Joy Stick and Sky Hook

I am looking to purchase a 2016-2018 Sea Ray SDX 290 with dual 250 Mercury Verados. Can I install a joy stick and Sky Hook after market? I would be installing it to make boating (and docking) less stressful so I don't want it if it can't be installed in a reliable manner.

Thanks

Hey john,
Not sure if after market is possible but if it is I bet it’s a fortune.

I will tell you that with twins you should have no problems docking. Practice a few times and you’ll be happy you saved your money.

Just keep her super slow around the dock. Good captains don’t force it. They’ll pull back out and try again. Forcing it will cause damage

Just looking at the components involved, the entire control package would have to be changed so the cost would be prohibitive. Then the labor cost to install new binnacle, shift/throttle mechanism, actuators at the engine, download software and debug the system @ $125/hour would likely be a chest grabber. I think I'd look for a boat that is equipped with the features you want rather than trying to upgrade a 2-4 year old boat.

Thanks, I'm going to go without the joy stick and save the money.

similar functionality can be achieved with a bow thruster. At the boat show there were couple of companies whom specialize in installations. Not sure about cost, but much less than Joystick and Skyhook. with Dual engines, its much easier to maneuver the boat.

A thruster installation is going to be much simpler than trying to retrofit a joystick. Most "standard" outboard installs are set so the engines use a common hydraulically powered tie bar for steering. An "advanced" install with a joystick and skyhook needs separate vectoring for each engine. That means individual hydraulic steering for each motor, in additional to all the other "stuff" needed.

By contrast, a thruster is a separate system that doesn't have to be linked to anything else. Retrofitting that is comparatively easy. Side Power now offers variable power thrusters; these are very interesting to me because you can set them in a "hold" mode against a dock. Useful when you are short-crewed and want to tie up or need to hold on the dock. Probably not a replacement for the GPS-based position-holding Skyhook function though.

Thanks all! I'll send a pic when I acquire her.