All-New Velocitek ProStart

[Rambler]

Does anyone known whether the new prostart any more waterproof than the old one.

I had one drown in a capsize and have been wary of them ever since, even though I've lusted for a replacement. It was a few years old, so I didn't think I had a hope on warranty, even though it was little used (we normally race on a narrow river where neither the compass nor the distance to start feature was all that useful, so it was only brought out for major 'away' events). It was one reason I've been following the progress of and comments on the Varcross

But the other problem I had with it was the lack of a mounting (at that time) to suit dinghies and skiffs. The factory mounting required a track. Is there now a 'w' mounting or similar to attach to a non tracked mast while still letting lines (downhaul etc) pass behind it?

 

[velocitek]

@Rambler

The new ProStart is assembled in house and each unit goes through a battery of non-destructive tests before they are shipped to the customer. The new ProStart also made out of new and better materials.

On the dinghy/skiff/ 'w' mounting request, this ought to fit the bill: https://www.velocitek.com/products/w-mast-bracket

 

[allweather]

About the mast brackets, are there any files for their dimensions? I'll need to see which if any at all fits my mast and control lines that need to run through it before ordering one along with the prostart now that it is available locally. Otherwise I would forego buying the bracket and have one made to size by a metalworker I know for a few beer but something ready to use would be convenient too.

 

[velocitek]

@allweather

The Mast Bracket is 50 mm tall x 95 mm wide x 57 mm deep (mast to cradle). The back of the Mast Bracket is 50 mm wide. The Mast Bracket is designed to work with bullet or D cross section masts.

The W-Bracket is 66 mm tall x 95 mm wide x 49 mm deep (peaks of W to cradle). The V in the back of the W-Bracket is 20 mm deep. The W-Bracket is designed to work with teardrop and round cross section masts.

 

[allweather]

Alright, I should get my Prostart and W-bracket in a few days and race it on a short local circuit. Let's see how it will go.

Thank you for the measurements, that reassured me of the fit.(I then realized that I am allowed to return parts for refund minus the five euro shipping cost if I had gotten it wrong )

 

[darth reapius]

Alright, I should get my Prostart and W-bracket in a few days and race it on a short local circuit. Let's see how it will go.

Thank you for the measurements, that reassured me of the fit.(I then realized that I am allowed to return parts for refund minus the five euro shipping cost if I had gotten it wrong )

But how did it go?

 

[CriticalPath]

@allweather

The Mast Bracket is 50 mm tall x 95 mm wide x 57 mm deep (mast to cradle). The back of the Mast Bracket is 50 mm wide. The Mast Bracket is designed to work with bullet or D cross section masts.

The W-Bracket is 66 mm tall x 95 mm wide x 49 mm deep (peaks of W to cradle). The V in the back of the W-Bracket is 20 mm deep. The W-Bracket is designed to work with teardrop and round cross section masts.

What if I want to mount the ProStart on a flat horizontal surface?  Does the ProStart unit and cradle fit your Deck Bracket?  https://www.velocitek.com/products/deck-bracket

Cheers!

 

[Will1073]

What if I want to mount the ProStart on a flat horizontal surface?  Does the ProStart unit and cradle fit your Deck Bracket?  https://www.velocitek.com/products/deck-bracket

Cheers!

Aluminum L extrusion is a lot cheaper...

 

[CriticalPath]

Aluminum L extrusion is a lot cheaper...

I got the same response from a BQYC Sharkie today, so knock this off as another example of the fleet's cheap and cheerful mentality!

I understand the compulsion to save money, but IMHO the aluminum L extrusion's a kinda agricultural-looking solution, or at least it would be if created by my handiwork.

Cheers!

 

[velocitek]

@CriticalPath, yes the ProStart Cradles fits the Deck Bracket!

Yes, an L extrusion would also work but our brackets are anodized and powder coated for longevity in the marine environment.

 

[jhellan]

Our reefing lines interfere with the mast bracket. Any recommended solution?

 

[allweather]

But how did it go?

If I had it I could say... As is the shop I ordered from pointed me to a note at the bottom of the page proclaiming they get sent out „first come, first served“ as they don‘t have stock yet due to the recent release date. 

Add in that my order fell of the desk(in part my fault) and I am waiting for the third week after paying. Maybe it still arrives before the boat gets hauled out, but temperatures have been plummeting towards freezing.

Our reefing lines interfere with the mast bracket. Any recommended solution?

Do you have a picture? Really helps assess the specific set up. 

 

[F18 Sailor]

Mine is here and working well. Watch the rubber o-ring where the USB charge port goes; you don't want to go sailing with that missing! Velocitek are sending me a few extra's, my suggestion is to include 1 extra with the extra charge port cap already in the box.

Another question: besides chartedsail and Njord Analytics, is there any other way to look at the log files from this device? I am personally a bit frustrated with the file type-it is binary, and you must upload to Njord Analytics to generate a .CSV for use elsewhere. Even more frustrating at the moment is I don't see a way to simply grab distance sailed from the log file replayed in either chartedsail or Njord Analytics.

 

[jackolantern]

Was super happy with a sneak peek usage of the new prostart in the IC37 nationals this past weekend. Used the original prostart for our first days of practice before the new one showed up and oh my gosh was it a different experience. So much more visible than the old display and updated so much faster. 

A pleasant surprise was the very simple “early/late” feature that isn’t trying to do to much. During the last minute of the start it seems to take the speed that you’re doing at the time (luffing, reaching, beating, whatever) and divides it with the distance to just show a binary early/late call on the right side Of the screen  

Wish I took a picture but the last minute of a starting sequence is not the time to have your cellphone out. 

 

[velocitek]

Mine is here and working well. Watch the rubber o-ring where the USB charge port goes; you don't want to go sailing with that missing! Velocitek are sending me a few extra's, my suggestion is to include 1 extra with the extra charge port cap already in the box.

Another question: besides chartedsail and Njord Analytics, is there any other way to look at the log files from this device? I am personally a bit frustrated with the file type-it is binary, and you must upload to Njord Analytics to generate a .CSV for use elsewhere. Even more frustrating at the moment is I don't see a way to simply grab distance sailed from the log file replayed in either chartedsail or Njord Analytics.

I'm really glad to hear it's working well.

On the first 50 or so units we built, we had a problem with the USB port gasket falling out easily when the port gets opened. We have since improved the design of the gasket so it stays in place. The old gasket is black and the new one is white / translucent. Anybody that is having problems with the old black gasket can send an email to [email protected] and we'll send you the new one free of charge.

The new ProStart logs magnetic heading, heel, pitch, COG and SOG every quarter second. Our initial plan was to log this data to GPX files (a universal standard for GPS data) but the files ended being so big that they were a pain to work with. After consulting with the leading replay apps, Charted Sails and Njord Analyitics, we decided to work with them to develop a much more compact, open binary format called the VTK Protocol.

Adding a simple utility to our website that converts VTK files to CSV and GPX is on our to do list but at the moment we're pretty tied up with increasing our manufacturing throughput and getting through the order backlog.

Until then, if any developers in the SA community are interested in taking a stab at it, complete documentation for the VTK Protocol and some sample code for parsing it are here:

https://github.com/velocitek/vtk_protcol

 

[F18 Sailor]

Just sent an email before reading this post...I might take a crack at a python parser for the .VTK file. I could do it more quickly in Matlab, but the resulting code wouldn't really be portable.

 

[sarfata]

Another question: besides chartedsail and Njord Analytics, is there any other way to look at the log files from this device? I am personally a bit frustrated with the file type-it is binary, and you must upload to Njord Analytics to generate a .CSV for use elsewhere. Even more frustrating at the moment is I don't see a way to simply grab distance sailed from the log file replayed in either chartedsail or Njord Analytics.

Hi @samc99us,

Thomas, founder of ChartedSails here. I know we have had this discussion by email but for the benefit of everyone else, here is how to take measurements on ChartedSails:

1 - Click and drag on the timeline



2 - The distance (and average speed) are calculated and shown in the top left "Boat cards"



There is more details on the different tools available in this blog article: https://www.chartedsails.com/blog/five-tools-to-analyze-your-sailing-sessions.

best,

thomas

 

[velocitek]

Just sent an email before reading this post...I might take a crack at a python parser for the .VTK file. I could do it more quickly in Matlab, but the resulting code wouldn't really be portable.

Please take a look at the Python sample code. If you have some experience with Python, you might be able to get what you need with very little effort.

 

[F18 Sailor]

FYI, I've been playing with this all weekend. I'm not a programmer-I can use Python to do engineering type things, but am waaay more comfortable in Matlab. I've avoided jumping over to that though because most people don't have, want or can afford Matlab. Anyway, my focus has been on developing an executable that opens a GUI and lets you select the file to convert. I've run into a few road blocks but maybe by the end of the week I'll have something up and running.

 

[sierrawhiskeygolf]

Is there a trick to connecting to the unit to download data? I use Mac computers if that matters (it shouldn't?). I have tried a few computers so far and when I plug the unit into the computer all the happens is the unit shows "USB" on the screen and charging icon, but I cannot locate the unit itself. I tired using Disc Utility as well to see if I could "see" the unit as a drive, no luck.