Dan, I'm going to do that to the starboard sette for sure, matter of fact this weekend! I've seen that done on other small sailboats and it works great. My problem is my girlfriend (there's a joke in there somewhere). She's 6' tall (I'm a lucky man...) and that only leaves me the starboard quarterberth in which to sleep. Would love to have the extra room and use the quarterberth for storage at night. Here's an email I sent an engineer friend about this. He also owns a small 28' sailboat: Hey, I've thrown down a couple pics of my forward bulkhead. I've not heard back from Catalina yet but went to the boat last night to look @ it again. My thinking is this wall probably isn't a sheer wall because: Instead of using bolts and nuts with lock washers and large washers, they simply used long screws that only went thru the 1/8"-1/4" fiberglass. The wall didn't connect directly with the side of the hull or deck. Its first connection was several inches away via these screws. The wall itself wasn't tight against the v berth pan or the stringer overhead. There was a little bit of a gap but not much but I don't think you'd leave a gap if you're wanting to negate lateral forces. The holes in the plywood and the fiberglass weren't enlarged (rounded out) which would indicate lateral sheer loads routing out the wood and fiberglass as the structure moves. I didn't see that anywhere. The forward lower shroud is mid-way between the aft and forward bulkheads: the aft lower shroud is aft of the main bulkhead and only uses a backing plate for tension. Same with the forward lower shroud so I don't think the forward bulkhead keeps the forward shroud from causing torsional forces on the deck since the aft lower shroud isn't between two bulkheads. It's aft of the main bulkhead that has the compression post and chain plates, kind of out there on its own.
I'm going to try and post some pics in the groups 'Photo' section. Thanks for all your answers so far... Wade --- In [email protected], Dan Hardiman <hardiman...@...> wrote: > > Some of you may remember Bob Deuer who used to be on this list and the previous SailNet list. He installed a sheet of plywood under the cushion of the starboard settee, it was attached with a piano hinge. He could remove the cushion and unfold it into the center of the cabin. An extra cushion was stored in the aft starboard berth and quick attach 2x4s were used for legs. It was pretty ingenious and gave him a full size bed in about a minute. > > Being 6'2", I have similar problems sleeping in the Vberth. > > ~Dan Hardiman > > --- On Fri, 7/23/10, Edgar Casas ecas...@... wrote: > > From: Edgar Casas ecas...@... > Subject: Re: [IC27A] Re: New to the group and have question about Cat 27 forward bulkhead > To: "[email protected]" [email protected] > Cc: "[email protected]" [email protected] > Date: Friday, July 23, 2010, 10:40 AM > > > > > > > >  > > > > > > > > > > I use two 2"x10"x6' boards to bridge across the starboard/port berths to make a decent full size bed. At first I thought I'd have to engineer support for the boards but a friend said I would not need any for the short distance it spanned. It turns out it was fine. With some cushions the makeshift two person berth was stable and comfortable and easy to stow away. > Edgar > On Jul 23, 2010, at 10:29 AM, Wade Rogers <waderrogers@ gmail.com> wrote: > > > > > > > > > > > > > > Pete, > Thanks for the email. > I thought about extending the v berth into the companion way but like you said, that doesn't give me much width, just length. > You can actually cut into the aft bulkhead but not too much or the chainplates become involved. I have a call into Gerry Douglas at Catalina to find out how vital the forward bulkheads are. We played phone tag yesterday because he's on the East coast and I'm on the West coast. > > I'll keep you guys posted regarding what I find out and will send pictures of the final results! > Wade > > On Fri, Jul 23, 2010 at 6:15 AM, PeterE pete...@yahoo. com> wrote: > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > >  > > > > > > > > > > I'm 6', and still 'feel your pain'. I can't imagine how you get by. The 6' high cabin often leaves me wanting a couple extra inches.  I'm still searching for a hat with padding... > > Why not just extend the V berth into the companionway? I guess it doesn't give extra width, but seems a good, easy choice for extra length. Especially considering a removable/stowable design. > > I'd be very concerned about cutting into the bulkhead that is AFT of the head, but maybe the forward bulkead is less of an issue. Isn't most of the load carried by aft? How much is carried by the forward? > > I'd be interested to hear what you come-up with. > Also, if you can figure-out how to raise the ceiling a couple inches, or lower the floor, I'd be intersted in that two! ;) > Pete > 'Still Fiesty' > '6171 TR > > --- In ic...@yahoogroups. com, John Presler <hi_speedirt@ ...> wrote: > > > > > There has been some discussion lately re bulkhead removal and/or modification . > > My personal opinion is not to modify them period.àThe bulkhead that the mast is > > on is an intergal part of the hulls strucural strength,àrigging attachments and > > > chainplates clearly evidence this FACT. The forward bulkhead while not as > > critical to the rig definately adds structural strength to the hull.àààIf you > > have the dinette interior the aft seatback can be modified to "Quick Release" as > > > mine has been done with some threaded machine screws nylock nuts and a couple of > > camlocksàadd a cushion ofàhi density foam and itàmakesàinto a suitable queen > > size (almost) bedà. With a traditional interior you can do the same thing to the > > > berth opposite the galleyà, there is a little more carpentry involved to get it > > all to the same height.... but it can still be installed with hardware similar > > to the dinette attachments and stowed or dockboxed when it is not in use.àHappy > > > Sailing!!àJohn Presler àHull # 93 Keewadinoquay > > > > > > > > ____________ _________ _________ __ > > From: alaskasailorman waderrogers@ ... > > To: ic...@yahoogroups. com > > > Sent: Thu, July 22, 2010 12:41:11 AM > > Subject: [IC27A] New to the group and have question about Cat 27 forward > > bulkhead > > > > à> > Hey everyone, > > I'm new to the group but not new to sailing. I've done some offshore, coastal > > > and inter coastal sailing in my day. I am, however, new to a Catalina 27 > > standard rig. > > > > I've had her out a few times and love the way she handles. Kind of tender but > > responsive.. . > > > I'm a tall guy, 6'4", and am trying to increase sleeping space. Was thinking > > about removing the forward bulkhead wooden wall that's next to the vee berth on > > the starboard side. I understand it might have a structural function such as > > > stiffening the boat when under sail. I want to build an extension on the > > starboard side of the vee berth that runs into the head area that will allow me > > to put a cushion on it and thereby make the vee berth much longer. Hope I'm > > > being clear here. It would be a wooden 'shelf' that could be removed and stowed > > or put into place over the top of the head and then with a cushion on top of it, > > make the vee berth that much longer and wider. > > > Have any of you done this and if so, can you share pictures or just some sage > > advise? > > Thanks so much > > Alaska Sailorman... > > >
