Nice, brand spanking new.sweet.
Let me know if you want more specific suggestions. Alot depends on your detailed info. Aesthetics equip. Color scheme etc. I assume the second picture showing the trees is from the cockpit looking forward off the bow.
It's hard to be sure, but from what I can tell, the two aluminum flat stringers are already pitched down. Does your scanner use coax cable, and if so where do you plan to run it down to the console?
It's worth double checkiNG the pitch angle. That set up looks to me to be more like 1-2 degrees forward between the stringers and the roof plane. A delta of 3/4 inch over 36 inches equates to about 1.5 degrees, if my trig. is right. I have to believe it should be setup for a standard angle , but I'm pretty sure parker does not fab the Top themselves, so I would not take it for granted that the angle is correct for your setup. Fortunately it's easy enough to add subtract spacers. Or build it into final layout. Need to know the angle between top and hull plane etc.
What all are you planning to mount up top now or future, and I assume it would be in that open location which looks to be about maybe 40 inches wide and 30 inches long fore-aft?
If you send me the exact dimensions I'll calculate the thickness plastic or aluminum. I'd use. My buddy added scanner, pa, horn gps and running light, and he was particular about the final look that he thought was most cool. With the layout you have, you have a lot of choices, but got to figure that in ahead. Send dimension across from inside edge to inside edge of aluminum flat stringer plate and then the width of the plate (5 inch?) and thickness maybe 3/8?. From what I can see and I think you mentioned, the two stringers are aligned to the curve of the cross pipe.
This looks ideally suited to slap in a cross member as you are planning cleanly attached to the stringers.
The cross member which I think you are planning would then take to the curve and this provides a really nice clean simple install which is already set to the correct pitch, and which you can make the plate area any way you want to fit current and or future equip. The slightly arced shape are f the cross member is a structural advantage like u see on a bridge or a long tractor trailer bed that is already arced.
If it were my boat I'd calculate the pros and cons of using plastic or aluminum or sst cross member material, for price, look and install ease. Do you want it to match the other alternative shiny members or be black to hide it? Thru bolts with the right hardware
Would look clean enough for my taste. If you wanted to make it look factory, then you could simply weld in a plate from the underside , probably avoiding any need to remove the top and do that in the field with a standard portable welder. The final look of weld will be mostly dependent on the skill and quality of the weld. Everything has pros cons. Weld is permanent. In case of doing it on interior below the plates it eliminates need to remove top canvas, but is then somewhat more visible. The other thing is that your t top is nice polished aluminum maybe even treated with anti oxidizer. If you use aluminum bolted or welded, you'd want to polish and finish it to match. Metal cross member has structural size advantages. Big hassle with welder is finding someone willing to come to your site and do a nice job for a small job, also if you do not pre bend aluminum plate you'd have to clamp it to the stringers and it will forever causeceach side to be in rotational stress and tgst is exactly the type situatuon ehete youll start to crack tbe welds, not the new ones, rather the existing stringer to pipe. That said it's no big deal to bend al plate by hand
You can get a 4ft x 3/4 x 4 inch starboard plate from McMaster for a out 40$. (It's essentially HDPE and claims moisture resistant, but I'm dubious it's anything more than hdpe.), But the 4 inch width is a bit narrow for my gut instinct, id have to calculate it. My guess is that the dimension across the top from outside to outside is right around 48 inch. I worry less about motion fore aft, rather side to side give. Plastic plate or anything bolted has advantage of being able to adjust tilt angle if you need later. It has advantage of being available in black so blends in without paint and very durable.
To me at first glance, I don't see the advantage of a top plate, vs the extra cost, work and holes in the canvas. Happy to elaborate. It depends a bit on exactly what u r mounting and how you plan to waterproof holes. If the advantage is somehow for waterproofing or tear mitigation, then you can always add a local plate just the footprint of the scanner. If my rig, I'd not have any top plate, unless after laying it all out there is some unknown benefit that I can't think of now. Structure is not. I'd probably bolt in a pre bowed al plate maybe 5/8 thick x the width of the dome base, use 8 countersink sst flat socket heads maybe 4 at each side and look into McMaster to find some sort of flat t nuts or something that can be torqued but that will in no way grab at the canvas. Id definitely figure out if I wanted the upper surface of the new cross bar to be below or flush with canvas. If it's lower and you pull it down in center at dome then u just made an inverted umbrella and you'll have a puddle up there non stop. Too much upwards and put stress tears on t top. Neither good. Argues strongly to stick in a thin rubber or foam. Like you said, definitely rounded edges. I think the other advantage of the way that is set up is that then the coax cable runs along the top of the cross member and maybe directly down one of the upright tubes. Based on my buddy's install, avoid bends.. then you simply drill tap a few holes into the top of the al plate to attach a few cable clamps, but do not drill through so invisible from below. #10 or 1/4 dia sst. It's a toss up vs. Maybe 8-12 inch wide x 3/4 hdpe. The big diff to me is the added volume vs the black blend, so in the end really aesthetic preference trumps IMHO. Please do not hold me to those dims as anything more than educated guesses.
Sorry if you already knew all this of are ahead of me, or if this is overkill. I can do alot of this in my head so I go through all the details without a lot of time and the shit I tend to do usually comes out sweet at the best price and stuff I don't need other people involved, except selectively. You happen to be lucky that I enrolled in the forum while helping buddy so I just happen to have my mind on this right now. Best
MB
