3D-Printed Mounts for Garmin, Raymarine and B&G Chartplotters

A chartplotter is one of the most-used instruments on any boat, yet the mount it ships with rarely fits your helm perfectly. The stock bracket points the screen at the sky, blocks a switch, or simply won't reach the spot where you actually want to look. A 3D-printed mount solves this without drilling new holes or paying for a proprietary accessory that may already be discontinued. If you run a Garmin, Raymarine or B&G unit, here is how to design and print a mount that fits your display and your helm.

Why print a chartplotter mount instead of buying one

Marine electronics brands love proprietary mounting hardware, and replacement brackets are often expensive or out of stock a few seasons after a model is retired. A printed mount lets you set the exact tilt angle, move the unit a few centimetres to clear a wheel or throttle, and match a bracket to a display whose original mount was lost or cracked years ago. It also lets you make a flush dash bezel, a sun visor, or a protective cover that no manufacturer sells for your specific screen size.

Because these parts are printed on demand and sized to fit, they belong to the same family as the rest of the navigation and electronics mounts in our catalog — accessories designed around real device dimensions rather than a one-size-fits-most compromise.

Measure the display before anything else

Good fitment starts with good measurements. Before you touch a printer, record the following with digital calipers wherever possible:

• Bezel width and height — the outer dimensions of the display housing, not the screen glass.
• Depth — how far the unit protrudes, including the rear cable connectors.
• Mounting interface — is it a bracket-mount (screws into a yoke on the sides) or a flush/rear VESA-style pattern?
• Screw spacing and thread size — measure center-to-center between holes and the bolt diameter. Metric M4 and M5 are common, but confirm rather than assume.
• Cable clearance — leave room behind the unit so the connectors are not stressed.

The same discipline that makes a printed plumbing part seal is what makes a mount fit. If you want a refresher on getting numbers right, our guide on how to measure for a perfect 3D-printed fitting applies directly to bracket work too.

Brand-specific notes

Garmin

Many Garmin GPSMAP and ECHOMAP units use a quick-release bail (yoke) mount with a knurled knob on each side. If you are replacing the bail, match the pivot boss diameter and the knob thread. For flush-mounted units, Garmin publishes cutout templates — measure your unit anyway, since tolerances on a printed bezel need to be your own, not the paper template's.

Raymarine

Raymarine Axiom and Element displays commonly offer both trunnion (bracket) and flush mounting. The trunnion arms clamp the sides of the unit; a printed replacement arm should be printed with the load axis running along the print layers' strongest direction (see materials below). Element units are narrower and lighter, which makes them good candidates for a fully printed bracket.

B&G

B&G Zeus and Vulcan plotters share much of their hardware with the wider Navico family, so bracket geometry is often similar to Simrad units. Sailors frequently want a mount that angles the screen toward the cockpit sole or a specific seating position — printing lets you dial in that tilt precisely rather than living with fixed detents.

Choosing a material for a helm mount

A chartplotter mount lives in sunlight, salt spray and vibration, so material choice matters more than it does for an interior part. In short:

For anything mounted in the open at the helm, ASA is usually the right call because it resists UV far better than PLA or PETG. If your bracket carries real load, add carbon-fiber-filled nylon for stiffness. Our deeper comparison of the best materials for 3D printing boat parts breaks down the trade-offs in detail.

Design and print tips

• Orient for strength. Print brackets so the main load runs across layers, not along the weak layer-adhesion (Z) direction. A bracket that snaps at a layer line has almost always been printed the wrong way up.
• Add a wall, not just infill. For structural mounts, increase perimeters/walls to 4–6 rather than relying on high infill. Walls carry bending loads better.
• Use heat-set inserts. For screw threads that will be opened and closed repeatedly (a tilt knob, a removable arm), brass heat-set inserts outlast printed threads.
• Leave tolerance. Start with 0.2 mm of clearance on slip-fit surfaces and adjust. A bezel that is too tight will crack the housing corners.
• Round the corners. Fillets at stress points dramatically reduce cracking from vibration underway.

A quick safety note

A 3D-printed mount is a convenience part, not certified marine hardware. Do not rely on a printed bracket alone to secure an expensive display in rough water — add a tether or backup fastener for anything you would hate to lose overboard, and re-check screws after the first few outings, since vibration can loosen fasteners in a fresh print. Verify that your chosen material and design suit the load and the sun exposure before you trust them at sea, especially for anything that could interfere with helm controls.

Where to start

If you would rather begin from a parametric file than model from scratch, browse the navigation electronics collection for device mounts you can size to your unit, and check the free files collection for brackets and organizers to test your printer and material before committing to a helm-critical part. Measure twice, print once, and you will end up with a mount that fits your boat better than anything off the shelf.

Questions about a specific display or fitment? Email info@marinelab3d.com — we are happy to help you get the dimensions right.