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That’s good to know Pete. I wasn’t aware that the switcher regulators were used. Maybe that’s why the bulbs are so expensive. How can I tell that the regulator is a switcher and not linear?
Rich
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Cheap LED bulbs use a series resistor to limit current and have a narrow operating range. Better bulbs use a current regulator and have wider voltage ranges. Unfortunately, they become increasingly innefficient when they are run at higher voltages. The regulator has to keep the current in the LED at a constant value. It consumes power to do this. The higher the voltage the more power that is consumed by the regulator. There are some switching regulators that are very efficient, but I don’t think they are used in LED circuits. The more typical current regulator uses a pair of transistors and a single resistor.
Running a small gauge wire to the lights may cause the lamp to run poorly at the low end of the voltage rating but will have no impact on brightness or efficiency at higher voltages. I don’t run my batteries down so the lights would probably never see below 11v. Budgeting a 10% loss in the wiring will raise the low operating voltage from 10v to 11v.
At least one thing is in our favor. As batteries discharge, their voltage drops off, so the LED lamps become more efficient as the battery bank gets lower.
Regards
RichQuote:<.. snip>Post generated from Pearson424 Forum using Mail2Forum
As far as I can tell by doing a web-search, they were originally called cutless bearings by the inventor since they were self-lubricating and didn’t cut the shaft. Previously shaft bearings were made of Lignum Vitae, a kind of wood. The new bearings were originally manufactured by Goodyear (I think) using the cutless trade-name. They were later manufactured by another company using a cutlass logo and became popularly known as cutlass bearings much like my grandparents called refrigerators frigidairs. There appear to be more references to cutlass that cutless so I think its the more popular spelling. My own perference is to call them cutless because it refers to the device with its original name and not a brand-name. I think either spelling is perfectly acceptable however.
“In the beginning inboard propeller shaft bushings were wood, machined from the rock hard tropical Lignum Vitae tree. That is until the 1920s when a Californian mining engineer improvised a bearing using a chunk of common rubber steam hose pressed inside a sleeve. The modern day Cutless bearing replete with flutes and naval bronze tubing was born. Cutless bearing technology advanced during the WW II battle for the Coral Sea when reverberations from explosions in the water hardened the rubber in Cutless bearings. Battleship propeller shafts locked up solid. Rigid rubber was soon replaced by resilient nitrile rubber.”
Rich
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Alan
I google’d it and found it. Nice looking product. Do you have one of these? If so, does it plug directly into the PC lan port or does it require something else?
http://islandtimepc.com/marine_wifi.htmlI doubt that putting it up in the mizzen will help with range, but it gets it out of the way. I’ve lost count of the number of antennas I have on my pushpit. I think its six. I don’t have a mizzen. I have my wifi router mounted on my pushpit in a waterproof box with 6db gain antenna. The USB cable runs to my nav-station. It works OK, but it could be better. I too bootleg internet access when cruising. Its amazing how many folks leave their networks open.
Rich
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Pat
What is the wifi antenna at the top of your mast? At 2.4ghz line-loss in a cable will kill the signal.Rich
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I always thought the cutlass was a car and the cutless was a bearing, but a web search shows each as being popular spellings for the device. I guess you take your pick.
Rich
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Pat
No, it cutless bearing. The bearing doesn’t cut the shaft, so its cutless. Here’s a good link with info.
http://www.diybob.com/diyCutlessBearing.htmRich
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I wonder how it would do on the inside of the V-drive cooling jacket.
RichQuote:
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I have the 6″ set. Its only $10 more for the 8″ set but I didn’t see it when I ordered. The 6″ puller works on my prop. I had to cut a dimple into the center end of the prop shaft for the prop-puller to work right. The dimple retains the puller at the center of the shaft. My prop and shaft are both stainless. I suppose I could have used a drill, but stainless is a bitch to drill. I had to remachine the shaft anyway so I had the machine shop cut the dimple when they did the work. It works pretty well pulling the prop. I put never-sieze on the shaft during assembly to assist in removal. If the jaws slip off the edge of the prop, wrap a hose-clam around them to keep the jaws from slipping off.
Regards
RichQuote:<.. snip>Post generated from Pearson424 Forum using Mail2Forum
There are tools for removing stuck bolts.
http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.taf?Itemnumber=95530Here’s what I use for a prop-puller
http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.taf?Itemnumber=8832Rich
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I’ve resisted retrofitting to a holding tank system because of the cost and associated problems with the systems. I occasionally cruise in waters are zero-discharge zones. A small holding-tank system in parallel with my flow-through system would solve the problem. Appropriate valves and locks on them would be required of course. Its on the list but like most things on that list it never seems to make it to the top.
I’ve heard about the dye thing. My electa-san has about a 2-gal treatment tank. If they don’t pump a whole lot, the dye won’t come out.
Regards
Rich
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Thatcher
All Road Island coastal waters are no discharge. Its a state thing, not federal.How did they check the waste system?
Did they hand out citations for non-compliance?
Rich
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Bob
I think I’m legal. To my knowledge, there is no federal law that mandates zero discharge in all coastal waters. Various state and local laws have outlawed treated discharge however.http://www.boatus.org/onlinecourse/reviewpages/boatusf/PDF_files/info4c.pdf
Rich
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Bob
I don’t have a holding tank and hope I don’t get forced to install one. I use an Electrosan flow-through treatment system. A little vegetable oil won’t hurt my system, but those who have holding tanks might do a web-search to find that article. I could go on about how stupid and counter-productive the no-discharge zone laws are, but this is the wrong venue.Rich
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