Installing the Electronic Burgee – Mark 1 (and already thinking about Mark 2!)

There’s something rather satisfying about turning a traditional sailing skill into a bit of modern engineering. The humble burgee—normally a scrap of fabric fluttering at the masthead—is getting a serious upgrade in our boat.

We’re now at the installation stage of the electronic burgee, and like all good projects… it’s already teaching us what we should have done differently!

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The Electronics – A Small Box with a Big Job

The brains of the system are housed in a sealed waterproof box, complete with:

• Battery power
• Electronics for the wind vane
• Signal transmission to the display

The oversight?
I forgot to install a switch.

Which means:

• The system is permanently powered 😬
• Battery disconnect = open the box

So yes… Mark 2 will definitely include a proper on/off switch!

 Temporary Mounting – The Cable Tie Phase

Before drilling holes or committing to a permanent position, we’re taking the sensible route:

👉 Cable ties to the rescue

We’ll secure the electronics box:

• Close to the mast
• Easy to access
• Easy to move if needed

This gives us:

• Flexibility
• Quick adjustments
• No regrets later

(Every good engineering project has a cable-tie prototype stage!)

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Getting the Anemometer to the Masthead

Now comes the slightly trickier bit…

To mount the anemometer and wind vane at the masthead, we’ve got two options:

Option 1 – Drop the Mast

• De-step the mast properly
• Work at ground level
• Safest and easiest for fitting

Option 2 – Tilt the Boat in the Water

• Heel the boat over
• Bring the masthead within reach
• A bit more “adventurous”

Either way, we need to:

1. Remove the masthead float
2. Fix the anemometer securely
3. Reattach the float

(Carefully… because dropping bits into the river is remarkably easy!)

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The Moment of Truth – Does It Work?

Once everything is in place, it’s time for the exciting bit:

Testing on the water

We’ll be checking:

• Does the wind vane point correctly?
• Does the anemometer spin freely?
• Are the readings stable and usable?

And most importantly…

Can I finally stop looking up at a burgee and get proper wind data instead?

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Lessons Already Learned (Before We’ve Even Finished!)

This is classic “Mark 1 engineering”:

• ✔ Build it
• ✔ Test it
• ✔ Realise what you forgot(The switch, and a battery tester)
• ✔ Design Mark 2

Mark 2 Improvements Already on the List:

• Proper power switch
• Possibly external charging
• More permanent mounting solution
• Cleaner cable management

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Final Thought

There’s a lovely irony here…

We’ve taken something beautifully simple—a piece of cloth in the wind—and turned it into:

• Electronics
• Sensors
• Power systems
• Installation challenges

But if it helps us read the wind faster and sail better on a river, it’s worth every cable tie.