Hi Tony,
just my two penne’th……We thought of the same issues and as we are getting older wanted a thruster in our ‘360. The Factory fit a sleepier one and the boat is “designed” to have this, so we opted for a retrofit. Done by Keto Marine in Southampton and the work was excellent. price as twice the sum of the parts. Labour was tricky unless you know what you are doing and as they do several a year they made a superb job of it. Very neat and better than factory with the door fit IMHO. Electrical work was also done much better than the factory using its own battery supply system so almost completely independent of the boats main systems.
works with so much power that only a light touch is needed on the controls. a smooth finish under the water gives no difference to the sailing, and the weight is not seen as the water tank and chain is much heavier!
OVerall a good job. A Bit more expensive than a jet thruster. They them, but good luck if doing it yourself. It is afterall, a BIG hole to cut in your boat if you’re not 100% confident ?
Mike