Ok… we must admit that we thought about this purchase for a long time before we did it. Lewmar does not give away this wheel (or anything else for that matter). The reason we are including it here is because we now feel it was worth every penny.
Our boat came with a HUGE wheel that blocked access to the cockpit not to mention most of the navpod. This folding wheel solved those problems elegantly. We love it.
You also can see in this image our solution for stabilizing the wheel at anchor. Using the wheel brake at anchor takes a mechanical toll on the brake mechanism and the entire binnacle to rudder linkage. Wheel movement is even more acute as we always raise the rudder at anchor (the only way to protect the rudder piston from aquatic growth). Using bungee cords to dampen wheel movement seems to provide a easy solution.
