Date: Mon Oct 8, 2001 11:26 am

I have recently purchased one of the "atomic" clocks for my office. It relies on a radio signal from Ft. Collins for its accuracy and is battery powered. The recent rash of electrical storms on Long Island had no effect on it. I was in West Marine the other day and noticed they have a bulkhead mount, very nautical version of the same timepiece in stock.

Date: Mon Oct 8, 2001 3:57 pm

Gee, that sounds nice!

I've run into a number of boats recently that have had lightening hits, which always seems to take out anything electronic. It's sort of scary considering how much we tend to rely on these gadgets! So I figure there's still a place for the sextant, simple clock, and books of tables.

(Actually, that's just an excuse to carry the celestial tools and keep in practice. The real reason is that celestial is just a hell of a lot of fun!!)

Date: Mon Oct 8, 2001 3:36 pm

I agree 100% ! Even as I have GPS, both mounted and hand-helds, now have ordered The Cap'n software for the laptop, I refuse to retire the Plath sextant but I have begun to cheat a bit in recent years. I now have Celest-Comp to do the math. It will calculate from the perpetual table as well as from its own memory. The clock bit is important but even as I do practice sights occasionally I "mark" from the Atomic clock now and the results are amazingly closer LOP's. I wish my computer kept time so well.

Date: Mon Oct 8, 2001 4:43 pm

I agree with the funof Plath or any good sextant, but it is much simpler to have a couple of back up GPS, not hardwire so they can be totally disconnected unless in direct use. I have a Magellan GSC 100, and a Magellan Blazer back up entirely functional for $120. May be the spare should be carried in a Faraday cage!