GPS mounting recommendations

[Gene Neill]

A few weeks ago I was asking for recommendations on a GPS for my C-22. I got some really good suggestions and decided to go with a Garmin 740s. But now I sit in the cockpit, looking forward at the virgin surface of the cabin wall, and the thought of drilling/cutting these ginormous mounting hole(s) in my boat is really intimidating.

There are no second chances to get it right the first time!

I guess first, foremost and most important is the question of whether to mount it on its bracket, or to flush mount it. Before I break out the drill and/or the jigsaw, I'd sure appreciate any input anyone has!

Thanks, and Happy Turkey Day to all.

 

[Chief RA]

Look in West Marine and find the swingout brackets that will let you mount it just inside the hatch. You could also fabricate a board that lays under your cockpit cushion down by your tiller and afix a bracket to come up the back of the cushion to mount radio, GPS, compass, etc. !/16" aluminum should do the trick for making a bracket. OK, now do you have cushions? ha Chief

 

[azguy]

is it hard wired or batteried powered..?

If it was battery powered I'd have it on a small bracket mounted on the rear stern pulpit so it's close enough to see.



If you wanted a more permanent application you could mount this inside the companionway and pull it out as needed.

 

[Nahart51]

I plan to make a bottom crib board and mount my compass, gps, etc. I'll put the crib board in place only when I need it. I saw this somewhere, probably on this site.

I removed all stuff from the cockpit bulkhead because that area is just too comfortable to lean on.

Happy Thanksgiving all you Captains and Squabs, and everybody in between!!

 

[seanshine]

I glued a teak board the same size as the gps to the outside bulkhead. I simply use velcro to attach the gps to the board. The unit can now be removed when not in use. The single wire comes around from inside to be plugged to the gps. Attach the board close to the companionway Easy peasy..... SS

 

[Patrice]

Hi
As mentioned by others, I would not mount permanent to the bulkhead, it is a nice place to rest when sitting in cockpit.
I would go with with either a small wood piece that fit nicely at the bottom of the hatch. This way can be stored inside when away from boat.
Or best is the swing arm.

 

[jrowan]

Personally I used to own a C 22 & a Garmin 740 sounds like overkill & oversized for a C 22. Have you looked at the hand held units that are out there like the Garmin Colorado, etc.? We have a Garmin 440s gps plotter that is plenty big for a C 30.

The only reason I have a GPS this size is because we sail across the Chesapeake in over 100 mile trips at a time, in shoal waters so its crucial to know your location.
I guess you've already bought your GPS unit, but I'll say that we have downloaded NavX to out Iphones to use as a backup GPS unit (when I left the big one at home after winter lay up) & it works great & only cost about $35 bucks to download. It is just as accurate as my $500. Garmin GPS unit. Although I admit that an Iphone needs a good waterproof case, as its not exactly marine grade in terms of durability. As far as mounting, ours is on a pedestal steering mount. I agree with the earlier post about using a swing arm & keep the GPS protecting inside the cabin. I always avoid drilling holes in my boat unless absolutely necessary!

 

[Meriachee]

We had a very nice Garmin 276, until one day it wouldn't start. There wasn't a solution in the nmea to wifi category that was going to be less than a grand, and most oft he ipad apps did not clearly state that they support any of that stuff. So what we've got now is the Nobeltek app for the ipad, and a Dual xgps160. This is little hockey puck sized GPS receiver, which connects to the ipad via Bluetooth.

 

[Escapade II]

GPS MOunting

I glued a teak board the same size as the gps to the outside bulkhead. I simply use velcro to attach the gps to the board. The unit can now be removed when not in use. The single wire comes around from inside to be plugged to the gps. Attach the board close to the companionway Easy peasy..... SS

Why not just put the Velcro on the bulkhead ? Gene / Escapade II

 

[Chief RA]

Velcro sounds great but I would put it near the Tiller. Chief

 

[bobk250]

GPS Mount idea

A few weeks ago I was asking for recommendations on a GPS for my C-22. I got some really good suggestions and decided to go with a Garmin 740s. But now I sit in the cockpit, looking forward at the virgin surface of the cabin wall, and the thought of drilling/cutting these ginormous mounting hole(s) in my boat is really intimidating.

There are no second chances to get it right the first time!

I guess first, foremost and most important is the question of whether to mount it on its bracket, or to flush mount it. Before I break out the drill and/or the jigsaw, I'd sure appreciate any input anyone has!

Thanks, and Happy Turkey Day to all.

I made a board that slides in place of the regular hatch boards and flush mounted my Lowrance. I left the cables long enough so I could also set in on the dinette table so I had a proper "nav station" if I wanted it.

 

[Gene Neill]

I made a board that slides in place of the regular hatch boards and flush mounted my Lowrance. I left the cables long enough so I could also set in on the dinette table so I had a proper "nav station" if I wanted it.

Bobk250, you win the prize! I'm going to pick up a substitute hatch board of some kind tomorrow, and give your method a try. I don't suppose you have any pics of the setup, do you?

Thanks for your help (awesome first post!), and thanks to everyone else who has weighed in and given me so many great possibilities to consider.

 

[Gene Neill]

Just wanted to bump this thread for the sake of anyone who might follow down this path. I actually sold the boat I had when I started this conversation, and the one I now own came with a perfectly nice, older Lowrance ... but I like redundancy, so I'm keeping the 740s.

Here's my mount. Easy enough to step over, easy to remove when not needed. The cloned hatch board (made of "cheap" red oak) fits perfectly with the other two boards, so the companionway can be closed up tight with it in place.

 

[azguy]

beautiful.....and functional........win/win....

 

[Joel H.]

Vary nice.

 

[hvbaker]

You must have great eyes. I have mine mounted at the helm.

 

[chrisyse]

Hi,
Have you noticed a change in compass deviation with the 740 on and off? The owners manual says the compass safe distance is 32 inches. Pedestal mounting is common.

Chris

 

[Gene Neill]

There's no discernible deviation. I've read about that issue of course, but based on my own limited experience I think it may be overblown. I can hold the GPS on its hatchboard right next to the compass and still get no movement of the needle.

But regardless, the compass is a good 30" away from that pesky little magnetic latch in the lower right corner of the Garmin.

 

[hvbaker]

Hi, Have you noticed a change in compass deviation with the 740 on and off? The owners manual says the compass safe distance is 32 inches. Pedestal mounting is common. Chris

I did a lot of investigation before mounting. I found that if magnet as in same vertical plane with the compass it caused a deviation when it was close. When the 740 is above the compass there was not a problem with the 740 deflecting the compass.

 

[chrisyse]

We found similar results. We could cause a 25 degree plus shift if the 740 was located within a several inches on any side. It was much less when held over the top of the compass, but we need to locate it on top and slightly forward of center of the compass to allow viewing of the compass.

We hope we can correct it with adjustment. Once I have the batteries back in, I'll test the effect of power. Thanks.