August 2003 -
With the new electrical panel for instruments in place, I can finally install the new Nexus NX2 Server and displays.

The transducers were installed during my 2003 haulout, and the travails associated with that are shown there.

The server itself has inputs for wind, compass, speed and depth instruments, as well as NMEA in and out connections. It also has connections for the displays, and an RS232 port for
NMEA in/out connection to a laptop computer.

I'm putting it in the new Nav Station. The actual location will eventually be covered by a blank compartment for mounting 'stuff', so I epoxied two marine plywood strips to the hull and sealed them well with
West System epoxy.
This will hold the electronics away from the hull, allowing air flow and avoiding condensation.

That looks nice and clean.
Of course, no wires are attached!

The speedo transducer is under the galley sink, so the wire needs to cross the boat under the sole.
For protection, it's covered with a spiral chafe wrap, that fits very loosely. The slots in the spiral should let it dry off easier if it gets wet. It's
tie-wrapped to the
fiberglass liner.

I've never seen this view before, but did all the work by feel and took the pic by just shoving the camera down there and snapping away.

Here it is all wired up.
A shelf will fit on the teak strip that's below it, and have a flat face that extends up to the deck for mounting displays and stuff, so eventually this will all be hidden from view.

The instructions said to leave a couple of feet of wire next to the server so that it could be removed without stressing the wires.
I tried that, but it looked horrible. Besides, the mounting screws are directly behind the power and depth connections, and I don't want to be bending them to fit a screwdriver past. So this is permanent! You can easily
sit at the Nav station and
connect new stuff.

The Multi-Display, that also is the
controller unit for configuring the system
and the remote displays, is mounted on
a mahogany block that's directly above
the Nav Station table.

The block is thicker at the bottom, since
the aft bulkhead is at a bit of an angle.

This is pretty much the way things look when
sitting at the Nav Station. It's easier to read
than the picture shows, though.

Like the VHF, I wanted it to be visible when standing by the companionway or in the galley.

Believe it or not, you *can*
read it from the galley (right.)

My thought is to have the inside display showing Depth in Big Numbers, and speed or whatever
on the smaller second line. I like the thought of knowing the depth when at anchor,
without having to climb out to the cockpit.

The cockpit display is next... it's the *huge* multi-display, that will be mounted above the companionway. The steel bar to hold the instrument pod is almost ready,
but I still haven't figured out how to run the wires.
It's gotta happen soon though, since the cockpit displays are the most important part!