BASIC RADAR MOUNTING QUESTION...

[ReelTimeCapt]

I hope everyone is having a good Summer. I just purchased a used Furuno 2KW Radar in very good shape and plan to mount it on the HardTop of my 2310WA.

Here are some pics of my boat: http://www.teamreeltime.com/About/About ... fault.aspx

My questions are:
1 - How do I know if I need a pedestal to raise my Raydome? (I see some boats mount the Raydome directly to the top...)
2 - Is there a safety issue with or without with the pedestal?

Any help is appreciated.

RTC <>< (Fletcher)

 

[John_Madison CT]

I installed a Raymarine 2KW radar on my boat about a year ago. It's on a tilted (forward) pedestal. I did this to get it higher for better target readings, to get it above head level of those standing in my cockpit, and to also get it parallel to the water when on plane.

 

[Miss Mattie]

I had a Raymarine installed on my 2310 this spring. The installer put the dome in the aft center of the hardtop without a pedestal. I thought it looked obstructed when I first saw it, but the installer said the beam had enough verticlal width and would not be blocked by the front edge of the top. He was wrong. Objects dead ahead would fade and sometimes disappear when the boat was on a plane, although objects abeam and astern were clearly illuminated. Objects ahead were were bright when at slow speed. I had a pedestal installed and it works fine. In my opinion, if the dome is not mounted at the very front of the hardtop, I think you will need a pedestal because of running angle.

 

[CapeCodFrank]

I have a 2007 2510 WA with the Raymarine 2KW dome. My dealer advised to place it on a pedestal for a better angle when running on plane. It works fine. Here is a shot of my boat.

 

[ReelTimeCapt]

Thank you all for the feedback. Nice 2510, by the way! I plan to mount mine all the forward, but am a little concerned about the aft rod holders interfering with the Scanner. So, I may consider a pedestal with a 5 ot 6 inch rise, but I'll have to research and see who makes such a device. Thanks again, RTC (Fletcher).

 

[CapeCodFrank]

My radar mount was made by Edson, I believe.

 

[Miss Mattie]

My Raymarine ignores the rod holders (and the VHF and GPS antennas and the running/anchor light). Furuno should do the same. But the pedestal is the way to go.

 

[Megabyte]

My radar mount was made by Edson, I believe.

Here is a link to the Edson catalog.
http://www.edsonmarine.com/navcom/index.html

Jim Maier at BOE Marine carries these and other brands of radar mounts.

 

[ReelTimeCapt]

Thank you. I'm waiting on a power cable to arrive to test the unit and then will make measurements to mount it.

 

[greatcir]

I bought my Raymarine pedestal mount from Bill Callihan at Nautical Structures in Louisville 866-668-4968. He was referred to me by friends in the marine business. I ended up buying most of my electronics from him too.

Best I can remember, the radar pedestal mount was around $200 including the searchlight pole and base (which can lay down).

I supplied him with the pedestal height I wanted and the maximum size of the base and the color I wanted. He built it to my specs and he provided the forward tilt to the radome base which works fine with the radar when I am running on plane or idling.

If you use him, tell him Pete from Nashville was satisfied with his mount.,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,Pete

 

[FishPimp]

I never thought about my rocket launchers interfearing with the beam.
hmmmmm.
If I had my boat at slip I would raise the dome up. but I dont.

 

[BuddahB]

Here's mine, on a pedastal with I believe a 5 degree wedge to compensate for tilt on plane.

 

[ReelTimeCapt]

Thanks for the great info from you all. It sounds like I'll need a 4 ot 5 degree wedge at a minimum. I'm cleaning up the radome and have a new cables on order. I will probably make the wedge from starboard, since I'm a wood worker, have the tools and the price is a little more bearable.

Thanks again - Fletcher

 

[tara11]

Mine is tilted forward as well, I forget who makes the bracket, but it works well !

 

[MaxOut]

I have a 4KW Raymarine mounted on a 8" 4 degree forward tilt mount made by SeeStar- (see link) Link is for a 8" Without Light Pole but there is others listed.

It works great and is high enough to clear rocket launchers and the heads of my crew. Mounting it in the center of the roof gave me the proper clearence off my other antennas, search light etc. I would strongly dissagre with mounting it directly to the deck. I see no benifit other than saveing a little money on the install or to clear a garage door. All performance related issues point to using a mount. Good luck your next decision is going to be how to hide that huge cable..

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Radar-Mo ... enameZWDVW

$149.00 Plus $18.00 Shipping. Not Bad.


I am trying to get some pictures. I will post soon as I get my camera back from my wife.


Hope this helps...Regards

 

[andertonm]

With antennas, power is everything and height is second. High freqs like radar are particularly sensitive to obstructions. Use the pedastal and compensate for the angle of the boat on plane.

 

[Parker23]

This is a 12" scan strut,

 

[ReelTimeCapt]

We'll, I've been running the Radar for about 2 months now and even though it's older model, I really enjoy the reliability and confidence it affords us in the fog and night trips around the CBBT.

Here's a picture of the side profile of my boat with showing the scanner mount:

ANd here's a link to the pictures of the install:

http://www.teamreeltime.com/FishingRepo ... fault.aspx

Thanks again and Best Regards to All!
Fletcher <><

 

[Anonymous]

I have a 2007 2510 WA with the Raymarine 2KW dome. My dealer advised to place it on a pedestal for a better angle when running on plane. It works fine. Here is a shot of my boat.

your gps antenna is in line with the radar beam,that's not reccomended by any manufacture...sorry...

you really want to mount the radar on the antenna mount,the other guys got it right...however,be sure your anchor light is high enough to see over the antenna-i see countless installations that are wrong...and be sure your gps antenna isn't in the direct path of the radar beam...here's a picture,it should look like this...

this is a c-120 i installed,i rigged a new sailfish for a customer...

 

[ReelTimeCapt]

Thank you for the advise. : )

At the time when I installed the Radar Unit, I did it on a budget a little tighter than I had wanted to.

Please let me know what model of Antenna Pedestal that you might recommend, a supplier.

If you stock these, please supply a quote andin the new year, I will budget in an upgrade.

Thanks again and Best Regards,
Fletcher