Get Hip With a Stick
BOATYARD
Want to add a joystick to your outboard-powered boat? The pros show us how.
By Mike SmithComponent place-
ment takes thought.
Check out the joy-
stick. The rail serves
as a comfy wrist-rest.I
t seems like nobody wants to steer anymore, at least not
with the wheel: All the hip skippers are maneuvering with
joysticks. How can you join them, short of buying a new,
stick-equipped boat? SeaStar Solutions Optimus 360 joystick
control is designed for retrofitting, and can be matched to
many outboards from Yamaha, Mercury, Evinrude, Suzuki and
Honda. With a little practice, the Optimus 360 joystick will have
you pirouetting around the pilings with the best of them.
What does it take to install the Optimus 360? The outboardtechs at Saunders Marine Center in Orange Beach, Alabama,
recently completed a repower of a 2005 Grady-White Bimini 306
with a pair of Mercury’s new 300-hp Verados. The Grady’s owner
also wanted to add an Optimus joystick. Scott Orfanello manages
all of Saunders’ outboard repowers; he was the first technician on
the Gulf Coast to earn Verado certification from Mercury, but de-
spite his 25 years of experience, he needed some help for this job.
Why? SeaStar Solutions sells the Optimus 360 only to au-
S thorized dealers, and Saunders Marine Center is not yet one.
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