WayWeGo Repairs and Improvements

[Captrichc]

I'm thinking if putting a solid top canopy and just doing curtains next year of my fly bridge. But I need to figure out anchor light fix for next season

[WayWeGo]

Captrichc, are you thinking a fiberglass hardtop or one from hardtotop? Either of them can support an anchor light -- the one supplied by Atlantic Towers used a Perko head on their own shaft. I plan to convert it to LED soon.

I tried to wire the new light directly from the flybridge switch, but was not successful. Even though it is not shown on the schematics, I suspect there is a diode somewhere in the circuit. After a couple of frustrating hours trying to figure it out, I ended up wiring the new light to the old wires that were powering the light on the front of the flybridge. Not very elegant, but now the light works correctly.

We ran into some problems integrating the canvas enclosure with the radar arch, and I will ultimately be making some changes. Our canvas is getting thin and will not last forever, so I am thinking about a hardtotop with new curtains that we make ourselves.

[Captrichc]

Captrichc, are you thinking a fiberglass hardtop or one from hardtotop? Either of them can support an anchor light -- the one supplied by Atlantic Towers used a Perko head on their own shaft. I plan to convert it to LED soon.

I tried to wire the new light directly from the flybridge switch, but was not successful. Even though it is not shown on the schematics, I suspect there is a diode somewhere in the circuit. After a couple of frustrating hours trying to figure it out, I ended up wiring the new light to the old wires that were powering the light on the front of the flybridge. Not very elegant, but now the light works correctly.

We ran into some problems integrating the canvas enclosure with the radar arch, and I will ultimately be making some changes. Our canvas is getting thin and will not last forever, so I am thinking about a hardtotop with new curtains that we make ourselves.

Awesome. Ill be following you on that. The current anchor light does not work and is also not at the highest point currently on the boat. I though about using a portable one for now untill i do the hard top since i have a canvas top right now.

Also you say you make your own canvas enclosures? Please shatr your process.

[WayWeGo]

Captrichc, I probably won't do anything with the light until I need to, as what I have now works fine. I would have preferred a more elegant installation and could have make my light work with a diode, but I didn't have one with me and needed to get it working before a cruise where we likely would need the lights. My best suggestion is to use a voltmeter or test light to figure out what is going wrong with yours. First check for correct operation of the switch and then at the light. It would probably be easier to dismount the light rather than hanging over the front of the flybridge to test the voltages there.

For temporarily mounting your light on the bimini, I think you can get lights that clamp onto the poles -- many pontoon boats mount their lights that way.

As for the canvas work, Sailrite.com is a fantastic resource for materials and instructions. Their information is way more detailed than anything I can provide and we regularly refer to it.

My wife has a number of sewing machines, some of which are usable for light canvas work. The next time we have a large canvas project, I am going to talk her into buying a machine that has a walking foot. The walking foot makes it much easier to sew areas with many layers. For an example of how lucky I am to have a talented seamstress for a wife, check out the curtains she made for the salon earlier in this thread.

[Captrichc]

Is she looking for some side work..... i need a few canvases fixed.... lol

[WayWeGo]

Probably not a good idea for me -- I have a few sewing tasks on the to-do list that I have been negotiating with her to get done.

[prowlersfish]

Probably not a good idea for me -- I have a few sewing tasks on the to-do list that I have been negotiating with her to get done.

Could be cheap to pay someone

[WayWeGo]

Before I started this thread, I had replaced the old cassette deck in the salon with a CD/Bluetooth receiver. The speakers in the salon were single cone West Marine speakers that really didn't sound good at all. Since we use the stereo all the time, it made sense to upgrade the speakers to take full advantage of the stereo.

On previous boats, we have been very happy with Polk DB651 speakers and I found out that they were being phased out. After looking at the replacements, I decided that I liked the old ones better and bought a pair to install. They sound quite a bit better!

Out with the old:

20190507_162716.jpg (22.2 KiB) Viewed 21035 times

In with the new:

20190507_162816.jpg (27.74 KiB) Viewed 21035 times

[Captrichc]

Very nice . I havent started on that project. Its on the list but i have more pressing things to do first lol

[WayWeGo]

The details are in this thread: viewtopic.php?f=1&t=11477&p=106320#p106320

As a teaser, we went from controls with five inches of slop in neutral:
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Controls - Neutral.jpg (118.43 KiB) Viewed 20037 times

To controls with minimal play and friction:
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Controls - Finished.jpg (76.24 KiB) Viewed 20037 times

[WayWeGo]

I have begun a journey to display my engine gauges on a chartplotter. There are some issues with using AC Delco gauges, and I will cover the process and final configuration in this thread: RS11 Installation

The final goal is to display the gauges on an easy to access screen on the chartplotter, and even more important, be able to set alarms that will be displayed when an out of range condition occurs. I will have Engine Coolant Temperature, Engine Oil Pressure, RPMs, Exhaust Temperature at the Y Pipe and Port Engine Voltage monitored.
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Simrad Instruments.jpg (90.95 KiB) Viewed 19741 times

[WayWeGo]

Our F-36 was featured in Soundings Magazine's Used Boat Column: Trojan F-36

[oil&water]

I like the way the Simrad gauges turned out. I think after our conversation about the NMEA interface, I am going to head the same direction before boating season.

[JG1970]

I have begun a journey to display my engine gauges on a chartplotter. There are some issues with using AC Delco gauges, and I will cover the process and final configuration in this thread: RS11 Installation

The final goal is to display the gauges on an easy to access screen on the chartplotter, and even more important, be able to set alarms that will be displayed when an out of range condition occurs. I will have Engine Coolant Temperature, Engine Oil Pressure, RPMs, Exhaust Temperature at the Y Pipe and Port Engine Voltage monitored.
.
Simrad Instruments.jpg

How do you even go about doing this??

[Moderator]

I have begun a journey to display my engine gauges on a chartplotter. There are some issues with using AC Delco gauges, and I will cover the process and final configuration in this thread: RS11 Installation

The final goal is to display the gauges on an easy to access screen on the chartplotter, and even more important, be able to set alarms that will be displayed when an out of range condition occurs. I will have Engine Coolant Temperature, Engine Oil Pressure, RPMs, Exhaust Temperature at the Y Pipe and Port Engine Voltage monitored.
.
Simrad Instruments.jpg

How do you even go about doing this??

viewtopic.php?f=1&t=11509