Swing/articulating arms for holding equipment?

Mount instruments in the cabin and run a waterproof phone outside with USB camera attached?

You're going to want those instruments to pivot both down and way over to the side so it leaves the entire hatch clear, I'll bet.

Articulately. (Sorry, hadda doit.)

Google "pivot arm", "ball mount", and "ram mount" for some excellent ideas built by current companies. I've seen arms built with CRS bar stock bolted together with large ball bearings welded to connection hardware. Not pretty but usable. You'd probably be best off using a rubber style ball mount like Ram makes since you'll be around water. But they're damned pricy.

Have you considered one of the many computer-monitor articulating mounts? If they''ll take the moist environment, they have just about the kind of flexibility you need. Typically they terminate in a 100MM square mount plate.

How about hanging the panel in both places with hooks and eyes until you find something better?

Will you be reading these instruments while inside the cabin, or just from the deck? Also, what all instruments are you referring to? Compass, vhf/cb, wind dir/speed, am/fm, and what else?

Why not an ornate script W? ;)

Then the ball mount might be ideal. Wire each boat identically and use quick disconnects for the instruments, which would be swapped into each boat as it's used.

Build a removable base for the instruments and mount them on a single or double ball mount (depending on weight) for quick adjustment, or on

---- ---- ---- | | | | | | instruments ----------------------------------- | | base ----------------------------------- || ---=== (wiring) || dowel mounts/QD standoffs |||| |||| ==== ==== QD base holddowns

Put another pair of holddowns inside the cabin if needed. Run wiring out to the base, covered in split or spiral harness wrap.

The reason I suggest doing it this way rather than a nice, convenient arm is that arms break far too often. If you take the boat into the ocean or any large lake, your bouncing is going to want to break those arms every time. Ditto during travel. Passengers will want to use them to help themselves stand up, or will hold onto them during a swell or storm, too. (Psst! Murphy told this to me.)

If you go with an arm, consider fixed sockets to grab the loose end at the termination point. Arm construction would be multi-fingered pivots like these, with rubber washers in between fingers to adjust tension/movement. Go with large star knobs at the pivot points for ease in use.

Four 2" bars of that 3/4" aluminum should hold your 10ish # of gear.

Sounds like a good idea until you are running from a rough sea and arms are flying every which way.

How about RAM mounts and longish cables.

If CHEAP is needed why mount the instruments. It is a swing keel or centerboard boat isn't it? So running aground isn't a major catastrophe and you are on a lake so the GPS isn't really needed every second, which leaves the compass and if it is a sail boat then even the compass isn't vital as you can only go where the wind takes you, so to speak.

Certainly, "Cause I wanna" is a valid reason but the salt water boats, I've been in, of the same size usually have only a compass showing in the cockpit.