Who owns (and still uses) the most ancient bit of marine electronics.

[Snowgoose-1]

I always keep a bit of lodestone handy.
You can't be sure that the masters won't switch the electrickery off.

Which one ?
The one needing 3 AA Batteries or the hand cranked one ?

 

[Snowgoose-1]

Seafarer 700 echo sounder and Seacourse tiller pilot. Not in use quite yet, but soon.

You could, until fairly recently still buy the Stingray sounder from NASA Marine. Their website say they are no longer being made because the right parts are becoming scarce.

I don't wish to swank, but I have the one that also has a digital read out as well as the whirligig . Also stand alone if required with AA batteries .

 

[dombuckley]

Original Lucas magneto on a 1956 Stuart Turner engine (and it works).

 

[doris]

Cheating because I don't use it but...

Autohelm Personal Compass


View attachment 176957

I have one and still use it. Brilliant piece of kit that has not been replaced by a new alternative,

 

[wombat88]

Seafarer depth sounder anyone? Or better still a VDO speedo/log driven by a small prop and speedometer cable. Admittedly I took this out...

 

[DownWest]

You could, until fairly recently still buy the Stingray sounder from NASA Marine. Their website say they are no longer being made because the right parts are becoming scarce.

I don't wish to swank, but I have the one that also has a digital read out as well as the whirligig . Also stand alone if required with AA batteries .

The 700 has a digital readout (bit cloudy) and takes a 9v battery. On the shelf, I also have the Seafarer log unit with the solid state sensor, but that is staying there.
Best bit of old kit is the central processing unit that integrates wind speed and direction, depth, course to steer, speed and autopilot, but that is begining to get glitches, dates from '47

 

[mjcoon]

The 700 has a digital readout (bit cloudy) ...

As in the ancient joke re beer: "What do you expect; thunder and lightning?"

I have a couple of ancient hand-held Garmin GPSs, neither of which are unusable merely because the displays are illegible...

 

[Rappey]

Seafarer voyager echo sounder,(digital)around 35yrs old, on its 2nd transducer but a great echo sounder.
Seafarer voyager wind instrument. The part up the mast reliably spun and rotated for 33 years without any maintenance or repairs but finally lost the wind direction readout. Took it to be repaired, but it is not repairable

 

[Buck Turgidson]

Prosser Tideclock.
I'm sure this was state of the art at some point in the past. Its current function is to hide the screw holes for it's own mounting bracket in the otherwise lovely GRP. It still works but I've never used it in anger.

 

[AngusMcDoon]

View attachment 177043

Prosser Tideclock.
I'm sure this was state of the art at some point in the past. Its current function is to hide the screw holes for it's own mounting bracket in the otherwise lovely GRP. It still works but I've never used it in anger.

I've got one of those too. I usually get tide curves from the BBC website but use this device when there's no GSM signal. It's quicker than booting up the chart plotter if it's not on.

 

[Frank Holden]

Did someone mention Lucas - Prince of Darkness?
I still have the original 1986 Lucas sternlight on my boat with the original incandescent bulb. It's outlived more than a few Aquasignal tris and bi's.
Some young pup suggested I should change it for a fancy new LED jobby ( that's Glaswegian).
That would be akin to turning off the Centennial light
Centennial Light - Wikipedia

 

[DanTribe]

Original Lucas magneto on a 1956 Stuart Turner engine (and it works).

I have two, one from a 1937 Stuart and one from 1963. Identical design. Both magnetos still spark but the Stuart Bastards long since gone thank goodness!

 

[oilybilge]

It's hardly an antique, but our boat came with this very nice Stowe trailing log.