WeatherFax | The BEST budget weather solution for Sailors
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- Опубліковано 2 лип 2024
- Are you looking for an affordable method of receiving in-depth weather information while cruising? Weather Fax is by far and away the best option for those of us who can’t spend thousands of dollars on expensive radio or satellite equipment. For just $316 you can receive daily weather images that contain all the information you need to be of the grid and highly informed with the latest weather forecast models.
Here are the links to everything you need to start getting WeatherFax images (assuming you already have a laptop):
Equipment
Tecsun PL-600 Shortwave Radio - amzn.to/2rzN1tq
USB External Sound Adapter - amzn.to/2rvNdfP
Cable Ferrite Core Filters - amzn.to/2Bpikt2
Male to Male 3.5mm Auxiliary Cable - amzn.to/2ryvynD
Short Wave Antenna - amzn.to/2F84sWt
Software
For Mac - MultiMode OSX - www.blackcatsystems.com/softwa...
For PC - JV Comm32 - www.jvcomm.de/dlframee.html
Broadcast Schedule - www.nws.noaa.gov/os/marine/rfa...
Additional resources
www.nws.noaa.gov/os/marine/rad...
www.blackcatsystems.com/softwa...
opencpn.org/OpenCPN/plugins/w...
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![How to use a Marine VHF RADIO [Capable Cruising Guides]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/Y6yn0Bmr748/mqdefault.jpg)
I knew about this stuff. Great explanation. Clear and concise. Well done.
SOLID! post you two!! Congrats on your engagement, fair winds and following seas!
Thanks!
Great video Jordan. Safe sailing!
Great video an authentic seminar in weather offshore, thank you very much
This is amazing. I was just looking at satellite solutions and was pretty unhappy with the 100 dollars a month subscription. Thanks!
That was AWESOME! More like this please!
Thanks jimfromri! Let us know if there are any other video topics that you're interested in. We're always looking for our next video topic.
Awesome, awesome, this is one of the most useful videos I've come across on Tube. Thank you.
Super informative video. So much detailed info Thank you so much!
Jordan been following you for the last year Great show ! Propagation is affected by many things like you said. Radio signals are sent out and the frequency affects the Wavelength. They bounce off the earth and are bounced off the Ionosphere. The Ionosphere moves up and down from day to night . This effects the optimum frequency for reception. That's why they list several frequencies for each location. If you are trying to get the best reception you can change till you have a strong one for the time of day and distance from the source. I used to use a USB demodulator for WeFax 2000 but over the years I lost it and my boat has a SSB that came with it. So I am able to program the radio to all the available frequencies and just click back and forth till I get the best one. I also used the Weather service from Florida "Criss Parker Marine Weather center" I found him more accurate than Noaa He Broadcast on He transmits on several frequencies at certain times using Directional Antenna and Omnidirectional.Just listen in. To get the Schedule and times. www.mwxc.com/marine_weather_services.php Covers the complete Caribbean and East Coast. This info I learned cruising the Bahamas for many years. Keep up the good work I would love to be with you Buds !
Wow, great info! It would be great to see a video of you doing this in real time as well as one explaining how to read a weather fax, please.
Wow! That’s some great information. You’re the man👍
Thanks emh4th! Let us know if there are any other video topics that you're interested in. We're always looking for our next video topic.
Information packed video! Nicely done. Thank you!
Thanks Harold!
That's a great video nice job. Loved the Pepes sticker. My now wife( then girl friend) and I used to spend many afternoons in there when we lived in Key West running boats and diving twenty odd years ago $1 drafts....THANKS FOR THE TRIP DOWN MEMORY LANE.
Hey Jason! Thanks for watching! Haha! Yeah Pepes is a cool little spot! We also captain & mated on charter boats in Key West!! Was "Echo" around when you were there? It's in front of Tutrle Krawls! Seats 15 px, catamaran. I think it's about 20 yrs old!
It took me a while, but I finally got it to work with an x1600 xcvr. The faxes are really good. Your video did help some.
Thank You for showing this. I'm a ham radio operator that runs a Winlink Gateway here in BC. I scan 2 80 meters, 40 Meters and 20 Meters. I have boaters downloading their files
Hi Don! Awesome! Thanks for watching! We'll direct our questions your way, then haha! Always great to have a Ham Radio Operator as a friend :)
This is fantastic information, and extremely well presented. Beyond a doubt the cheapest buy in for weather fax... I'm another amateur radio guy, and for several years ran a Winlink station. (K4SET in Western KY). Had a lot of user cruisers the Bahamas and guy in Cuba who just used it for E-mail. Winlink is Similar to Sailmail, but on amateur radio SSB frequencies instead of Marine SSB, and requires an amateur (ham) radio license. I'll likely go the Winlink route when the time comes, but plan to play with this too. Thanks for all the great information!!
I agree weatherfax is the most economical reliable source for weather. Check out Irridium Go with Predict wind for a more reliable source which can be downloaded at your convenience at a cost of less than half a sat phone. Unlimited service is currently $140 per month if that is in your budget.
We haven't used this setup yet but our boat came with a Fax for getting weather reports and we can't wait to get started with it. We will probably have something like the iridium go also, just in case. Great video. We'll be out there with you guys in a couple months!!
Hey guys! Awesome! Hope to cross paths out there!
Excellent tutorial, thanks guys!
Hey Roderick! Thanks for watching!
many thanks for all your advice ... 🙏
Excellent video! Thank you
Useful info thanks. I had no idea about these broadcasts.
Outstanding! Keep the tips coming.
Thanks Mike! Will do! Let us know if there are any other video topics that you're interested in. We're always looking for our next video topic.
Great information to get weather info on a budget!! Thanks 😀👍 and always good trades ....
I know it's been a while but I finally got my first image downloaded.
Nice How to! I will definitely be saving this one!
Awesome! Thanks Chase!!
Great information, very well presented. ThanksA
Agree Jordan, it is the only way to get weather charts. Well explained. Enjoying your channel very much
Hey Greg!! Thanks for watching! Glad you enjoyed it! Any other topics you'd like us to cover in a future cruising tip video?
finally !!! someone explained it. Thanks Casanova.
You're welcome Pate! Glad you found it informative!
awesome video very informative I've been watching your videos from the beginning thumbs up
Hey Drake! Thanks SO much for watching from the beginning! Awesome! And thanks for the thumbs up!!
great info Jordan...exactly what is needed...favorable winds
Thanks Sail Oria!!! Right back at ya!
Great vid! Super informative! I had considered this but you nailed the details really nicely. Thanks
Hey Tony! Glad it was helpful! Jordan was so annoyed by how scattered the information about weather fax was when we was trying to set it up, so he made this video! Hope it helps others avoid the stress of figuring out the setup :-)
This is seriously good, thanks for the info.. I think I'll have to try this!
Hey Darrin! Awesome! Glad we could help! It took Jordan days and days of research to set it up, so we're happy to consolidate all of the info into one video :)
As a Comm techie for a long long time, I started in a 100baud torn tape relay center and have been through the acoustic couplers @ 1200 baud all the way through to Gig-E speeds I have to tell you your video is outstanding, clear concise information. I think you have provided a great teaching moment. Looks like you enjoyed it too. Keep it up and safe travels
Hey Eric! Desiree here! Jordan is working on some boat projects today, but he will be sooo happy to hear your feedback! Thanks for the compliment! He DID have a great time with the video and he's a fun teacher! Thanks for saying hi!
I used to key my FORTRAN code on tape at a TTY why near my dorm, take it to south campus and feed the tape to a punch card reader. I'd drop the batch at night ops and pick up my green bar I/O next morning. Imagine buying IBM cards at the bookstore by the dozen. I wrote tight code cuz the cost bit into my pitcherbeer expenses at the LQ. Old guys rule. PS-@Jordan, cruising Sea of Cortez now, and need to process Wefax with your method. Gracias
Great Job Bro thanks for that real good info !! the best !!
excellent presentation thank you
Great video guys! SSB can seem like hieroglyphics sometimes. Also love the Pepe's sticker. That place is awesome. Might be heading to Mexico in April so maybe see ya around.
Hey Rick! Thanks for watching! Let us know when you make it to MX! We'd like to have our hard dodger and water maker completed by April, so hopefully we'll be outta here by then, but you know how projects go!!
Great info. Thanks!
Thanks for watching!!
Brilliant, Thank you.
Anytime Todd! Thanks!
Great video.
Really awesome job!
Thanks!
Tablet computers like the iPad can also be used. Black Cat Systems has an HF Fax decoder for the iPad on the App Store.
Great video. I just received the PL660 last week from amazon. I suspect I'm out of the Atlantic coverage area here in central Ontario because I'm not getting any weather fax signals from Boston. It will come in handy when I head south next year.
Yeah I hear ya! Let us know how it works out! Where are you off to next year?
Any chance you have a updated ssb and parts recommendation list with affiliate links?
Love the channel and I'm working on getting caught up with you recent uploads. You two inspired me back in the Atticus 1 days, I'm wrapping up the very last threads of a 3 year refit and I'll be sailing a westsail 43 in the North pacific this summer because of your channel.
excellent info!
Thanks Jon!! Hope it helped!
A professional would not have explained this any better!
From time to time you just won't get a readable image even with the pro equipment. That's something you just have to accept.
The biggest problem with weatherfax is that you have to understand both the weather and the image.
One better option for a "noob" is NAVTEX, where you get a prognosis for a selected area in text format.
Anyways an outstanding explanation!
S/V Mambo
Thank you a lot for this very informative video, this is excellent. Would you, or someone else know if the audio adapter you show in the video will work with the JVComm32 or is other hardware required?
Nice tutorial Dude!
Thanks Man!
great vid dude.
Thanks Mick!
This is great info. Lets see if I can figure it out.
I know this is an old video but I'm just seeing it now. Crossing from Nova Scotia to the Azores soon and this will be put into play
Most people charge for such info! Thanks for this, Jord.
Hey Volkswatson! Thanks for watching! Any other topics you'd like to see covered in a future cruising tip video? Graciass!!
Project Atticus I wouldn’t mind seeing how you plot out a course... paper to plotter, or whatever... what resources?
Oh that's a great idea! Thanks!!
Awesome vid
Hey someonec86! Thanks for saying hi!
If you do have a marine HF radio, you should also be able to use it instead of the Sony shortwave receiver. You just need some sort of HF receiver or transceiver.
Actually, do many high seas sailors not have sat phones or SSB radios? I’d figure the SSB radio would be a high seas sailing necessity, for voice comms if no other reason.
You make it sound so easy lol. Seems overwhelming to me 😳
Jordan & Desiree it is so fun and amazing watching your adventures! Jordan are you two coming to the next reunion? I would love to meet Desiree & see you! :)
Hi Cami! Thanks for watching! We'd love to make it to a reunion one of these years. If only flights didn't set us back financially a month & a half of cruising! We're going to keep our heads in the cruising game and try to see as much of the world as possible over the next 5 years. If we do visit the States we'll let you know!
Been using weatherfax for years now and I would not trade it. I use a Satellit 800 from my collection, but there are better choices out there.
Awesome! Yeah I think weatherfax is a real winner and super underrated.
Wow; that was very useful. Thank you so much. Now where is that Radio Shack 😀
Haha rock on! Thanks for the encouraging comment!
OPEN CPN is a great Boating software program and it has Weather Fax overlays
overlay yes, but you still need to receive the weaterfax before you can show it in opncpn.
If you have a HAM Radio license, there is a no cost email service for SSB (HAM bands) that can send and receive email traffic even without a PACTOR modem (albeit at a lower BAUD rate). In addition to the software you mentioned, there is also FL-DIGI & MultiPSK available for free for most operating systems. All of these resources are supported by voluntary contribution.
Glenn Gutshall what's the email service called?
winlink.org/
A few of questions: why not use the audio input on your computer? Why use the USB soundcard? Secondly, know of any good tablet apps to recieve the fax on? Would be good to hear about your real-world experience of using it. When the boat is rolling and noisy, and your miles at sea tired ... etc. Sure the savings are massive, but does it work practically? How oftern are the transmissions if you miss one? is each page sent just once, if you get there a few seconds late? There's a box that does all this too I was looking at, Furuno Fax30, but not clear what ouputs it has, and if you can update the schedules and location it's tuned to. Any thoughts on that. Second hand they're about $400. Wonder if it's worth it if it increases the system reliablity, and automates the process? Thanks for the vid by the way.
cool tip thanks
Anytime Cyclomaniac!
How did you go adjusting the headphone output to the mic input for audio level? I've found that's a PITA with any digital decoding, espeically POCSAG (pagers) and P25 (digital radio form that first responders use). I end up for them at least doing a "discriminator" mod to the scanner which matches it then to the line in level (not mic) of my sound card. I'm not so keen to mod my Alinco HF like that though, a little pricier to replace.
You can do it very easy with the "Superseefunk-Volksempfänger"
very easy. No laptop needed, only Android smart phones or tablets.
With the "Wolphi-Apps" DroidNatex
and HF-Weatherfax. Power consumtion less than 100mA.
Look at YT.
Great. Well explained :-)
Thanks Snake Plisken!!
Also I really dig your username and profile pic. Snake is probably my favorite 80's action character! Although the warriors would be a close second.
Thanks! Escape from NY was amazing! A Classic. Check out my pirate girl's new towels and tell your sailing buddies. imoya.threadless.com/accessories/beach-towel
I connected the antenna to a chainplate, worked fine on an SSB receiver.
Hey crikycrocky! Great idea, I'm going to have to give that a try!
Will work fine on a GRP or Wooden boat but for folks out there with steel or aluminium they will need to rig insulation to give electrical separation from the hull and mast. Anyone transmitting will need to pay attention to grounding and antenna tuning but thats a whole other can of worms.
Weatherfax is great. I use an ETON E5 portable sw receiver, they are great and usually cheaper than the sony
If money was no object, would you prefer using PredictWind with their Weather Routing and Departure Planning features with an Iridium Go?
Great information. I have been confused by the choices.
Is there a marine grade SSB receiver to be had with the usb output? I have never seen a Sony product last very long.
Hey SV Pomodoro! There are several brands of SSB receivers on Amazon but I really am impressed by the sony, it also has the best reviews on Amazon. But that said any of the other receivers should work just as well.
I don't even have a boat but now I want to download weather faxes.
Hey Mikael! Haha! It is a fun tool! Go for it! It's never too early to start learning about weather- it took us a couple of years to get good at it! Did you catch last night's Live Stream about more weather tools, books, and aps? ua-cam.com/video/iE0h9tzMBVk/v-deo.html
I'd be using Star Link these days.
Jordan, as a FCC General License Amateur operator, you are quite spot-on for practical knowledge. If the 23 foot shortwave antenna is attractive radio/electronics noise, run appropriate coax cabling up to the mast and then run your shortwave antenna. As a subscriber, I know Atticus II probably has a much more advanced Weather Fax set up, but what you show, gets-the-job-done! Best wishes to you and Desiree and the new baby on the way!
Question for you, what if I don't/can't use a laptop? Any smart printers I could use for say...the ocean globe race 2023?
That Sony radio is built like a TANK, and is a great performer, the only negative is the tuning not intuitive, I prefer a big ol round dial. By the way you do not need a Pactor modem, Sailmail subscription, or expensive antenna. My $500 HF radio, $120 Tuner, and $100 sound card interface to my laptop, and wire running up your backstay is all you need. Winmor is the free soundcard version. So for under $800 you have the ability to download grib, receive weather fax, send emails daily to your familes at home, or just listen and talk to others from around the world.
Wow that's awesome! Great job designing that system! It's tough finding good information on how to do this stuff on a budget, thanks for sharing!
Hi Mastiff, care to share the specifics of your system? As a fellow sailor and someone preparing to circumnavigate (and not spend too much), your system appeals to me! Atticus, great job :)
That will surely take you down the rabbit hole lol. Here is video of me testing an antenna by sending myself an email with Winmor. This is my small field rig, it is only a 5 watt radio, Yeasu FT-817. I would not choose that, get a 100w radio, 20-25 watts out is the sweet spot to get you through the noise. Start with how much you want to spend on the radio. Newer radios, have things like the antenna tuners, filters, and usb out built in vs having to add them yourself. That tiny computer I am using is a cheap Win10 tablet with a bluetooth keyboard.
@@jhlewis10 You say "Here is a video" but i don't see a link? Thanks.
or you could just buy a RTL-SDR for about $20, along with a HAM it up converter, you can receive from 0.1mhz to 2300mhz, you can also receive NOAA weather satellite image, marine radio and many many other things.
No faxes broadcast in the sw Pacific anymore. Unless someone knows of some I've missed.
Looks like you can buy blackcat HF weatherfax instead for 20 bucks if you are only using it for weatherfax and not morse code, etc.. Any thoughts on this? Thanks!
Thanks! I just ordered the radio! One more question...I see the $4.99 Black Cat HF Weather Fax app . Can this be used instead of the $89 MultiMode OSX. Just asking, as I know nothing about what we need. Thanks for the quick reply!. P.S. Love your cruising videos!
Thanks Rollie! I'm uploading this weeks episode as we speak, should be up in an hour or so. As for the Black Cat app I haven't tried it, but for $4.99 it might be worth a try.
Anyone know what brand watch he is wearing in this video?
Hi, Great video, but I can't find the Sony radio you recommend for less that $600. Can you give another source to buy or recommend another radio.
Thanks for the help!
Hey Rollie, looks like the sony radio has been discontinued. I just revised the link in the description to another radio that is nearly identical. Let me know what you think when you set it all up! Thanks for watching!
hello, if i have a fax. How do I get that signal?
If all the cool kids are doing it, I'm in!
Hahaha, rock on!
Thanks for the tutorial. I was watching the Great Old Boats channel with their Cal40 restoration and after their first Trans-Pacific race they actually recommended the SATPHONE instead. I'm not sure if that has to do with the large distances in the Pacific versus the Caribbean or not but I guess that's something to consider even with the aid of atmospheric bounce. Thanks again for the video! I know it takes a ton of work and research to put it together. What video editing software do you use? I like the word overlays that you use. Take care guys!
Hey Stargate Pioneer! Do you by any chance know which video they talk about the Weatherfx vs Satphone? I briefly looked and wasn't able to find it, but we would LOVE to hear his thoughts on this matter. Ideally we'd like to use the weatherfax as our primary source of getting weather information while cruising (including pacific and atlantic crossings) so we'd love to hear from actual first hand accounts! I'll reach out to hi as well to try to get a good answer! Thanks again!
Also, we use OBS for the Live Streams, and Jordan makes the word overlays in Photoshop :)
I absolutely know the video that he discussed the weather tech. It's in the "Insights About Racing In The Transpac" video at the 9 minute 50-ish second mark. Here's the link: ua-cam.com/video/jRvGEm7U2hY/v-deo.htmlm50s Good luck with this part of your system. And let us know how it works out for you over time. I'd love to get a good handle on what works best for different live-aboard cruisers.
Wohoo! So awesome! Thanks so much! Watching now :)
Cool! Looks like his crew had an SSB transceiver which he was able to request GRIB files from. Interesting! He didn't have a weather fax, but I'm assuming if he didn't like the SSB transceiver he probably wouldn't like the weather fax system we use. He's right about the ease of the iridium go and sat phones- seems much more intuitive and easy to use. For us, right now, we can't afford an upgrade, so we'll keep you updated on how the weather fax setup works for us during crossings! It will be interesting to see how well it performs! Fingers crossed :)
Question: the USB adapter you show has a mono mic input, but the cord is stereo - aren't there problems with compatibility?
Hey Allan, good question. I really don't have much of an answer other than we haven't had any compatibility issues. But that's an interesting observation. I'll look into it!
Great video, what about using an iPad. Blackcat has app for iPad.
Thanks Steven! Yeah totally an iPad should work just as well.
SDR would be more elegant/cheaper, no?
If you have an (actual) electric motor and no diesel engine at all and your at sea with the prop creating around 1 amp hr or so of regeneration back to the battery bank while sailing...(no engine on) will that small amount of electrical frequency interfere with the weather fax signal?
Hey S/V Thirteen Winds! Good question although in my experience you never really can tell what will cause significant interference until you try it. That said I bet you wouldn't have a problem.
How can I access the link to the description you are talking about in the video
Under the video, you will see SHOW MORE. Click on that, and you'll see all of our links ;)
Has there been any changes to your weatherfax setup in the past two years ? In particular based on the information supplied by S/V Adma below.
Thanks you just saved me an imaginary $5k present value sometime in the not so distant future, which will be even more. Then sv Adma saved me even more. Ru guys in a price war to save me imaginary money? If u do s good job at it i may be able to afford to go one day. Keep sending us central American prices.
Awesome! Glad we could help you out! More money saving tips coming right up!
Dont know about the validity of the following, but we were taught the higher the sun in the sky, the higher the number frequency to use.
Is this still a functioning solution? The NOAA broadcast web pages are dead.
Can I use my Grundig.i am assuming yes
No
Jordan - I noticed the radio in the video is a Sony. Seems to be going on Amazon for $ 665. The one in the link is a Tecsun for $ 84.00. How much of a difference is there in the two?
Hey Captpatty! Yeah it looks like the sony has been discontinued so the cheapest one is now $665 like you said. Jordan just found something comparable on amazon! Let us know how it works out for you!
FYI, pretty much any shortwave receiver will work as long as it has the single side band (SSB) feature and an audio out.
Can you use weather fax with openCPN? Is windy.com a usable resource when sailing? Thanks very much for your work and time on this, liked and subscribed!
Hey Geezergamers! Thanks for watching! I'm not sure about openCPN compatibility. I'll ask Jordan. As for windy.com, check out our "weather essentials for cruisers" video here: ua-cam.com/video/iE0h9tzMBVk/v-deo.html we talk about windy.com at minute 8:03. Cheers!
You used a Sony for the demo but provided the link to a Tecsun? I’m confused
Sony radio has been discontinued, but the Tecsun is a good alternative..
Out of curiosity: *how often does early knowledge about the weather actually alter the decision-making process in bluewater sailing* ? I get that it's obvious close to shore (which is also where you might have internet access anyways): you might decide not to leave the anchorage at all, wait for better window, etc... But what if you're in the middle of an ocean? As long as you can't actually outrun a weatherfront (I bet you can't), what is ultimately the advantage beyond satisfying curiosity? I mean, if you have to go through the strong winds and bad seastates anyways, how does knowing the details in advance help in practical terms? You already have a lot of information from things like cloud formations, wind direction and wind speed, air pressure (and change over time), so even without a weather chart, you already know enough for a rough guesstimate about your relative position to low/high pressure systems, including their relative movement over time. Combined with the knowledge that e.g. the wind directions in a low pressure system on the northern hemisphere are distributed like a counter-clockwise spiral (opposite for southern hemishpere or high pressure systems), a rough idea of the larger picture is possible with onboard data alone, which should help with the rough heading planing. What else can you really do?
Short answer: not much. But, modern prediction of weather systems can inform a myriad of decisions. Examples; Where do you cross the inter-convergence zone (a case of too little wind & washing machine sea state)? Or, should I anchor inside Fakarava...the south pass or the north? Are we short on water? Is the crew tired or injured or is the boat in need of repairs? Or, should we just tough it out and head for Pape'ete? If we hove to-how long until the system passes? This same thought process can be said for all the oceans. The ancient mariners didn't have the luxury but if it was available their owner would prefer it. The oceans are rife with sunken ships that had no idea what was about to hit them. Any extra knowledge is useful to bridge resource management & good seamanship.
How is the weather fax set up performing now you’ve been out and doing some sea miles?
Hey Philip! We used it through Cuba and on a remote trip on the Yucatan coast and has been great so far! We'll let you know if we have any issues!
Cheers Shipmate!
there is a cheaper way for sat phones, buy a prepaid sim Thuraya which is around 30 dollars with 20 credits (1 dollar=1 credit)
and satsleeve plus which I bought used from eBay for 300 dollars... and you ready to go. they charge 3.5 dollars per MB, count every 100kb, where grib file is usually 150-200kb. So, in the end, you pay 50cent per weather anytime anywhere. card is valid for 2 years and you pay only 10 units to keep the card alive for another 2 years. simple
Hey! What a cool alternate solution! thanks for sharing! -Desiree
uh...
*Raises hand*
There are youtube videos, available *right now* that outline how to use a Raspberry Pi, a USB Software Defined Radio, your existing antennas, and a virtual PACTOR modem to receive these files.
This video's a tad inaccurate on the GRIB side of things, pricing wise.....to the tune of like $4000...
...ish.
Why do you need an external sound card?