Does anyone have wireless instruments fitted to their boat or any experience of using wireless instruments such as the TackTick range or the Nexus NX masthead unit? I am interested to find out not only how they perform but how good they are at interfacing with more conventional hard-wired instruments as part of a control system? For example, my boat already has a Raymarine ST6001 autopilot connected to a Smartpilot S2 controller so I would require the wind instrument to accurately pass information via NMEA to allow it to operate in 'windvane' mode, etc. Also, how well do the solar powered rechargable batteries perform? If sailing during the winter months when there is less daylight to charge the batteries, will they keep performing throughout the night (especially with the back-lighting turned on)? Does anything interfere with the signals being transmitted around the boat?

I'm going to start changing my aging Brooks & Gatehouse instruments during the coming winter which was brought to a head recently when the arm holding the wind vane and cups fell off due to corrosion of the screw-on fitting at the masthead! I must admit to being a fan of Raymarine gear but am always willing to consider the latest ideas before writing the cheque! Many thanks.

Haven't got them fitted on my boat - but will next time. Have sailed on several boats with TT and they are superiorA friend races with them in winter and lots of night races, and tells me they have never had a problem. He also has the TT NMEA transmitter unit fitted and can very cleverly have his Garmin GPS Data showing as one of the options on his TT displays.

The remote control unit to swap the displays is really very very clever & useful! Esp when racing.

Also being able to remove the instruments (velcro) when the boat is on the mooring is jolly neat. Prevents them getting nicked and also minimises the time that they are exposed to the elements which must make them last longer.

Another friend has had them for over 5 years now a has had no problems with them at all - which is more than can be said for the Navman rubbish I bought last time (a big mistake)

Thanks for your comments David - it looks like you are sold on the idea! I must admit I didn't appreciate that TackTick instruments have been around for over five years which gives a reasonable testing window and based upon your friends experiences, they seem to perform well. Looks like they interface with other systems pretty well too which is pleasing.

Would be interested to know why you rate Navman instruments so badly? I have a Navman 5500 chart plotter on board which was installed by the previous owner before I bought the boat but has served me well over the last two years.

NAVMAN aaaaaaargjh

2 x Repeater instrumernts filled with water & failed 13 months after installation. (Quite why I bought a second I don't know. Now replaced by a Clipper, which is cheaper better and isn't fussy about NMEA statements, which is more than one say about Navman!)

Navman Wind direction & Speed, despite being professionally installed, wind direction worked sometimes not others, wind speed read either 5 Kts or 25 Kts irrespective of windspeed.

Then the needle fell off the wind direction dial, then the windspeed failed.

All Navman stuff, the manuals are vague, the software set -up is ghastly to use and the set up seems only works sometimes not others, even if it did work, the instruments seem to have a determination to forget the set-up and require re-setting every time they are switched on (but not always just most of the time - I loath inconsistent electronics!)

Never never again!

Though the Chartplotter does seem to be OK, my brother has one and he likes it, I rather presume they buy them in from another manufacturer, but maybe I'm just a cynic!

What a catalogue of disasters! No wonder you are ready to ditch them (probably overboard by the sound of it). And they look so good in the glossy magazine adverts too! So that's Navman off my list despite my chart plotter performing pretty well. I laughed about the windspeed being either 5 or 25 kts. At least they are consistent!

I think you have convinced me to have a serious look at TackTick instruments which I will certainly make a point of doing at Southampton in September. Thanks