Along the way, wherever we found good people doing good work, we went about changing Istaboa's interior. Neither of us really cared for the decor the previous owner enjoyed and eventually we changed it all, several times, actually. The pictures below are the latest revision.
What was > Teralani
Is now > Istaboa
Teralani
Istaboa
Teralani
Istaboa
Of course, we're always upgrading electronics as needed or wanted.
Having been in the marine electronics business for years and somewhat jaded, I made the decision to save some money and stick with the original Raymarine Seatalk network N57-26 came with. Of course, over the years, the individual components have been upgraded several times.
Oddly enough, every boat we've ever owned came with Raymarine electronics and I've come to appreciate Raymarine's simple user interface, their tech, and we've proven those reliability rumors wrong.
Much maligned, however I've always liked the old original Raymarine 12KW radar, depth sounders, and the wireless handheld autopilot remote. (over 30,000 miles, more than 13 years, and struck by lightning twice) All very dependable, user friendly, and they do more than I'll ever want them to. The little wireless handheld remote is in my hand the moment we leave the dock; the most used piece of electronic equipment on the boat. As a backup, a new Raymarine Quantum radar dome was recently incorporated; sitting on the pilothouse top, it's small, and works quite well. The KVH SatTV dish has been refurbished (2018) though we rarely use it now that there's good onSpot wifi at most marinas. We now stream our entertainment unless underway or at anchor.
Raymarine's IP200 Video Cams.
Don Quixote and Rocinante are always aboard - a relic from my youthful travels and Good luck since 1975
Our working Chartplotter is a standard Windows laptop tethered to a 17" KEP/Raymarine monitor running Rose Point's Coastal Explorer. When in the Bahamas, Nobletec's old VNS with Max Pro Charts has great island charts and we switch over to those. We keep an identical hot-swap spare laptop at the ready.
For running at sea, a newish Simrad autopilot with an Accusteer pump is quite a step up from the old Raymarine AP, that's attached to the computer nav system.
While running the rivers or the ICW, I continue to use the last of the old Raymarine autopilots, (just for the handheld remote), it's connected to a Raymarine radar/chartplotter.
Two completely autonomous navigation systems that only share a power source.
Of course, WiFi and Cellular connectivity is state of the art and always changing to keep up with the latest technology. Istaboa is the test boat for several manufacturers of these products. Aigean, Wave WiFi, and Peplink are the top performers and they keep us connected nicely.
As you can see in this picture - The old workhorse commercial Class A - Furuno AIS150 is still onboard and Icom VHFs are at both stations. Actually we have 3 Icom VHFs: flybridge, pilothouse, and a second in the pilothouse with a small whip antenna for running the ICW with our tall antennas down. Perfect for getting under bridges with at least 24' clearance. (yes, we can do that)
Less cool, but certainly essential, new appliances. New Asko washer and dryer, new GE Monogram Advantium microwave/convection, newish GE Dishwasher, and a newly installed Subzero Beverage Center.
None of these things make the boat any more seaworthy, but they sure make life easier.
And one last minor detail. We had her hull repainted - Pearl Gray - Hinckley Yachts in Stuart, FL did a beautiful job.
Up Next: Real Time and Recollections
No comments:
Post a Comment