Over the weekend I purchased a DIY Fully Loaded Pro Wake Tower for my '92 Bayliner 195 Classic. It was a good deal and based on all the reviews it should be a great tower for the $$$. It's not as cool looking as what I'd like (OldJeep's Liquid Audio on his 2005 195 Classic) but it has all the goodies for the price of a stripped LA tower. It turns out that Raul is local so I was able to go pick it up directly from him.
After lot's of reading I have a good idea of how to properly install the tower so that it's secure and safe, but would like to run my idea by those who have been there. I might as well add that I will be following the manufactures install specs to a tee, with the exception of adding some more backing material.
Since it's a Bayliner and the fiberglass hull is pretty thin I plan on installing either wood or plastic cutting board backing under the supplied aluminum brackets with an appropriate epoxy. I'll use Liquid Nails at the minimum, but I'd like to find the 3M epoxy that I've heard other members mention here. The exterior surface that I'll be mounting to is fairly flat. The one thing that concerns me is that the area I'll be mounting is about as narrow as the brackets themselves. I plan on making my backing around the same width as the brackets, but several inches longer to help distribute the weight.
Another concern is where the rear bracket will mount. On the inside of the boat the carpet goes all the way up past where I plan on putting my backing. Should I cut the carpet out of the way where I plane on placing the backing with epoxy, or is it OK to slap the epoxy/backing/alum brackets right over the carpet. The big downside is that the rear mounts are visible from the inside because that's where the paddle/flag storage is located. You will be able to see my work so I don't want it to be too ugly.
My big question is how to get the cables for the lights and speakers out of the tubing and into the boat. I'm a low voltage technician by trade (fire/burg alarm and sound) but after looking at all the mounting hardware I'm not so sure how to route my cables into the hull. As an electronics tech I don't like the idea of strapping the cable all the way down the side of the tubes, nor do I want to drill any more holes than necessary. I'd appreciate any ideas, and pictures of how you did it are even more valuable.
Here's some pics of the bracket on the outside of the boat.
Rear mount location, looks good to me.
Front mount location, a little tight, but the lesser of all the evils. I figure the rubber gasket should help with the slight gap, and a little bit of overhang on the bottom is probably better than mounting too high and not having enough contact between the gelcoat and the rubber gasket/mount.
Thanks for the help. My goal is to do this right on the first try and I appreciate any help from those who have been there before.
BLD
After lot's of reading I have a good idea of how to properly install the tower so that it's secure and safe, but would like to run my idea by those who have been there. I might as well add that I will be following the manufactures install specs to a tee, with the exception of adding some more backing material.
Since it's a Bayliner and the fiberglass hull is pretty thin I plan on installing either wood or plastic cutting board backing under the supplied aluminum brackets with an appropriate epoxy. I'll use Liquid Nails at the minimum, but I'd like to find the 3M epoxy that I've heard other members mention here. The exterior surface that I'll be mounting to is fairly flat. The one thing that concerns me is that the area I'll be mounting is about as narrow as the brackets themselves. I plan on making my backing around the same width as the brackets, but several inches longer to help distribute the weight.
Another concern is where the rear bracket will mount. On the inside of the boat the carpet goes all the way up past where I plan on putting my backing. Should I cut the carpet out of the way where I plane on placing the backing with epoxy, or is it OK to slap the epoxy/backing/alum brackets right over the carpet. The big downside is that the rear mounts are visible from the inside because that's where the paddle/flag storage is located. You will be able to see my work so I don't want it to be too ugly.
My big question is how to get the cables for the lights and speakers out of the tubing and into the boat. I'm a low voltage technician by trade (fire/burg alarm and sound) but after looking at all the mounting hardware I'm not so sure how to route my cables into the hull. As an electronics tech I don't like the idea of strapping the cable all the way down the side of the tubes, nor do I want to drill any more holes than necessary. I'd appreciate any ideas, and pictures of how you did it are even more valuable.
Here's some pics of the bracket on the outside of the boat.
Rear mount location, looks good to me.
Front mount location, a little tight, but the lesser of all the evils. I figure the rubber gasket should help with the slight gap, and a little bit of overhang on the bottom is probably better than mounting too high and not having enough contact between the gelcoat and the rubber gasket/mount.
Thanks for the help. My goal is to do this right on the first try and I appreciate any help from those who have been there before.
BLD
