Topic: GPS Puck on dash?

[EZM]

Any issues with mounting the GPS puck right behind the 2 head units on the dash of a walk-thru full windshield type boat?

Boat is a Lund Tyee.

[short grub]

the only issue you will have is that what ever the distance is from your puck to your tranducer thats how far off you can be from your waypoint that you mark, ........ you are marking a spot thats sayin you are over it when you are sitting at the helm - spot is directly under the puck....... when really it is under the transducer so whatever the distance is from puck to transducer you will be off that distance from what you were looking at on the screen of your locator


put the GPS puck as close to the transducer.............. on my boat the GPS puck is directly over the transducer on the rear of the boat and the same is true on the front of my boat

hope I explained it so you understand

[freezerfiller]

Yep, you could actually be off by 2X the distance SG mentioned, if you approach the spot from the oppposite direction.

[short grub]

thanks FF I had forgot all about that lol ... but this is correct 2x the distance ...... you could be off

I will look for a video I saw of this to help explain it better, or if anyone else knows of the vid I'm talking about please post it here

thanks

[EZM]

From the dash to the transducer it would be 10ft or so = 20ft off the mark seems like a alot.

More or less, I was concerned about getting it knocked around.

I might snake the cord down to the rear corner of the boat where the transom and gunwale meet - there just isn't any easy way to pull the cord (boarding ladder, rear compartments etc...) and mount it where it might not get knocked around. That was more of my concern.

I aslo assume it needs to be perfectly horizontial if possible? If it could be a little on an angle I could fit the puck in the top of the sloped splash well which would be ideal.

I guess I could make up a bracket (or hinge) maybe and mount it that way as well so it's not in the way of the ladder, the down riggers, where the net, fishing boxes are etc...

Thanks guys...

[Bob B]

I don't think it is all that important that it be perfectly level......much more important to be as close to the transducer as possible and have a clear view of the sky.

[Humminbird_Greg]

It really depends on how un-level you are talking here.  A few degrees may not make much difference but start getting up to the double digits and you may start affecting the accuracy of your position.  The external GPS Receivers should be receiving satellite signals from about a five degree angle from its own horizontal plane.  So tilting it could start affecting its ability to receive a signal from a GPS satellite low on the horizon which could affect your calculated position.

Another consideration is that mounting the GPS Receiver below and behind a unit(s) or next to a motor or anything else that can block the radio signal from a GPS satellite could also affect the accuracy of your calculated position.

All this is nice to know but you won’t know until you actually try the GPS Receiver where you want to install it.  So do so in a temporary fashion by just setting it there or by using some temporary means to install it in that location (double-sided tape works good for this).  You can always check the estimated position error on the units GPS Diagnostic View and compare the readings at different locations.  I would recommend doing this with the boat pointed in different directions in case there is blockage to one side you would want to turn that side towards any low orbiting GPS satellites to see how badly the affect could be.

Poor image to use for this but I could not find another one at the moment.  This was taken with a GPS Receiver in the window of my office.  You can tell that the window faces East.  Satellites on the outer ring are lowest on the horizon, so in this image satellites 5, 24, 18, and 32 are all low on the horizon and could not be seen of the GPS Receiver were tilted another direction (or the boat faced a different direction).  I can’t seem to move my window so I cannot demonstrate this right now…

[short grub]

go to this web page a scroll 2/3 way down and you will see an overhead pic of a bass boat trimmed in red this will show what I'm talkin about

http://www.bbcboards.net/humminbird-sonar-gps/172969-gps-mapping-information-resource.html hope this helps

[EZM]

Greg .......... feel empowered ............ you CAN move the window ..........your boss might not like it ...........but you can move the window !!!

Thanks for the info - I will do just that - set it up with 2 sided tape (bracket and transducer), test it out, them screw it down when I have confirmed that it works properly (and accurately).

I might use the pro-track bracket as well. Slide it all the way to the very back corner of the boat. It will end up only 18" to 20" or so from the transducer and in a good place not to get knocked around too much. This will make sure it's far enough away, and a little higher up from the outboard.

I will have to fabricate (or purchase) a 90 degree bracket to affix it to pro-track bracket or set up a ram mount of some sort and screw it to the pro-track bracket - but this should be pretty easy.

[freezerfiller]

I think you will be happier with the results that way.  The antenna seems to be pretty tough, and I debated the same issues as you.  I guess I'll find out how tough it actually is this summer.

[FrankAdamson]

The question I have is...Why did EVERY boat in the Classic have their GPS Puck mounted on the back Starboard corner of their boat? (That I Saw)
Only thing I can think of is.. Flat surface and Away from the outboard. No Line of site issue and no electrical interference.  Anyone have an idea?
Thanks
Frank

[ITGEEK]

I noticed the mounting of the gps puck on the classic boats too.
I think there are a couple of reasons for this:
.Like you said, flat surface and clear line of site to the sky
.Out of the way of stepping on.  Those Bass guys do a lot of
 running around on their boats.
.On the back of the boat because they usually cast from the
 front deck.  The human body can actually block GPS signals.
 When those guys are going fast, they are sitting down and
 won't block the signal.
.Close to the console unit, so they don't have to buy extention gps cables
 Some of those boats are 21 feet long.
.Since they haul @ss everywhere, safer to have the puck bolted directly to
 the deck rather than to have it on a pole that could vibrate loose or break.

[EZM]

Does anyone know where to find a 1" 14 thread antenna stem??

I have found a thousand bases on the net - NO threaded stems !!!!! ugggggg....

[Humminbird_Greg]

Look for a VHF antennae stem or “mast”.

[short grub]

would this work for your application ?

http://www.overtons.com/modperl/product/details.cgi?pdesc=Shakespeare-Medium-Duty-1-Antenna-Extension-Mast-w/Nylon-Ferrule&i=91388&str=Antenna+Mount+&merchID=4005

[EZM]

Yes it does and thank you. Same brand.

I found one locally here in Canada - shipping stuff out of the US is brutally pricey.

[TroyBoy30]

always mount as close as possible to the transducer for more accurate waypoints