I'm a big believer in strobes on the boat at night. That's just me, OK? Not everybody likes them, but I sure do. OK, SHTP rules say you gotta have one at the masthead, but how about a backup?
I'm glad I had a backup since my masthead strobe quit the first night. In fact I had three backups, but that's another story.
You can get strobes off of ebay that are about the size of a hockey puck, for about $10. I mounted one of these to a cheap "L-bracket" from the hardware store and then duct-taped the bracket to a piece of white PVC pipe that was about 2 feet long. This contraption was slung from the backstay (had a cleat on there) or stuck into the spare spinnaker pole ring on the mast track.
The wires go to a 6 volt lantern battery. Yes, the strobes are supposed to work on 12 volts, but considering how the strobe and capacitor inside it work, 6 volts was just fine. It just doesn't blink quite as often on 6 volts as it does on 12, but the flashes are just as bright. The thing is, that lantern battery will drive that strobe for a flippin MONTH, I think. Anyway, I used duct tape to make a little sling for the battery, and slung battery and strobe from the backstay....worked great. I also sometimes put the battery in a plastic bag and just left it on deck while the strobe was up on the mast in the spinnaker pole fitting.
Upshot is....carry a couple of those strobes and a couple of those lantern batteries, and you can light up the boat at night and be visible (if not strictly legal since you wouldn't have proper running lights) for days upon days in case of total boat electronic system meltdown. You might be able to set up two of those batteries in parallel and drive your nifty LED nav lights, for a night or two, too...
I personally won't use a strobe inside the Farallones, but that's just me. A flashing strobe has no defined meaning outside the line between Pt. Bonita and Mile Rock. Inside the Bay is a different story.
I'm glad I had a backup since my masthead strobe quit the first night. In fact I had three backups, but that's another story.
You can get strobes off of ebay that are about the size of a hockey puck, for about $10. I mounted one of these to a cheap "L-bracket" from the hardware store and then duct-taped the bracket to a piece of white PVC pipe that was about 2 feet long. This contraption was slung from the backstay (had a cleat on there) or stuck into the spare spinnaker pole ring on the mast track.
The wires go to a 6 volt lantern battery. Yes, the strobes are supposed to work on 12 volts, but considering how the strobe and capacitor inside it work, 6 volts was just fine. It just doesn't blink quite as often on 6 volts as it does on 12, but the flashes are just as bright. The thing is, that lantern battery will drive that strobe for a flippin MONTH, I think. Anyway, I used duct tape to make a little sling for the battery, and slung battery and strobe from the backstay....worked great. I also sometimes put the battery in a plastic bag and just left it on deck while the strobe was up on the mast in the spinnaker pole fitting.
Upshot is....carry a couple of those strobes and a couple of those lantern batteries, and you can light up the boat at night and be visible (if not strictly legal since you wouldn't have proper running lights) for days upon days in case of total boat electronic system meltdown. You might be able to set up two of those batteries in parallel and drive your nifty LED nav lights, for a night or two, too...
I personally won't use a strobe inside the Farallones, but that's just me. A flashing strobe has no defined meaning outside the line between Pt. Bonita and Mile Rock. Inside the Bay is a different story.
