New to Parkers.........with questions.

[Oyibo]

Greetings all Parker fans. I'm currently the owner of a 1999 Pro-line 223 walk-around cuddy. I'm looking seriously into a 2003 2520 SC with a 2011 Yamaha 300 4-stroke. Getting to the point where a cabin would be much appreciated during night fishing trips as well as the snotty weather.

I'd be interested in hearing any thoughts as well as any information anyone may have regarding the price of installing a 2nd station. I see on some posts that people don't appear to be too fond of the bulkhead mount.

Does Parker still make / sell the stand alone station that I've seen by the stbd gunwhale on some boats?

Also, has anyone heard of 2520's in 2003 suffering "wet decks / core"?

 

[johnkn]

Welcome, I'm sure others will chime in on cost to have a 2nd station added. I'll tell you that it's absolutely one of the best features about the 2520 XL Open Back I purchased in July. Good Luck

 

[shawnee83]

I think you will find the the bulk head mount style is used and liked more on the 2120's mostly due to the shorter deck and lower cabin roof line. On the 2320's the same reason applies on the roof line as they are the same, but the 2320 has a longer deck so the mid deck free standing style is more of an option on the 2320. Where the free standing style makes more sense is on the 2520's and up as the cabin roof line when standing on the deck is higher and sight lines from mid deck are better. Also, the decks are bigger and you just have more room. The only exception to this is maybe the 2530's with the extended cabins. Due to the larger cabins and thus shorter decks, you may see more of those with the bulk head mount style? All of this is JMO and I don't have a second station. I will also be interested to see what the guys with the second stations have to say.

 

[Brent]

Also, has anyone heard of 2520's in 2003 suffering "wet decks / core"?

I dont know but pull each cockpit deck plate and check if it s leaking

 

[Megabyte]

I'd be interested in hearing any thoughts as well as any information anyone may have regarding the price of installing a 2nd station. I see on some posts that people don't appear to be too fond of the bulkhead mount.

Does Parker still make / sell the stand alone station that I've seen by the stbd gunwhale on some boats?

My boat did not have the rear station when I bought it from the previous owner, so I added mine around 2005.
Dale found mine online on another site that was a take-off from a 25 Sea Hawk.
That boat lived in the Chesapeake and the new owner took it to Florida to use as a dive boat.
He removed the rear station to make room for dive tanks.
You will notice in my photo that the steering and engine controls are reversed from the way Parker rigs them.
I actually prefer it this way, so if you are adding a rear station to your boat, this is an option for you.

Another option for you is the positioning the rear station.
In my case, I moved the entire assembly a little further aft than how Parker does it at the factory.
I did this to allow me to sit on the washboard and drive the boat while trolling, positioning myself between the rod holders.

When I bought this station used, I think I paid $500 for it and it came with the wheel, SeaStar steering, a set of cheap knock-off Morse controls, and cables.
The only thing I kept was the fiberglass part and the SeaStar steering. Everything else was tossed.

I took the boat to my dealer for her winter storage with all of the parts and instructions to mount the station in the area I had outlined in blue painters tape.
I had bought 2 sets of genuine Morse controls but I left the cables to the dealer to determine what lengths were needed, though I did specify they use Teleflex X-treme cables.

I don't recall the final price of the install, but I believe it was in the $3k range for parts I bought, parts the dealer supplied, and labor.

Now... you asked if Parker makes and sells the stand-alone rear station, and the answer is yes.
The entire assembly can be sourced and installed through your dealer.

Hope this helps.

 

[Megabyte]

2 more views of that rear station.

 

[Oyibo]

Way late on this but Thanks to all for feed back. I did end up going with a cabin bulkhead mount which gave me more room when I have a big fishbox in the center of the cockpit. 2011 F300 with electronic controls made things more pricey but am real happy with the turnout.