An experienced installer with an assistant probably could have done this in a couple of hours and two trips into the stern of the boat. It took me at least ten trips and a long day. But it’s done. The drive unit for the autopilot is ready for trial. I’m happy with the install.
The big challenge was the access. Manfred warned me it was a bit tight. Here’s the trip. This is looking aft at the port quarter berth with the cushion pulled out
Then headfirst into the tunnel on my back
Slide past the motor, water ballast system. Things are getting tight.
A pause when the berth ends
And then a wiggle down and under to lie on the inside of the hull. No room to turn over.
Hard to get good pics in that space :-). But you can see the drive hanging here. There’s a rudder sensor as well. I used lines to act as rudder stops.
There is no better way to get to know a new boat than to crawl around like this, and I’ll be better able to troubleshoot or jury rig if there’s a failure. But a helper would have really made a difference today.
Boating Adventures 
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