I am trying to find a Sea Kayak Navigational Aid by Howard Jeffs, but keep striking out. Does he still make them? how do I get in contact with him or does someone else make a very similar product? Thanks for the help
I did some research. He seemed to struggle with getting them made. Eventually the larger one was no longer made and a pocket plotter smaller version was sold. The price early was around $30 shipped from Canada but had jumped up to $50 dollars in later years, for a piece of plastic with some scales on it. On his son’s website, the son mentions Howard had retired.
Here is what the smaller version looked like with email of info@howardjeffs.com. His twitter is https://x.com/HNJeffs
Instructional video showing the scales and how to use. Check out his shirt…lol.
Searching this site shows a US guy in PA made something similar.
This “Helix Angle and Circle Maker” is handy for plotting. The outer ring rotates relative to the inner, clear disk. So, you can align the outer disk with North on a chart (adjusting for declination if needed), then rotate the inner disk to a desired course or toward a desired destination. The pencil slots through the center can be used for plotting. Here’s an Amazon link, but they have these even cheaper ($3.99) at Hobby Lobby:
4 of the pocket size versions are available at $25 apiece but not sure if they ship out of canada.
I would think you could easily use a military lensatic compass. or map based compass to easily set your navigational bearing from a map.
even if you maps don’t really have a declination scale, or an out of date one. It’ll get you close enough.
if you’ve never used one here’s a brief tutorial.
