[Rhodes22-list] cockpit filler planks for outdoor sleeping

[Lowe, Rob]

Jesse,
Nice job!  Couldn't find the photos, but I've seen where people used cockpit filler boards that would rest in the drains of the cockpit seating.  Be sure add a full set of cushions and send Stan an updated photo for the Rhodes 22 web site. - rob

http://www.generalboats.com/http___www.generalboats.com/Ads_2.html


-----Original Message-----
From: Rhodes22-list <rhodes22-list-bounces at rhodes22.org> On Behalf Of Jesse Shumaker
Sent: Thursday, November 21, 2019 9:01 PM
To: rhodes22-list at rhodes22.org
Subject: [Rhodes22-list] cockpit filler planks for outdoor sleeping

A friend had some left over 3/4" plywood in 2' x 4' sections that he no longer needed so I took this opportunity to put it to use by making some planks that sit on the ledge that surrounds the cockpit just under the lip of the benches.  My friend also had some extra styrofoam board that I used to make a pattern before cutting the wood.  I happen to have some varnish available from another project so I used that too.  This was the rare project that didn't require purchases. 

I saw some past posts on this topic but didn't see any photos so here are some attached photos with a brief project recap in case anyone else is thinking about doing this.

Steps:
- Used styrofoam board to lay across the cockpit and electrical tape to mark where I thought the edge was. 
- Cut the styrofoam, erring to go a bit wide and then trim down
- Test the fit of the styroam piece and trim as needed
- Use the styrofoam to trace onto the plywood
- Use a jig saw to cut the plywood
- Repeated the prior steps for each section of plywood
- Used a circular saw to cut the 2' sections into 1' sections
- Used a 1.25" hole saw bit to cut holes in the sides to make the planks easy to pull up and easy to carry
- Used a sander with rough sandpaper to round off the edges (a router would have been preferable)
- Used a sander with medium grit sandpaper to go over the wood
- Applied Minwax pre-stain conditioner
- Applied 2 coats of Minwax Polyshades 1 step stain and polyurethane (went over first coat with fine steel wool before applying second coat)

These planks can fit aft in the cabin under my tool box, or I may try stowing them under cushions in the cabin.  I might only put them in the boat for times when I'm going to stay the night.

Lesson learned: I should have checked to make sure I had the wood grain facing the same way on the different plywood sheets before making the cuts and drilling the holes.  After applying the varnish, the difference is quite noticeable.

While my wife and I can probably squeeze into the main berth, if I anchor out with a friend then one of us may sleep in the cockpit if the weather is nice.  I'm planning on getting a big mosquito net to go over the bimini or a tarp that I use for a boom tent.  I think I could tuck in the mosquito net under cockpit cushions.  For cockpit sleeping I'll probably just use a therm-a-rest backpacking mattress.  I'll post photos in the summer once I've got the whole setup figured out.  Of course the v-berth is another sleeping
space but that could get quite warm in the summer.   Also, getting to the
portapotty could be a challenge in the middle of the night if more than 1 person is sleeping in the cabin.  

<http://rhodes-22.1065344.n5.nabble.com/file/t907/FittingWithStyrofoam.jpg>
<http://rhodes-22.1065344.n5.nabble.com/file/t907/InitialFit.jpg>
<http://rhodes-22.1065344.n5.nabble.com/file/t907/LookingForward.jpg>
<http://rhodes-22.1065344.n5.nabble.com/file/t907/LookingAft.jpg>
<http://rhodes-22.1065344.n5.nabble.com/file/t907/stowed.jpg> 




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