Boat Projects
in the years we've owned Jabberwocky,
I've completed a number of upgrades and enhancements to the already
well-designed Freedom yacht.
Solar Panel
A
Unisolar flexible 11-watt panel fits nicely on the sea hood.
It is screwed into barrel nuts epoxied into the cored panel.
The lead is fed along the hatch cover and drops into the overhead
by the port winch pad.
V-berth Shelves
These should hold books and
(eye)glasses and clothing to grab in nightime fire drills. And
they're out of the way of the anchor locker access and sitting
and reading in the berths. Plus they're not under the infamous
Beckson ports.
They may need an additional triangular support in the middle.
New Holding Tank
and Manual Pumpout
The
tank is a Ronco B160, 14 gallon, with 2 1" vents and an
inspection port. The fittings are wll spin-welded.
The pump is a Whale (Henderson) Mk V, mounted
on a plywood frame attached under the port berth. .
The Whale diverter valve and inspection port
are accessable through a opening in the berth unit.
Ronco
Plastics Web Site Overhead Handrails
and Other Grab Rails
Jabberwocky didn't come with the tiny, two-loop
rails that were a factory option. So I installed longer ones,
port and starboard, which can get you all the way to the head
at any angle of heel. They are screwed into plywood strips which
are in turn expoxied and screwed into the cabin top.
The grab handles by the companionway are also very useful (why
weren't they standard) and are thru-bolted from the cockpit.
I had one left over so put it in the electrical panel to hold
onto when using the radio when bouncing around. It required attaching
the inner web to the hull so that you wouldn't pull the whole
thing out. I also moved the AC outlet above the breaker panel
and added an ammeter above the rotary switch. It lets me know
when stuff is running and how much power it is consuming.
This
makes use of the huge space over the shelf and serves to stow
more stuff. The top has bunk-size rails to keep stuff like sunglasses
from speading themselves about the cabin. The front has sliding
black plexiglas panels, much like those over the
stove.
This assorted pieces (a couple of boat-units worth) and the assembled "stuffing box." Yes, four hose clamps were added before launch. No, there's not a lot of room in which to work!
Chasing
mildew is a popular Freedom activity, given the expanse of teak
below. I've added vents to all of the hatches - even a powered
one on the saloon hatch - but airflow was still hard to promote.
This RainShield from Beckson fits the quarterberth port in place
of the screen. (Not to worry; it has its own screen.) Now the
port can be left open all of the time, but still be closed if
there is an expectation of green water in the cockpit.
There
is a never-ending need for places to stick stuff in the cockpit
so that it can be found again. I added this SSI coaming box to
the starboard, well, coaming. I modified the right corner to
leave room for the bilge pump hose. (And they now ship fiddles
of "Starboard"; this teak one is left over from our
Ranger 23.) 
This
toe-rail mounted cleat by C. Sherman Johnson is a great invention.
Useful for setting a spring line when rafting or docking or just
holding a dinghy amidships for loading provisions.
There
is just enough room to the left of the rope clutches on the starboard
pad to fit this socket to hold the winch handle out of the way
and easy to find. Small Jib Things
Well,
it IS a small jib!
Two things here. One is the Perimeter polyester chafe guard on the aft rail of the pulpit. The forestay usually bends all the way to it, rubbing and breaking strands, plus chafing the sail cloth. I wrapped on this 1" velcro "removable" guard and all are happy.
Here's
a close-up of the tack of the jib, where the bottom hank rests
on a ball on the forestay above the bottom swage fitting. This
keeps the whole jib from sliding down onto the anchor and all
when you drop it (the jib, not the anchor). They sell these balls
as small line stoppers and you just have to have your rigger
put one on the stay before the fittings are attached.
Ice Box Spring
Whoa!
Now I know we're onto the big stuff, but it's a great nuisance
holding the cover up (or hoping it won't close on your head).
Just pull the spring off-center and drop the lid.
Inside you can see the sliding shelf I made (perhaps there had been one originally?) and the starboard lip I added to the ledge to keep stuff like cheese in place.
OK,
this one doesn't count as a project. For years I'd just stuffed
things (including bottles) into this space under the starboard
setee and it held a lot. But with a little patience this summer,
I discovered that it holds bottles very neatly and in great quantity!
And, at least in northern climes, at a fine temperature for wine.