Mounting a bow light on the rail

[KPL]

Hey all,

I need to install a bow light on my CP16.  The current one doesn't work, and it's on the deck, so the anchor roller blocks the starboard side.  Not very safe.

So... I bought a aquasignal series 25 bicolor light and rail bracket.  I can mount it easily enough, but want to run the wiring as cleanly as possible.  Does anyone know if I can drill a small hole in the rail and feed the wire throught the tube?  I realize I'll have to take the rail off so I can drill into the hull at the rail mount.  Has anyone done this?  Is there a better way?   Can someone describe how the factory lights are run?

Thanks,
Kevin

[ilbuildit]

   Kevin,
       I didn't install it, but my bow light is run through the tube on the bow rail. It runs the "long" way down the tube and through the curve (If that makes any sense to you) and ends up entering the cabin area just before the chain locker wood. Real clean way to do it. Highly recommend. You should have no problem running the wires through the tube   

   Factory way of doing it. I couldn't tell you but wiring this is not hard to do at all.

   Hope this helps in any way.

                                            Lee...

[Craig Weis]

That looks and sounds like a very good idea. A little elevation makes for enhanced 'be seen', 'be safe'.
Reminds me of lifting the spade to depress the barrel, never mind.

On my boat since I tac the asymmetrical spinnaker on the bow pulpit this would not work for me.

Hey wait a minute, the day after I posted this I dug my boat out of the barn and saw that the bow pulpit has a leading edge that is rolled, that is where I tac my spinnaker, but right behind that 'roll' is a straight bar and a mounting plate hanging down with my bow light affixed to it. So my light is off the deck too. Way cool.

My boat when purchased, had no stern pulpit so I used the same holes that the stern lamp was using and put my stern pulpit over them. Then pulled wire [easy] through the tube and the deck. The stern rail had a plate to Mount the original stern lamp that was once on the deck. Is that too cool? And I put my bell next to the lamp.

Have fun plan to drag my boat out of the barn tomarrow. Yea! Come on summer!!  [well it rained the day I pulled my boat out] skip.

[KPL]

Well....  it went pretty well.  I drilled a hole from inside the boat up into the bow rail (at the furtherst aft mount).  I then drilled a 3/8" hole under the rail at the bow.  I fed 16 guage wire up from inside as far as it would go (which was all the way around and down to the hull at the other side.  I then slowly pulled it back until I could see the end through the 3/8" hole.  I used a pair of hemastats (little clamps I use for getting out hooks from fish) to pull the wire out.  Then it was a matter of hooking up and mounting the light.  The result is a very clean install!

Now I just need to wire up my power panel.

Kevin