Mounting Electronics advice.....

[TimC2520]

Hi Fellas,

I am going to be picking up a chart plotter within the next month or two and was going to install it myself (all other electronics were installed at the dealer when I bought it). It's a 1999 2520. I have found all the hardware I need so it matches but my questions are......Starting with the roof and mounting the antenna, I was going to install a stainless swivel mount so I can lay it down and make room for the winter cover.......4 stainless bolts...should I put anything in the holes before installing and tightening down the bolts? Next are these white caps the dealer used made by "big-jon". 3-4 screws (dont remember off hand) and a hole needed to pass the cable through.....again, anything in the holes before I screw down? Next, mounting the bracket to the dash.....any tips on not cracking the gel coat when drilling holes to mount the bracket? Lastly, all my electronics are Furuno and I have no complaints, was going to add a Furuno Chartplotter...any advice? Pros? Cons? Alternatives? Models you guys use and like?

Thanks,

Tim

 

[DaleH]

... going to install a stainless swivel mount so I can lay it down and make room for the winter cover ... put anything in the holes before installing and tightening down the bolts?

Tim:

Do you need it on a swivel mount? My Navman is a small mushroom and is just mounted near the front of the cabin top, so the cable comes inside just in between and above the windows.

You will hit wood. Drill hole oversize, wash with acetone and dry. Heat wood slightly with hair dryer and apply 2-part waterproof epoxy to core of hole, laying out newspaper below to catch any drips. Gob it on good. If needed, drill out a bit for cable to go through once hardened.

Next are these white caps the dealer used made by "big-jon". 3-4 screws (dont remember off hand) and a hole needed to pass the cable through.....again, anything in the holes before I screw down?

Don't know your antenna design ... but there are others that use a rubber 'gland' that totally seal off the cable from where it enters the roof. I thought the Navman antenna design was superior as there's no need for a drip/water cap or clamshell.

Next, mounting the bracket to the dash.....any tips on not cracking the gel coat when drilling holes to mount the bracket?

Start drill BACKWARDS and press lightly until you wear a dish in the glass. Always go thru with a small drill, then use a countersink to open just past diameter you need. Or if no c'sink, step up in drills (which you should do anyway) but run these BACKWARDS too so as not to chip the glass, wait 'til the bit wears the dish then switch into forward and go SLOW.

Make darn sure the size drill you use is a bit LARGER than the body size of the stainless steel screw you will use or you WILL break it off in the glass :shock: ! Not that I ever have ... right!

Lastly, all my electronics are Furuno and I have no complaints, was going to add a Furuno Chartplotter...any advice? Pros? Cons? Alternatives? Models you guys use and like?

I like Furuno depthfind and use one and their radars are the best, but to me, and I have a friend going through this ... chartplotters are like Ford or Chevy, Toyota or Nissan, or Yamaha or Mercury/Suzuki/Bombardier engine debates.

What is your budget and what chart platforms (C-Map or Navionics) would you prefer? I have Powerboat Reports tests on chartplotters. I'll also get my friend who posts here occasionally (non-Parker owner, but a great guy) to chime in.

 

[Megabyte]

Before you cut or drill in fiberglass, cover the area with 2 layers of painters tape. Make your measurements, mark the tape, then drill or cut.
The tape will keep the gelcoat from splintering.

Furuno makes some awesome sounders and radar, but when it comes to GPS/chartplotters, my money is on Garmin. They have the best cartography on the market right now.

 

[TimC2520]

Thanks guys,

Here is a photo of the caps my dealer used when passing the cable through the roof and dash...they come in one or two wire set-ups....
They appear to be caulked heavily but cleaned up nicely before they were tightened up and they havent leaked yet.
I was going to use them again.

 

[TimC2520]

As far as the C-Map or Navionics, that's where the confusion comes in, some guys lean one way, some the other. I guess it's a matter of personal preference, which do you guys use and why?

 

[TimC2520]

As far as the swivel mount, I may or may not need it.....Depends on the size of the mushroom. Whats the recommendation on height? I have a wire chase totally empty along the port side and was going to mount it along side the grab rail up there and use that chase to get it from the rear of the cabin to the dash area. Sorry for the multiple posts, everytime I click submit I remember something else! :roll:

 

[Megabyte]

Tim,

Look at the left corner of my pilothouse roof...
That is my Garmin mushroom.

No swivel on mine. It is mounted to a flanged base attached directly to the roof.
The wire pass-throughs your dealer used look nice. The wire for my GPS mushroom passes through the base, so you don't even see it.

 

[Fishinfireman]

Here's another option if you don't want to drill holes through the roof.

I recently bought a new chartplotter to replace my old one which had no more room for new #'s. I upgraded to a Standard Horizon CP300 and flush mounted it in the dash. Once I got the dash unit mounted and wired up I hooked up the antenna and turned the unit on. I pulled up the GPS status window on the plotter and then moved the antenna around inside and outside the boat. It turns out that the antenna will recieve right through the fiberglass and wood core of the roof. The signal was just as strong inside the cabin as it was outside. I mounted my antenna between the windshields on the inside of the cabin ceiling. The weather will not dry out and crack the plastic like it did on my old antenna after a few years and the chartplotter works great. Also make sure your VHF and GPS antennas are far enough apart and do not route the antenna wires close together. I made this mistake once and when I keyed the mic on the VHF the GPS would lose its position. Radar, VHF and GPS all need plenty of space between them and their antenna wires.

 

[TimC2520]

Interesting tips, thanks guys.
I'll pick up the chartplotter and see how big the mushroom is, then bring it down to the boat and see what my options are. I was going to make the purchase through BOE, seems like alot of guys had good experiences with them. I will be taking my time mounting this thing to make sure I don't screw something up, so I hope you guys can be patient with all my questions.. :roll:

 

[TimC2520]

When you passed the antenna wire through the roof, did you drill the whole big enough so that the fitting would fit through also or did you disassemble the fitting and make the hole the width of the wire instead. The manual says "do not cut the wire", but it's ok to take the fitting off and there are directions on how to take it apart and put it back together. Would the signal be degraded once the "factory" assembly is broken? If you took the fitting apart, did you use solder to re-assemble it?

Tim

 

[Outta Here]

Don't know what GPS you'll be using, Furuno GPS cable connector is designed to be dis-assembled and re-installed after the cable is run.

Shakespere makes a HD stainless VHF antenna mount. The standard stainless mount can break.

My GPS is also "hard mounted" on a small (maybe 3"tall) fixed stainless
stand.

 

[TimC2520]

Thanks FishFactory,

I am going to be ordering the Furuno GP7000 Chartplotter tomorrow from BOE and will probably mount the mushroom to a fixed SS mount, hopefully 4" or less.
I peeked at the installation manual through a PDF and noticed instructions on taking the connector apart to pass it through small holes. Was wondering if it was a big deal and if the reception suffered once it was re-assembled.

Tim

 

[Outta Here]

I never noticed any loss of signal. The connector is made to be taken apart, has a nice rubber o-ring. Should you need to go thru a bulk-head, there's a small, round chromed brass fitting made. It also has an o-ring. They never leak. I'm sure BOE has them, for reference, it's item #920052 from Consumers Marine Electronics. They are in 2 diameters, check with BOE for correct size for GPS and VHF antennas.

Speaking of VHF antennas, consider a premium Shakespere Galaxy 5225 (some like a Digital brand). Whatever, don't buy a cheap Shakerpere. Again BOE can determine which bulk-head fitting you'll need, as the 5225 has low-loss larger cable on it.

Congratulations on the Furuno 7000. It's on my list. If you already have a top line Furuno depth finder, you can save some money and order the 7000 w/o depthfinder function.

 

[TimC2520]

Thanks,

I have a Furuno 600L dpethsounder on the dash also, which has a feature to view GPS data. I am going to talk with BOE about integration with this unit also.