Michael Guyer is back to give us another walk through of how to install electronics into the Wilderness Systems FlexPod.
I began by installing the transducer mount that was supplied with my Fishfinder/GPS Combo unit on the bottom of the FlexPod.
Next, I put a healthy dab of LEXEL where the screws come through the bottom of the FlexPod to seal them against water incursion. I added a bit extra LEXEL to secure the foam pad that I will use to fill up the recess, giving the inside of the pod a flat bottom.
Here you can see the black foam block that I added. It gives me a flat bottom in the FlexPod as well as protects anything from hitting the screws where they protrude into the pod.
Harmony makes a kit to install your electronics in the FlexPod, but I already had plenty of foam, so I just made my own. Here you can see where I used trial and error to fit a foam block into my FlexPod. This was done to give cushioning to anything that I put in the FlexPod and I cut a recess to hold my Nocqua Adventure Gear Lithium battery securely.
NOTE: I used a Hobie Through-Hull kit to secure the openings for the wires going to the head unit of the fish finder and transducer against water. This kit requires a 1” hole to be drilled for each fitting. The fuse holder that I used is larger than that, so I had to make that connection INSIDE the pod BEFORE I ran the wires out of the pod. Consider things like this before you start installing pieces/parts.
Here is the transducer, mounted to the bottom of the pod.
I had 3 options for attaching the unit to the top of the FlexPod – The mount that came with the unit or using a RAM arm attached to either a YakAttack MightyMount or a YakAttack GearTrac. I chose to go with the RAM arm/GearTrac combo because it gives me the most latitude in adjusting the head unit where it works the best in any given situation. Here, I mount the GearTrac, using the holes in the GearTrac as my drilling template.
A peek inside the FlexPod. The wires can be seen exiting the Pod to the head unit through the top cover and to the transducer behind the red Velcro strap. The Nocqua 12 volt 4.4Ah batter can be seen in the recess in the foam.
The finished product –
