Lackey Sailing | tim lackey

Continuing my interior documentation process, I measured, diagrammed, and photographed in detail various interior components so as to have a baseline for back reference and use during new construction as needed. Even though I didn’t expect the new installations to replicate the existing, having this information available would come in handy throughout the process. I noted all the measurement details in some drawings, but these documents are not fit for eyes beyond my own.

I began with the settees and storage lockers above:

Next, I measured and photo-documented the galley, engine area, and nav station, a section of the boat slated for the most significant changes. I also took this opportunity to remove the existing refrigerator, which was slated for replacement in the new plan and straightforward enough to remove with only four screws holding it in place.

During this process I discovered that the inside of the nav station was easily removed, so I took that apart not only for better early access, but because it would all end up being removed soon anyway. I also removed some adjacent panels from the engine room.

I measured the existing waste tank beneath the forward berth (unlikely to change, but possibly helpful in determining a size for a new water tank on the opposite side), and also made some rough measurements on the starboard side for the same purpose. I noted all these measurements for later use.

Finally, I noted some details of the propane cabin heater, which I’d likely remove temporarily for the construction to come. For now, I left it in place, other than removing the propane hose, which would be in the way of settee removal later.

I spent the day picking away at removing whatever I could and preparing for the more significant work ahead. In the main cabin, I removed stereo and speakers, light fixtures, documentation plaque, and magazine rack, along with numerous small eye straps and related hardware attached to the various bulkheads.

I removed the water tank–a flexible bladder under the starboard settee–and took it outside to drain the few gallons of water still inside. I left the plumbing for now pending final decisions on the galley and elsewhere.

For better access and to allow the modifications required, I removed the v-berth platform, which was secured only with some trim pieces at the aft end, pinching two large panels in place and preventing removal. Once I removed the trim and a couple support clamps for some of the wiring and plumbing beneath the platform, I could remove both sections of the berth, exposing the support structure, hull, and systems installations beneath.

Using a level, I transferred the general position of the through-hull propane locker vent on the starboard side to the inside of the cockpit locker opening, where I could get a measurement that I could easily transfer to the port side for planning purposes. The vent was 13.5″ down from the edge of the locker, so I transferred that mark across the cockpit to the port side and made a note for later reference. While the vent could technically be located closer to the waterline, for practical purposes it’s about as low as one would want, so this would drive the potential new locker design and tank availability. There was ample space in the quarterberth below the port cockpit molding (no locker opening in this side).

Given the ideal depth constraints, a horizontal propane tank seemed to be the choice that would fit. The specifications for a 20# horizontal tank showed it to be 13″ tall, which would fit in a potential locker on the port side given the drain position constraints. To show the overall dimensions of the tank (21″ length and 12″width), I made a mark with tape on the top of the port side; the inside edge of the tape represents the overall opening size required for the tank to fit in from straight above. So in theory, a locker designed with propane in mind would work in the space. I briefly looked at the possibility of using an aluminum hatch to create the opening and streamline construction, but the dimensions didn’t work, either too small for the tank to fit through, or too large to fit the available space. There were other possibilities and as the owner and I finalized the ideas the plan would come together in the near future.

I took the opportunity to remove the existing galley stove, which was not secured to the countertop at all and therefore easy to remove once I’d unscrewed the flexible propane hose. I documented the wiring for the propane solenoid switch and alarm behind the galley panel while access was good.

The existing wiring and various panels had recently been redone by the owner, and the plan was to keep as much of this intact as possible, whatever the course of the interior project ended up being. To this end, I removed some cover panels from the forward end of the cockpit and nearby, and opened up the electrical locker outboard of the navigation station. I had from the owner a wiring list and schematic, and for now documented as much of the wiring as possible for future use should any minor reconfiguration be necessary.

For now, though, I decided to remove the batteries from their current locations under the port and starboard settees, as they’d have to come out at some point. The batteries were installed in two parallel banks. I labeled all the relevant wires as I disconnected the batteries.

The owner hoped to reposition the batteries in a new locker just aft of the main bulkhead and mast step. There were a couple interior panels that hid the mast when it was installed, so in theory the new cabinet could extend out as far as the mast step. For now, while the batteries were here, I arranged them roughly in a few different possible configurations to get a sense of the space they would require.

After spending some undocumented time going over project plans and the general approach ahead, I got started by checking the boat for level in both directions. The owner had made a longitudinal level mark when he had the boat at anchor, using a laser level to make some marks on one of the settees in the main cabin. I used this to check the fore and aft position of the boat now, and found that the boat as blocked was level in this direction.

The owner had mentioned that the settees and the forward berth (especially the forward berth) were not properly positioned, with the head (aft) end of the v-berth lower than the forward end. I confirmed this with the level and checked the settees as well. The forward berth was several inches too low at the aft end.

Next, I used a long beam across the cockpit coamings to check the athwartship position of the boat–slightly off level–and adjusted the stands till the position was correct.

I documented the “as is” condition of the interior before going further.

The owner and I had a meeting scheduled at the boat coming up in a few days, during which we’d work out the final project scope and details, but for now I focused on dismantling what I could, and doing some advance planning and thinking on some of the items on the list. One of these was the galley stove and propane system, and to start I first located the existing propane locker, which was a prefab plastic box installed in the the starboard cockpit locker. As installed, this satisfied applicable requirements, but the owner wanted to consider building a dedicated locker on the port side (above the existing quarterberth), to hold a larger tank and perhaps be more convenient. For now, I documented the existing installation and would investigate the possibilities on the port side more going forward. The main constraint on the new locker construction would be the depth of the locker required, and keeping it high enough so the locker vent (which exits the bottom of a propane locker) would end up in a practicable location above the waterline, i.e. essentially no lower than the existing vent on the starboard side. More on this to come as things develop.

Meanwhile, I removed what I safely could in the main cabin, including a sliding portion of the port berth, hinged backrests on each side, canvas lee cloths, and the various prefab locker doors above the settees and in the galley, which were secured from the surface with screws and removable as is in complete units.

I continued the work to empty out the boat, beginning now with the interior cushions from all areas, which I stored beneath the port side of the boat for now.

Meanwhile, I emptied out the galley lockers and drawers, storing the items temporarily in bins, and worked my way through the rest of the boat, including the navigation station, quarter berth (which was chock full of gear), hanging locker, and head areas. I loaded everything into bins, where applicable, or stored things loosely in the large pile beneath the starboard side of the boat, or on some additional shelves behind the boat.

Storing the large amount of gear from the boat in the shop itself would work this time around since all the projects were inside the cabin, but even so, dust would be a problem, so for protection I wrapped both storage piles with plastic.

With all storage areas emptied out, I documented the existing condition of the interior and lockers before diving into the project.

The first order of business with any new project is to document the “as-arrived” condition, so, as one is wont to do, I did this first. This project would focus entirely on the interior, but nevertheless I documented the hull and deck areas for posterity.

By previous agreement, the owner had left most of the gear on board, and one of my first tasks would be to empty out the boat. To prepare for the numerous trips in and out and up and down, I covered the cockpit seats, bridgedeck, and sole, as well as the side of the hull in way of the ladder, with protective plastic that would stay on for the duration.

As much for my own purposes as any other, I documented the interior as-arrived with all the gear still in place.

To make room to work, I removed the spinnaker pole and boom, securing them across the bow pulpit out of the way.

From there, I began to work my way through the interior to clean things out, beginning with the larger items like sails, lines, fenders, pieces of the keel-stepped mast surround that had been removed, and whatever else was in the main and forward cabins.

Continuing, I transferred the contents of the starboard upper cabinets in the saloon, then the port side, to a pair of plastic bins for storage during the project, bringing me to the end of the time I had available at the moment.

To install the latches and complete the hatch, I had to make a minor modification. The latches came with a stainless steel insert that was designed to work sort of like the retainers that hold gauges in thin metal panels–more of a clamp from the inside, with minimal designed overlap of the top flange. With the size hole I’d created, and the thickness of the hatch, I didn’t like how these were supposed to work: first because I’d have to fill and redrill the holes to a larger size to fit the insert; and second because if I did that, there’d be barely any flange overlapping the opening on the top (weather) side. Frankly, I couldn’t see how it would work anyway.

The fix was to use a short stainless steel bar, 1/8″ thick and 3″ long, to span the opening from the bottom side, and secure the top, operating part of the latch with screws through the little strap. This held the latch tightly in place and gave it at least a chance of an overlap to seal against the weather; even so, there was very little flange resting on the top of the hatch–but enough. I adjusted the height of the draw bars to approximate that of the cleats in the boat (using a scrap), but these might need adjustment later to accommodate the real world.

I’d get the hatch down to the boat and owner soon (relatively local), but now the project was truly complete from here.

To complete the new hatch, the last work required was to lay out and install the compression latches–one on each short side. These would catch on the underside of the cleats I’d installed in the cockpit earlier and hold the hatch tightly, we hoped, as well as allow some handles to help maneuver the hatch in and out.

Using the latch as a guide, I determined the mounting location on each side, far enough inboard so that the lever on the bottom of the latch would catch the cleat where the hatch rested upon it and centered fore and aft along each edge. After marking the locations, I drilled 2-1/2″ holes to accept the latching mechanism.

To prepare the holes, I reamed out some of the exposed core from each opening, leaving a void that I filled with a thickened epoxy mixture once I’d masked the top of the hatch for protection.

Late in the day, I masked off around the edges of the hatch and applied a coat of gray Bilgekote to the underside of the hatch.

The day after applying the gloss paint, I removed the masking tape and settled in to wait another day for the paint to cure sufficiently.

After an additional days’ wait, and with the paint now sufficiently cured, I continued by masking over the fresh white paint, following the line, and preparing the field with a light sanding to remove the fine overspray from the centermost section. After cleanup, I prepared a batch of nonskid paint to match that which I’d used on the rest of the boat, and, over the course of the day, applied two coats: one first thing in the morning (first two photos), and the second later in the day (second pair of photos).

The second coat had cured enough after a little while that I pulled the masking tape. Now, all that remained to complete the hatch was to install the latches (on hand) and paint the underside.

After lightly sanding the finish primer on the new hatch, I masked off the field/center area so I could spray the gloss white on the borders. Here, I chose a 3/4″ border width, since there was ample border width on the adjacent surfaces in the boat and there seemed no need nor desire for a wider strip on the hatch.