Mounting the Monitor
Back in the day when boats had more traditional transoms, mounting a self-steering windvane was usually just a matter of bolting on the unit. But as boat designs have evolved and transoms have been cut out to accommodate swim platforms and boarding ladders, finding a suitable way to mount a self-steering windvane required some less-than-favorable compromises, such as losing access to the swim ladder or being forced to mount the self-steering systems off center. So the folks at Scanmar, who've been building self-steering systems for over 30 years, designed and modified their Swing-Gate mounting system so that any self-steering system can be mounted easily and effectively on boats with sugar-scoop transoms as well as on all those boats that have reverse transoms and central boarding ladders. The result is a sturdy system that's up to the loads that windvanes encounter, has a frame that can be opened to allow swim-ladder access, and can be completely removed in minutes.
$2,300, (510) 215-2010, www.selfsteer.com
