Navigation Lights

[commanderpete]

The light on the front of the mast is the "steaming light." Its used when the boat is propelled by "machinery." A boat under oars shows the same lights as a boat under sail.

There is no required place for an anchor light. Its supposed to be an all-around white light, visible for two miles and displayed "where it can best be seen."

[Bill]

A good addition to anyone's sailing library is Chapman Piloting, Seamanship & Small Boat Handling. Very complete discussion of lights in chapter 6, "Navigation Lights and Day Shapes." Elbert S. Maloney is the editor. Publisher is Hearst Marine Books.

[Theis]

I have some good news for all of you, unless something has changed in the last year or two, and I don't think it has.

Those are all Perko fittings, and when I rehabed my little puppy, I replaced the port and starboard lights with the Perko - they are the same as the originals except for the type of light bulb - and I may have replaced the stern light as well. Even if Perko no longer carries them (which I think they do), they might have some that are bright and shiny lying around.

If you can't find them, let me know and I'll look up their catalog number.

[Bill]

Peter, see page 79 of the manual. It has a reproduction of a portion of page 15 from Rostand Mfg Company's Marine Hardware Catalog #20 (their last).

As you know, this company supplied Pierson until the 1970's. The "side lights" are catalog #54, the "stern light" is cat #56 and the "bow light is cat #52. I assume that there is no patent protection on these styles of light fixtures which is why Perko may have something similar. Got photos?

[Theis]

Lookig at the 2004 West Master Marine Catalog, on page 697, the side lights are either West 281147 and 268518, Perko No. 0955oP0CHR and 1264DP0CHR (They are sold in red/green sets and I can't recall which of those two sets is the right size), and the stern light is West 257162, Perk No. 0965DP0CHR. They are also available, I believe, from Defenders

They visually look the same, but the gasketing and the interior lamp design is improved over the original lights. And yes, they are bright shiny chrome.