rack to raise electronics above cabin roof

gary allen

This is the second try to post a message--excuse me if this is a repeat.

I recently ordered a 22 cruiser which is currently being built. It's my first boat, so I'm taking a great leap into the unknown! I have been a passionate ocean kayaker for years, however, and I am interested in having the cabin roof clean to haul kayaks or an inflatable. In browsing the pohoto ablums, I have seen some boats rigged with what appears to be a stainless or aluminum rack to carry the antennas for radar, GPS, and VHF. Does anyone know where to have one fabricated? Any idea of cost? I am in northern California.

Thanks for the help. This site contains a wealth of information.

Gary

TyBoo · Posted: Tue Jul 27, 2004 9:40 pm Post subject:

Hi Gary, and welcome to the Pub. You got the message posting down, just fine.

I'll let the two guys who call themselves the "Arch Bros" tell you about Boulton Stainless fabricators. Tim and Jim both have the extra tall arches on their CD 22's, and a couple of kayaks could slip under them easily.

I think the outfit that made their arches is in Canada, and is used to dealing with C-Dory. You might be able to get the CD factory to order and install the arch for you. That would be cool.

Congrats on your new boat! A bunch of folks will agree that your choice is the ideal first boat. A lot of us took a while to get to the C-Dory, and now will likely never change.

gary allen · Posted: Tue Jul 27, 2004 10:33 pm Post subject:

Thanks, Mike, for your response. I asked the dealer we ordered the boat from if C-Dory might handle the rack, and he claimed it was strictly a custom deal. I spoke to someone at Maritime Electronics (a subsidiary of West Marine) in our area, and he said they normally use a manufacturer on the east coast--cost is about $1,500. And that is uninstalled.

And thanks for your words of support about the boat. I'm getting pretty excited.

Gary

Da Nag · Posted: Tue Jul 27, 2004 11:26 pm Post subject:

Howdy, Gary - and welcome!

Where in NorCal are you located? I've got a few options for you.

If you want it done in the Bay Area, you can't beat Svendsens in Alameda for a quality job. They make top notch stuff, but they are pricey. I'm taking a wild guess they would be around $1000-1400. I got all of my stainless done there on my first C-Dory, a 19 Angler. Here's a link to pics (click the small photos for full size pics). They did the top rail that holds the rod holders, as well as the rear motor well rail.

However, things are far cheaper up in Washington - I'd suggest getting it done up there if possible. I believe the factory has somebody local they work with, and Steph at Brooks Marine in Anacortes (here's a link) did the arch for my 22, as well as Fred's (Anita Marie.) Mine is lower profile, Fred's is a little taller; if you are planning on mounting your kayak under the arch, Fred's would work better. If you are thinking of mounting it on top, I'd go with a shorter one like mine.

Here's a link to my photo album, here's one for Freds. In my album, there are also a few pics of yet another manufacturer's arch from the Seattle Boat Show on the first page - I believe the outfit was called Tanner, but the factory would know for sure.

Which dealer are you getting your boat through?

TyBoo · Posted: Tue Jul 27, 2004 11:32 pm Post subject:

It seems to me that those tall arches on the Laurna Jo and Lynn Marie cost under $500. Excellent quality and pretty welds, too. Tim and Jim should see this soon enough and give you more info, including the contact number for the fabricator. (If not, the contact info is already on here somewhere and I will find it for you.)

Don't be bashful about calling the factory to check on the progress of your boat and to discuss any concerns or special wants. They are usually very accomodating. Although you are buying the boat from a dealer, the factory knows they are building it for you. I wouldn't hesitate for a minute asking if it's possible for them to order the radar arch and, at the very least, ship it with the boat.

OK - I'm off to search for the Boulton Stainless info...........

gary allen · Posted: Tue Jul 27, 2004 11:51 pm Post subject:

Wow! Thanks, Bill and Mike, for the excellent information. From the sales guy I'm working with, I had heard of Svendsen's and I'll check with them. I think the set up on Fred's boat is more what I am looking for. I live in Santa Rosa and ordered the boat through Guenter's Outboards near Forestville.

Thanks for reminding me not to be shy about calling the C-Dory Factory. So far, I've only been dealing with the folks at the dealership.

If you guys have opinions about elecronics, I'd love to hear your ideas in response to what I posted on the electronics forum.

Thanks again,

Gary

Da Nag · Posted: Wed Jul 28, 2004 12:00 am Post subject:

Got my first boat from Guenter's - say howdy to Steve and Guenter for me...

So - are you going with Yamaha then? Single or twins?

You haven't mentioned what trailer you're going with - I know Guenter's sells Pacific, which I've been real pleased with. Not sure how much you've thought about it, but a Pacific tandem with disk brakes and a two-speed winch is a pretty dandy setup for the CD22...

gary allen · Posted: Wed Jul 28, 2004 12:10 am Post subject:

I will definitely say hi to Steve and Guenter for you. You know, being a novice boater, I have to admit I haven't asked a lot of specific questions about the trailer, trusting Guenter's judgement. Is that a mistake? It is a Pacific trailer, but a single axle, I believe, and I also think it has just the standard winch set up. I am going with twin Honda 50's. Some other options I got was the Wallas stove, anchor deck pipe, bottom paint (since I plan to get a slip at Bodega), and the side mount ladder for my spearfishing friends and for access to the kayaks. I also ordered the new convertible forward facing port seat.

Gary

Da Nag · Posted: Wed Jul 28, 2004 12:42 am Post subject:

Here's my two c's on your setup...

If you ever think you may want a windlass, scrap the anchor deck pipe. It will just be a useless hole in your deck if you get a windlass later.

RE the single axle trailer - if you are going to keep the boat in the water most of the time, with just occasional short towing, that's fine. However, if you think you might take road trips or tow a little more extensively, I'd strongly suggest a tandem - yeah, they're about another $900, but they tow so much nicer, and are safer in the event of a blowout. And, as a fellow Californian, let me toss this into the mix - if you ever make it up to some of these Washington gigs, you'll be hooked, and will be on the road more than you think. I'm heading up there 5-6 times a year now, and am really glad I got the tandem.

RE the 2-speed winch - that's mostly nice to have when loading at a shallow ramp. The low speed makes cranking the boat up the bunks a piece of cake rather than a chore. If you don't see this happening often, a single speed will do fine. However, I'd strongly suggest you look into disk brakes, regardless of whether you end up with a single or tandem trailer; the maintenance savings alone makes it a smart decision.

Other suggestion - you didn't mention the icebox. Make sure and delete it, and get the door/shelf option. Read through the archives here - you'll find very few folks who would get that option again, and many have removed it. Just use an ice chest - the added storage under the captiain's chair comes in very handy.

Great choice on the Wallas and Barber Chair - read this post, and don't call it a forward facing seat again unless you like warm Budweiser... Laughing

Also - I got manual wipers on my 19 - should have got electrics, and did on my 22. It's not a big deal to manually wipe the window on the startboard side, but reaching across to port is a pain.

Keep those questions coming - you want to make many of these decisions before the boat gets too far into production at the factory...

SENSEI · Posted: Wed Jul 28, 2004 1:08 am Post subject:

Bolten Stainless is located in Vernon BC.about a four hour drive from the Sumas Border in WA State. Up and over the Canadian Cascade Mt. Range to the East side.
They are the mfg. for the stainless bow rails and the rails on the 25 ft.
the Telephone # is 250/545-6226 and ask for Bruce. I just installed a radar arch on the SENSEI today that I purchased from Bolten. If I remember right, it seems that I payed about 180.00 $ US for it. I will post some pictures soon. I need to finish the wiring tomorrow and then clean up my mess I made on the roof. The thing I liked about this arch is the mounting bolts all are outside the cabin in the 2 inches of drip overhang on the sides.the cables will pass through the front of the cabin above the window and under the Brow of the roof. no holes through the roof inside the cabin to leak.

gary allen · Posted: Wed Jul 28, 2004 11:07 am Post subject:

Bill and Roger,

Thanks again to both of you for all the experienced advice. Bill, I hear what you're saying about the trailer; unfortunately, I just don't think I can scrape up the money at this point to upgrade in that area. Already well over original budget as I add more elements...I do plan to travel up to Washington, however, so I may need to deal with that later.

Fortunately, I did decide to delete the icebox after reading criticisms of it on this site. Perhaps I will want a windlass at some point, but I think I'll stick with the deck pipe for now. And thanks for the warning about the "Barber chair." It's important to give credit where it's due. And one thing I can't abide is warm Budweiser!

Roger, I will give those folks who manufacture the racks a call. thanks so much for the tip.

Gary

Lynn Marie · Posted: Wed Jul 28, 2004 3:56 pm Post subject:

Hi Gary,
I'm one of the so called "arch brothers". We have the Lynn Marie and I'm sure there are a number of pics on our album. Can't tell you about the price since it was on the boat when we bought it but it sounds like Roger has better details at this point anyway. He's right about the mounting also being outboard of the cabin side. The other great thing about the arch is that it makes a great hand hold for getting in and out or on and off. You'll like it I'm sure.

I'd listen to Bill about the trailer since we just replaced ours with a tandem axle only a year and a half after the fellow we bought the boat from upgraded to a heavier single axle. Still wasn't enough for our liking.

Tim

jflug · Posted: Wed Jul 28, 2004 4:13 pm Post subject:

Gary - I'm out in Bodega Bay, and there's a local out there, Tommy Burke, that does alot of this type of work for commercial fishermen.

I wound up fabricating my own radar arch/kayak mount for my '81 Angler out of 1" OD stainless tubing. It's basically an A-frame, pretty easy to fabricate, and it has two cross-bars that support a kayak or surfboards poked through the mount. I used it as an excuse to go out and buy my own MIG welder back when I built it. The welds aren't the prettiest, but they are sturdy. It seemed far preferable to spending over $1000 on a specialty shop. You're welcome to come by and see it if you're interested. I'm at 875-3326.

Jim F.

jimandlaurie · Posted: Thu Jul 29, 2004 6:34 pm Post subject:

This the other Arch Brother.... I like mine, especially the price for it... but I really like the ones that Les put on Da Nag And Anita Marie too.
As for the Factory ,just let me know what you find out and I can run up and get ya some "progress" pics. I will be up that way next week.

SENSEI · Posted: Thu Jul 29, 2004 8:51 pm Post subject:

Here are a few pics of the newly mounted radar arch on the Sensei