Lower station electronics

This weekend we continued the wiring and installation of an AM-FM CD until and a VHF marine radio in the storage area just to the right of the salon's lower steering station. The wiring inside this compartment was, like a lot of the wiring of other electronics added by the PO, pretty messy. We found 12 volt DC cables, tapped from the wiring behind the lower steering station, secured in the this little compartment with two household-style insulated staples. There was also a snarl of bilge sniffer cables and about 20 feet of speaker cable that didn't seem to go anywhere. Almost all of that was removed and we started over again.

The refurbished Jensen stereo we purchased on Ebay for $69.00 is actually a car unit so we needed to simulate a vehicle installation, where the radio's memory is connected to 12 VDC permanently to save preset stations and the time-of-day. To simulate the vehicle's ignition switch, we mounted switches in a small utility box and mounted that inside to compartment so it wouldn't be seen with the sliding doors shut.

We also provided new wiring for the cigarette lighter/map light, which was already there and the marine VHF radio that we inherited with the boat and had now become surplus.

 

We cut a piece of 1/8-inch mahogany plywood (finished with five coats of varnish) to make a faceplate to cover the old holes. The electronics fit as planned and  before we left, we fired up the stereo, temporarily connected to external speakers, and it scanned for stations and seemed to work perfectly.

 

Next, we have to fish the speaker cables under the salon floor to the spots that Frances has determined would be the best location for them.

You may wonder why I'm busy installing a stereo in the salon when I should be doing more important things out on the deck, on the bottom or in the engine area. The answer is that it is cold here and we have a small but effective electric heater that I turn on when on the boat. In an hour or so, that makes the salon warm enough to to work in.  Don't worry.  I'll get to the other stuff soon enough.