Furuno 24 Inch NXT

CBBeaty

Furuno Fan
I have a 2019 Seavee 290B. Boat was built with a full suite of Furuno electronics including 2 TZT2's, autopilot, and above referenced radar. I have owned the boat since new. Inshore and in calm water the radar works flawlessly. However, I've started taking the boat to the Bahamas and in 2-3ft seas my radar screen will be blank. I'm assuming this is due to the pitching of the boat? If so are there any settings that could help? and if not otherwise does an open array solve this?
 
If taking on waves that pitch the radar to the sky, there isn't much you can do. The radar might come and go depending on how much sampling it can pick up in those conditions. If the waves are normal and you are not seeing much, I expect that you might be running in Coastal mode. For open water the radar should be set to Advanced. Have you tried running the radar in manual whenever this happens? An open array isn't going to see directly into a large wave or looking at the sky. I don't think this would be about dome versus open array. It sounds like a conditions issue or running in the wrong clutter mode.
 
If taking on waves that pitch the radar to the sky, there isn't much you can do. The radar might come and go depending on how much sampling it can pick up in those conditions. If the waves are normal and you are not seeing much, I expect that you might be running in Coastal mode. For open water the radar should be set to Advanced. Have you tried running the radar in manual whenever this happens? An open array isn't going to see directly into a large wave or looking at the sky. I don't think this would be about dome versus open array. It sounds like a conditions issue or running in the wrong clutter mode.
Thank you. It is set to advanced. I have not run it in manual. Could you assist on "clutter" mode?
 
If your on the radar screen, swipe up from the bottom and under AUTO SEA MODE, you should be offered either Advanced - Coastal or Adaptive - Coastal depending on your software version. If you have updated MFD and scanner you might have Adaptive - Coastal - Channel. (Advanced was renamed Adaptive and that is for open waters)
 
Johnny, I went offshore this weekend with the Furuno manual in hand. I went out of Ponce Inlet on the east coast of Florida. Sea conditions were flat with a slight 1 foot wind chop. I was running the boat at about 28-30 mph. Around me that I could see without binoculars was a shrimp boat, parachute towed behind a boat and several center consoles. No matter what I did, the radar couldn't pick up the shrimp boat at a distance greater than 1/4-1/2 mile and then would appear/disappear on the screen. Same for the towed parachute and the center consoles. I had the radar in manual and adjusted gain, sea and rain but could not zero in a consistent setting. The Furuno DRS4D-NXT (24) is mounted flat on the fiberglass hardtop near the front edge. I am guessing that the tolerance works inshore but because of the flat mounting we "lose everything" with any kind of bounce in the hull running. My question is if I were to invest in a scanstrut and get the radome up 6 inches and utilize some negative wedge to point it downward would that improve my offshore performance or is this radar more for ICW navigation?
 
Raising the radar is not a bad idea and it is common to have a bit of a wedge mount to help with any rise of the bow depending on the boat. If you are truly mounted close to the front lip, I worry you are getting some close in radar reflections that is hurting your radar reception. If you have any items mounted directly behind, I would recommend doing some testing where you sector blank out that aft area and try testing again. If still missing targets the radar might need to be evaluated at the repair center. You shouldn't be missing targets like that.
 
Johnny, I went offshore this weekend with the Furuno manual in hand. I went out of Ponce Inlet on the east coast of Florida. Sea conditions were flat with a slight 1 foot wind chop. I was running the boat at about 28-30 mph. Around me that I could see without binoculars was a shrimp boat, parachute towed behind a boat and several center consoles. No matter what I did, the radar couldn't pick up the shrimp boat at a distance greater than 1/4-1/2 mile and then would appear/disappear on the screen. Same for the towed parachute and the center consoles. I had the radar in manual and adjusted gain, sea and rain but could not zero in a consistent setting. The Furuno DRS4D-NXT (24) is mounted flat on the fiberglass hardtop near the front edge. I am guessing that the tolerance works inshore but because of the flat mounting we "lose everything" with any kind of bounce in the hull running. My question is if I were to invest in a scanstrut and get the radome up 6 inches and utilize some negative wedge to point it downward would that improve my offshore performance or is this radar more for ICW navigation?

It would be a good idea to check the actual mounting angle of the radar at rest and at your normal planing speed before you get a Scanstrut or put in a wedge. If you have an SCX-20 or a DFF-3D, you can add pitch in a data box. Alternatively, if you have an iPhone, you can use the level function in the "Measure" app to get a reading.

Another thing that might be helpful is to take some screen shots of your radar in operation at a time when you are experiencing the issue and post them.

I have used my radar in 10 foot seas with the boat pitching up and down and it still shows targets quite well. It seems very unlike that there should be a big impact on performance from 2-3 foot seas. Where I live, 2-3 foot seas are what we have most of the time and the radar works fine, the same as on calm days.
 

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