Swing arm mount for GPS

[rbh1515]

I would like to mount my GPS on a swing arm mounted just inside the companionway. Anyone seen any good ones?  I'm not looking to build one.  Just interested in a nice one available commercially.
Rob

[crazycarl]

check bass pro shops or cabela's

[Allure2sail]

I see them in the marine consignment shops (four of them within a 20 mile radius) all the time. Want me to check for you? I'll take a picture and get a price if you want.
Bruce
S/V Allure

[relamb]

I've bought a variety of mounts for phones and tablet computers in my car, usually no-name brands from ebay and amazon.
I just got a RAM mount for my delorme Inreach
http://smile.amazon.com/DeLorme-Motor-Sports-Mount-inReach/dp/B00G62KVGO/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1419379871&sr=8-3&keywords=ram+mount+delorme+inreach
I thought the RAM mounts were pretty expensive, but
I must say it's head and shoulders above any other type I've had, as far as quality and sturdiness.
They make a bunch of different adapters and holders for various products, different length arms and mounting bases, a lot of which are available on Amazon.
Now that I have seen how well constructed this is, I am probably going to get some more parts to mount various other things.
http://www.rammount.com/
Rick

[rbh1515]

I went to our loca.l WM, and they had nothing as usual.  The only one I have seen online is made by RAM.  Any others?
Rob

[FireDrill]

I would encourage you to try to mount your GPS as you describe.   Mine is done that way and its the best arrangement I have ever had for instruments .

The West Marine On line catalog shows a  Ram 109 V  (west part 319154 with vertical base and pivot plate  )which appears similar to the swing arm  mount that I use for the instruments mount on my SunCat .  Mine came from West Marine about 8-10 years ago - can not recall manufacturer - may be old model of RAM.  It  was used successfully on a previous larger boat (Freedom 21).   The Ram 109 has a 6 inch arm and mine is similar in length, but the RAM platform is 6  x2 while mine was 5 x 2 inches.   Below are pictures of the SunCat set up, the mount details are best in the bottom picture,

 





The teak and oak L shaped  bracket (that holds my GPS/Depth sounder and compass) is bolted to the top of the 5 inch platform.  (A simple depth sounder was mounted directly to the platform on the previous boat via its built in plastic mount set to a table top position, i.e. perhaps similar to how your single GPS unit could be mounted) .  Since I prefer not to put holes in fiberglass I mounted the fixed bracket onto the frame inside the companionway.  That way it can pivot inside for use when I am in the cabin, as shown in the bottom picture,   for example when at anchor sleeping. 

A couple of mounting points... I needed a wedge between the base mount and the companionway inside frame to make the arm swing level for inside use. I also was constrained by the 6 inch arm  to put the instruments about 4 inches into the companionway.  This turned out to be a good thing in that crews legs  sometimes could  block the view of the instruments if mounted further to starboard.  It also makes it easier to reach the inside pivot arm to release/retract the unit inside when going below.  I have also set it up with a horizontal wooden bar beneath my L shaped rig to align the angular position when at rest against the bottom of the companionway frame  to be consistently the same each time it is moved in order to better align the compass.

A warning however:  Tyler Hutchins from ComPac discourages this type of mounting because he says it is too easy- instinctive -  for someone to grab the unit for support during a sudden lurch  of the boat - putting a couple hundred pounds of pressure on it and they have seen them rip out of the boat making quite a mess.  My strategy was to mount it in the well secured wood frame (not the fiberglass)  and have the arm rest on the bottom of the companionway for extra strength and eliminating torque, and not have it protrude very far into the cockpit.  I also tell an  uninitiated crew not to lean on it or grab it.  Also when going below I always move it inside and tighten it against the cabin wall as in picture #3 so as not to accidently hit it in the somewhat snug companion way.  That said, I still would have it no other way... If, on the other hand,  you are into a lot of heavy weather sailing, Tylers warning may be important for your situation. 

You are right, the West marine store here also did not carry the RAM part(s) in stock(before I got my old one back I was going to buy one new)  but told me I could order it and have it delivered and if it did not work out they would take it back with full refund - provided I did not damage it.. There are a lot of dimensions involved to make a good fit so you might give it a tentative try using masking tape, double sided carpet tape or just eyeballing it. etc.       

[carry-on]

Swing mounts are fine when the weather is good, but when you need to button-up with hatch boards in place you will want the GPS and radio in the cockpit. 

[rbh1515]

Don,
That mount is the one I have seen on other boats in the past.  I can't find it anywhere.  Must be an old model.  I have seen the RAM 109V on line, and I guess that is what I will go with.  Thanks for the great pics, advise and description!
Rob

[brackish]

Mine is a RAM mount.  I did build the baseplate for the instrument myself.  It works fine, keeps the GPS out of the weather when the boat is not in use or in the evening on overnight cruises, has enough room that you can get by it to get in our out of the cabin and can be articulated in every direction for best vision.

[relamb]

This photo was taken the day before the RAM Ice Bucket mount got installed on the port side.

[rbh1515]

That's the one I'll prob get.
Rob

[Rahn]

I went through this process to mount my Lawrence GPS on a swing out arm on my Horizon Cat. I bought (and still own) a RAM mount system but decided it would take up too much room in the cabin and also block easy access to the cabin while underway. I ended up buying and using a RAM suction mount with two "suckers" which worked well for me. It allowed me to mount it anywhere in the cockpit that was convenient.

[rbh1515]

The suction cup is a good idea, but I am still planning on the companionway mount.  I may also put a separate mount on the tube holding up the boom gallows.  Anyone know the diameter of that tube?
Rob

[FireDrill]

Some more food for thought:  The earlier post about rough weather sailing is a good one and  can be addressed by having an alternate mount on board.  I have fashioned a drop board mount (actually built before making swing arm mount.  It was based another posting on this site about 2 years ago) that enables access to cabin,  but this version provides for weather proofing the cabin.   It uses the 3 bolt holes seen above compass in my earlier post on the swing arm.  It replaces the lower drop board with2 boards:  a 1/2 by 4 inch oak and Cetol  board with the instruments mounted to it (requires a 1/2 spacer between it and instrument board)  Then a roughly 8 inch x 1/2 board  can be slid above it to complete a bottom hatch board equivalent. I actually created another top hatch board to make an integrated system   The 3 hole mounting uses wing nuts for easy removal of the instrument "panel" and holes in the base then allow mount it to the swing arm unit .



 

From a storage point of view the 2nd and third hatch boards can be used (and stored in-situ) in the cabin for other purposes.


I gave up on this mount as the basic  installation because I found myself sometimes kicking the unit when going to or from the cabin...Not as agile as when younger... With the swing arm mount I deliberately swing the unit inside,  out of harms way,  when going and coming.  However it can still be used when heavy weather suggests its priority. As a heavy weather back up system to the swing arm,  simple painted boards for a bottom hatch board can be made and the regular ComPac upper hatch board will work nicely.   

[Shawn]

I used the same ram mount as Brackish. Another way of dealing with weather is plexiglass/lexan/etc drop boards.

Shawn