So many items, huh?

Almost as many as an Osprey(V-22)

Very busy. You would need a WSO on board to help the skipper.

It is very busy, but once you got used to know where to look, it may not be too bad. Fire all that stuff up and you'd probably lose all your night vision though.

Still, looks like a one man setup. No dedicated positions for engineer or navigator.

Kelly

I'll bet half that stuff never gets used. He just couldn't stand having empty space in the dash. Also, I wouldn't put cupholders 2 inches from the radar screen. I don't want the coffee anywhere near the electronics.

AnchorYanker - Dumb question no doubt. But on a crewed vessel does the chief engineer typically stay on the bridge? Or spend most of his time wherever the current fire is burning? Or in the engine room? Or?

lost Kelly

I kinda like all that junk on the helm. Makes it look important.

Oh and Anchor Yanker - I think those are actually beer holders (no place for the cup handle).

I thought one could get all the stuff to match better.

In my view ANY "woody" panel finish is a very bad choice for a helm with modern screens. Some metallic finish would look more appropriate. Sadly, many go to the other extreme, with silvery plastic.

Kelly

I have found folks re-do these helm panels to fit their colors, size needs, and finish preferences.

What would be a good color for you?

Of course the vast majority of flybridge helms are simply white fiberglass. Which is not the best either. For a flybridge helm I would pick Cerulean or Steel blue -

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alice-Blue_(color)

For an inside helm, a much lighter color.

Kelly

I would like some contrast to the sea water outside.

For the inside helm, I would agree with you ...

Do you like tan or cream for the helm station?

No tan for me. Cream works in some cases ...

How about light to medium grey?

Grey or tan works for me. Ugly to look at, but easier on the eyes in the sun. Some serious dough on that helm, I think I would have laid it out a little nicer. That said, the arch shape does not work well with rectangular displays and gauges so it may be impossible to make it look good no matter what.

The only grey I am Ok with is quite dark, very near being black. Otherwise no thanks to grey.

Kelly

I do not grey, but very light grey would be OK but not my first choice, and I agree that a real dark grey-black is classy.

Of course it's really easy to mutate a very light grey into an off-color. Which can be very attractive for trim purposes. Or just add a dash of metalflake, and you have a nice silver!

palette Kelly

Metallic Silver, great! ...now if I can only spell it!

Vee vill git U ina bass bot yet ...

How about one of those Glastron/Carlsons that came in metalflake?

Very, VERY cool! I've also seen '80s Bajas with metalflake. Do I need to go into Bubba rehab?

Kelly

I think that we wandered off topic, but it was fun!

A good color discussion, huh?

Since color choice is to some degree a reflection of personality, always a very subjective topic ...

How about wood and black?

Not bad. So long as the instrument panel itself is not wood, you can get away with this.

Kelly