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i have a pic of it and would share but no idea how to copy and paste it on to here - any help with that and i will share it
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Your
membership includes a
photo gallery that is in your control and accessible by all members to view. If you go there after logging in you can upload pictures there. I don't have any pictures from the last boat without the canvas over it.
I think you'll want to fabricate or acquire something like a stanchion base that can be through bolted to be the boat for the base of the Bimini. You need the whole frame to be rigid but you don't need to be able to stand on it. You could make a template from PVC pipe using square corners and when fabricating the steel tubing you could bend the radius. This isn't something you just come up with or copy since all the dimensions are by necessity custom. It means you need to consider that you are not building a shark cage either since they tend to look very ugly.
If you have a fabricator build something that can use 1.5 inch tubing then you could come up with a design to integrate a
radar,
wind gen, and
solar panel mounting system. This isn't
cheap done in SS steel. If you could chat with someone in the business you might get a better idea of some of the off the shelf components you can just buy.
I would start by getting some detailed pictures of the
cockpit and make some drawings to work from as well. Measure up all the clearances required for moving about and swinging the boom. Any
current Bimini may help set some basic dimensions as far as width and height. You'll need to get rid of it later. You can't reuse any of it. You might even try using some thick copper wire to make a small table top scale model. That method may seem time consuming but making a few pretend scale examples might lead you to something that looks good and works. You really can't afford to start sawing up steel tubing without a clear plan.
Many if not most Bimini frames can be folded away and / or removed. This is not like that design. If you already have stern railing you may be able to use the folding 316 tube connectors to attach your Bimini frame to. It may also be better to replace stanchions with longer support members. If the lower structures are triangles then a section can be adjusted by starting out longer and cutting it to adjust the height and desired distances. 1 inch tubing can be quite strong. You might also consult a canvas shop for help in the design if you want to add a canvas Bimini underneath.
This is something that you really have to plan out and the small details require a lot of planning.