My boat did not have a VHF radio, since it was previously used on an inland lake.   I will be using the boat on the ocean, and decided to install a VHF radio, in order to monitor weather broadcasts and for any emergency situations.

I have noticed that other F-330's typically have have the VHF radio installed in the lower white trim strip of the instrument panel (right below the ignition switches). I purchased a Uniden VHF radio that looked like it would fit into the available space.  So, I did some measuring and it turned out that there was 'just' enough unobstructed room behind the panel on the left side to install the radio. After a couple passes of measuring I made the cut-out. and also mounted the microphone clip.

I installed the radio into the opening and hooked up a battery as a temporary power source, just to test the unit out.  Then I made the permanent wiring installation, utilizing the ‘Electronics’ circuit breaker.  Once the radio power was wired in, I did some additional “lights on” testing.  Looked OK.

The next thing to do was the antenna - the wiring and the hardware mount -  which was a bit more interesting as the antenna mount bracket was a tough reach in terms of installing the thru-bolts and locking nuts.

It took most of a day to get the antenna mount fastened, and I ended up loosing a wrench that fell into the ‘abyss’ of the boat’s inner hull structure.  Perhaps I will find it someday  . . .

Anyway, once the antenna was connected I could further test the reception and transmit capabilities of the radio.

Upon testing the radio, I realized that I had not gotten the “PL-259” connector properly assembled.  However, I had soldered the center lead as well as the ground shield, so it seemed to work fine.

I was able to receive my local weather broadcast, plus 2 distant (50 miles away) weather stations.  I’ll have to do some additional testing while out on the water this summer.  If things do not work well enough, perhaps I can upgrade to an 8 foot antenna, as the one I purchased with the radio is only 5 feet long.

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