar waters, and save my $'s for gas money. Lord knows we are going to need the $'s this summer.

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One of 4 Previous (Sold) Boats:
2000 Four Winns 268 Vista

Current Boat: 2004 Chaparral 235 ssi cuddy

I may end up doing nothing as you suggest... i figure the Chap will use $65-$75 CAD/running hour so I thought having some insight into fuel economy may help in payback but, the cost of all this is approaching $2000 and since I am no expert I will surely run into unforeseen costs. The whole N2K backbone kind of scares me because of all the different cables and connectors required. I like to tinker but electronics is not my strong suit...

I was trying to get a feel for what others already have but now that I think of it most just have standalone chartplotters or factory installed systems (so they wouldn't be familiar with the installation) I think Bill Kearney may have done his fair share of add-ons but am not entirely sure.

_________________
Marc, Kathlin & Nathalie


'89 Chaparral Laser 32

'93 Vista 245, 5.8L w/ King Cobra

Former Boats
'01 H260, 7.4 VP Duoprop
'98 H200, 5.0 GL w/VP SX drive

On my first boat, i didn't have a chartplotter on and didn't know the difference. When we bought the 268 it had a plotter on it, and wow what a difference it made. For the type of boating we do anyway.

Keeping track of the shipping channel and water depths before you get to them is very helpful, and plotting trips to a specific location and staying on track is easy to do with them too.

I personally wouldn't have a boat without one now. With the current boat and the addition of radar is even better, but I'm still getting used to that. I'm also considering adding fuel flow monitoring, just to tweak trim and throttle for optimum fuel economy.

As far as brand, the last boat I had a Garmin, the current one is ray marine. I liked them both, but they both have their own quirks getting used too.

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Jeff

'14 Cruisers 380 Express "Simon Sez"
Merc 8.2 Mag MPI 380
DTS B3X, (x2) Axius Premier


(SOLD)
'08 V318
Merc 350 Mag MPI 300
DTS Seacore, B3 (x2)

Here's what I was thinking...
A Garmin 526s for chart plotter. I will use this to also show depth and GPS speed.

https://buy.garmin.com/shop/shop.do?cID=148&pID=28968

A Garmin GMI 10 repeater. This unit would be placed in the center of my dash that is currently occupied by my speedo. This unit will read and display all the data available on the NMEA-2000 network.

https://buy.garmin.com/shop/shop.do?cID=288&pID=11625

I will need a generic (or Garmin) N2K compatible depth/temperature transducer and have not completely decided on the fuel flow sensors but would probably use the Garmin ones. I like the Floscan units but they are expensive and I believe you have top buy them with their interface versus the plug and play option of the Garmin units.
Fuel Flow Sensor

https://buy.garmin.com/shop/shop.do?cID=288&pID=11561

Water Depth and Temperature Transducer

https://buy.garmin.com/shop/shop.do?cID=288&pID=26511

At list prices I am looking at $1900 just for these components then I still have to buy some network cables and various other wiring pieces... Alot of money to save fuel Maybe I will just start with the fuel equipment for now and just try and keep an eye on the GPH i'm burning and then add the chartplotter in the future... I still have a long time before ice out to figure this all out.

Thoughts?

_________________
Marc, Kathlin & Nathalie


'89 Chaparral Laser 32

'93 Vista 245, 5.8L w/ King Cobra

Former Boats
'01 H260, 7.4 VP Duoprop
'98 H200, 5.0 GL w/VP SX drive

Well seems to me that your wanting to do more than just maximize your fuel economy. Boating in unfamiliar areas of the great lakes makes a plotter a must in my mind. I would not feel comfortable being 10-15 miles or more without one. The chart plotter would be more important to me than the fuel flow equipment if it were one or the other. You can get a feel for how many gallons per hour you burn at cruising speed by starting with a full tank and going for a run and retopping off. That would be your double check to the gauge. If I'm on any length of run, I just fill up before I return back anyway just for the peace of mind.

Just my 2 cents

116 days and counting!!

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Jeff

'14 Cruisers 380 Express "Simon Sez"
Merc 8.2 Mag MPI 380
DTS B3X, (x2) Axius Premier


(SOLD)
'08 V318
Merc 350 Mag MPI 300
DTS Seacore, B3 (x2)

If you do install fuel flow monitoring,since you have twins on the Chap,install dual meters. It’s tempting to install one and simply double the flow, but this does more harm then good. You won’t know if the engines aren’t synched up properly, you won’t know if one’s burning more fuel then the other because of mechanical issues, and you may be deceived into thinking there’s more (or less) fuel aboard then there really is.

And remember the old fuel useage rule, 1/3 out, 1/3 back and 1/3 in reserve.

As far as a chartplotter, I would love to have one, and I do see the benefits when exploring new areas. Someday I will add one , but just can't justify the cost right now. It will probably be a Garmin of some variety when I add one.

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One of 4 Previous (Sold) Boats:
2000 Four Winns 268 Vista

Current Boat: 2004 Chaparral 235 ssi cuddy

I wasn't clear but I do plan on two fuel sensors. I think I will tap into the starboard fuel system to feed the genny so I don't have to buy a third though!
The single tank on this boat is huge at 220 gallons. I never plan on filling it completely due to cost and the weight it will add to the boat. Maretron has a N2K tank level adapter that I could add later for fuel tank level monitoring. The possibilities are endless once you get started.

I wonder if there might be any deals at the Toronto Boat Show...Maybe I can sneak away from work one day this week to go and check out the electronics.

_________________
Marc, Kathlin & Nathalie


'89 Chaparral Laser 32

'93 Vista 245, 5.8L w/ King Cobra

Former Boats
'01 H260, 7.4 VP Duoprop
'98 H200, 5.0 GL w/VP SX drive

I was just surfing for chartplotters, and ran across this one. The Garmin 526 you posted needs a map card added (more $'s) to get the charts/maps you need for boating, this one has pre loaded C-Map charts. Not sure if it will do the job, but looks decent.
I am no GPS/Chartplotter authority for sure, just passing along what I found.

Standard Horizon CP190i

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One of 4 Previous (Sold) Boats:
2000 Four Winns 268 Vista

Current Boat: 2004 Chaparral 235 ssi cuddy