Hello,
When I bought my boat in 2006, it came with a set of DataMarine Instruments, including an LX360 Wind Machine. The wind direction worked but not the wind speed. In 2007 I had DMI rebuild the masthead part and it has worked fine ever since.
This year, like years past, my boat was launched and the mast stepped. I connected the wires inside the mast and tested the instruments. The wind speed seemed right, but the wind direction was off 180 degrees. If I was heading upwind, the instrument displayed me going downwind. If I was sailing at 40 degrees apparent, the instrument showed me sailing 140 degrees (or 40 degrees from dead downwind).
Very strange.
Today I was on the boat to do a few things. I checked the wires and all seemed correct. Still, the wind direction was backwards. I looked up the mast and I could see that the wind vane was indeed pointing in the right direction - same as the windex.
i was going to head over to speak to the guy who stepped the mast to see if maybe they connected the wind vane wrong. It's keyed, so I don't know how that would be possible. Anyway, I took one more look at the instrument and now, magically, it showed the correct wind direction.
Is my boat haunted? Has anyone seen something like this before? I know the instruments are old, but they work, so why change them?
Barry
When I bought my boat in 2006, it came with a set of DataMarine Instruments, including an LX360 Wind Machine. The wind direction worked but not the wind speed. In 2007 I had DMI rebuild the masthead part and it has worked fine ever since.
This year, like years past, my boat was launched and the mast stepped. I connected the wires inside the mast and tested the instruments. The wind speed seemed right, but the wind direction was off 180 degrees. If I was heading upwind, the instrument displayed me going downwind. If I was sailing at 40 degrees apparent, the instrument showed me sailing 140 degrees (or 40 degrees from dead downwind).
Very strange.
Today I was on the boat to do a few things. I checked the wires and all seemed correct. Still, the wind direction was backwards. I looked up the mast and I could see that the wind vane was indeed pointing in the right direction - same as the windex.
i was going to head over to speak to the guy who stepped the mast to see if maybe they connected the wind vane wrong. It's keyed, so I don't know how that would be possible. Anyway, I took one more look at the instrument and now, magically, it showed the correct wind direction.
Is my boat haunted? Has anyone seen something like this before? I know the instruments are old, but they work, so why change them?
Barry