- Joined
- Mar 29, 2023
- Messages
- 25
- Reaction score
- 1
- Points
- 3
- Age
- 48
- Model
- Bimini
Hello all,
I own a 1999 306 Bimini and I am looking into a full top replacement that would include a cobia tower, and I would be very glad to hear from anyone who has been down this road on a 306.
A bit of context, because it drives the whole problem: the boat lives in Conakry, Guinea, in West Africa. I fish offshore for blue marlin and sailfish. What I am after is height - a standing position above the top so I can watch the trolling lines and spot fish well behind the boat. I do not need a full second helm. Steering alone at the top would be plenty; engine controls up there are not a requirement, and I would be happy to handle throttle from the lower helm or add a wireless autopilot remote.
What I would like to know:
1. Has anyone here put a tower, or a new top with an integrated cobia tower, on a 306 Bimini or a Canyon 306? Photos would be worth a lot to me.
2. Does the factory hardtop work as the floor of the upper station on this hull, the way marlin towers usually do, or does the top have to be replaced or reinforced first?
3. Which shop did the work, and what did it run? I have written to Atlantic Towers and to Bright Light Welding to ask, but first-hand experience beats a brochure.
4. The hard part: the boat cannot come to a US yard. Has anyone had a top or a tower built from measurements and photographs, shipped as a kit, and assembled and welded locally? If there is a measuring procedure or a template that makes this reliable, I will follow it to the letter.
5. Anything I should know before committing - deck attachment points on this hull, added windage, effect on stability or on the ride?
Many thanks for any pointers.
Xavier
I own a 1999 306 Bimini and I am looking into a full top replacement that would include a cobia tower, and I would be very glad to hear from anyone who has been down this road on a 306.
A bit of context, because it drives the whole problem: the boat lives in Conakry, Guinea, in West Africa. I fish offshore for blue marlin and sailfish. What I am after is height - a standing position above the top so I can watch the trolling lines and spot fish well behind the boat. I do not need a full second helm. Steering alone at the top would be plenty; engine controls up there are not a requirement, and I would be happy to handle throttle from the lower helm or add a wireless autopilot remote.
What I would like to know:
1. Has anyone here put a tower, or a new top with an integrated cobia tower, on a 306 Bimini or a Canyon 306? Photos would be worth a lot to me.
2. Does the factory hardtop work as the floor of the upper station on this hull, the way marlin towers usually do, or does the top have to be replaced or reinforced first?
3. Which shop did the work, and what did it run? I have written to Atlantic Towers and to Bright Light Welding to ask, but first-hand experience beats a brochure.
4. The hard part: the boat cannot come to a US yard. Has anyone had a top or a tower built from measurements and photographs, shipped as a kit, and assembled and welded locally? If there is a measuring procedure or a template that makes this reliable, I will follow it to the letter.
5. Anything I should know before committing - deck attachment points on this hull, added windage, effect on stability or on the ride?
Many thanks for any pointers.
Xavier