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Used monochrome radar set

1K views 8 replies 9 participants last post by  jdazey 
#1 ·
Am thinking about buying a used furuno MONOCHROME radar set for $200... the question is... are monochrome display still adequate and useful versus the color sets... are they like model t's... should I pass and wait to get a color display... your opinion please...
 
#3 · (Edited)
Some of those old monochrome units had pretty decent image quality.

I would expect an older unit to use a lot more power than a broadband unit. The old units definitely take more skill to use, some with no plotting ability, manual gain and tuning, some were totally unstabilised.

For emergency use in cruddy visibility I would definitely take an older unit over no unit at all (nothing is what I have).
 
#4 ·
Julianj... just moved this thread to 'Electronics' forum. You got a message today from a fellow mod, please choose your forum posts locations more carefully.
 
#5 ·
For the past ~40k nMi, Ive been using and still use an old tiny Furuno 1612 'monochrome' unit ... still works for me. The set-up isn't automatic, can take a bit of tweaking to get the maximum resolution out of it, consumes about 3.5 amps at full output, about 1.5 amps at 'intermittent watch' mode ..... a relatively high learning curve; but, you can learn.

If it works, what do you have to lose for investing $200? It won't be as gizmo-friendly as a basic entry level Garmin 'compact' for $1300.00 + mounting costs.
 
#6 ·
If it is a Furuno unit BUY IT! Pretty much bullet proof, can be repaired in most exotic ports. Parts are around. Yep it's going to use more power. Nope you won't be able to do overlays, hook it up to yer wifi, blutooth, nema, laptop etc. No Face book as well. Just good old fashioned kit that takes a licking and keeps on ticking. 200 bucks? Go for it. The cabling for the newer units will cost more then that.
 
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#7 ·
At one point we had an old Raytheon mono unit and a new, digital Simrad unit. The Simrad was great for picking up objects both nearby and further away, but the Raytheon was much better and picking up weather systems (squall lines and the like) even at 30 miles. As expected the power consumption was much higher.
 
#8 ·
I had a monochrome JRC for years and it was a great radar.
I now have a current full color Raymarine - can't really say it performs any better, that JRC was a great radar.

Be careful buying a used radar system as the tube has a limited life (usually has an hour readout).
 
#9 ·
As others have said, Furuno makes good radars. If this is a working unit for $200, go for it. If nothing else you will get a radar you can use to determine if investing in a newer radar is worth the time and money. For our purposes, radar is an essential piece of gear.

Cheers,
Joe
 
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