"Doghouse" aft bulkhead 37c

[monocerosin]

Is this bulkhead structural? I will be sealing off the engine compartment left and would prefer to remove this piece if I can. The space will not be used as a berth but as storage so I would rather have it open to access that area. Grey tube is manual bilge pump hose.

 

[dmax]

How it's attached should tell you - if it looks like a panel that could easily be removed, no. If it's securely fastened to the hull and deck, yes.

 

[monocerosin]

It's not tabbed in. I could pull it out by removing two screws. It's just hiding some pipes and wire in my opinion.

 

[ggrizzard]

While I agree with the previous two posters, may I suggest something just in case...
If someone was standing on the cockpit seat above that bulkhead, and you were looking for flex
inside from the same vantage point as your camera shot, and the fiberglass cockpit seat "bottomed" out
onto the bulkhead, maybe I'd leave it in!

Just sayin'.

 

[monocerosin]

If someone was standing on the cockpit seat above that bulkhead, and you were looking for flex
inside from the same vantage point as your camera shot, and the fiberglass cockpit seat "bottomed" out
onto the bulkhead, maybe I'd leave it in!

Just sayin'.

I appreciate that. I'm recoring the entire cockpit (the whole thing flexes, I have removed the helm) so maybe I will wait to take the ply out after.

 

[rardiH36]

I appreciate that. I'm recoring the entire cockpit (the whole thing flexes, I have removed the helm) so maybe I will wait to take the ply out after.

Hello Monocerosin:
I noticed your comment about the entire cockpit flexing on your boat. I had the same issue when I bought my Cherubini H36 in 2007. I repaired using a "normal" type of method. The repair was successful. Subsequently though I have pondered whether I could have saved much effort differently. The below is a link to my recount along with specifics. Note my "Alternative Idea". You are on the "other" coast with more extremes of hot/humid and cold/freezing. So maybe your wood core is actually rotted. But maybe it ain't. Hunter cored with pressure treated marine plywood. Not balsa as was done in many boats. So your wood itself might still be ok. Only it's the ply's that have separated. Anyway, take a gander at my 2009 post.

Cockpit Floor

HELLO to you all I am a new 37 c owner and i have a question. my cockpit floor is very soft an needs to be recored or replaced does anyone have any ideas on how to go about this seemingly daunting project many thanks to all and fair winds Alan

forums.sailboatowners.com

 

[monocerosin]

Hello Monocerosin:
So maybe your wood core is actually rotted. But maybe it ain't. Hunter cored with pressure treated marine plywood. Not balsa as was done in many boats. So your wood itself might still be ok. Only it's the ply's that have separated. Anyway, take a gander at my 2009 post.

Cockpit Floor

HELLO to you all I am a new 37 c owner and i have a question. my cockpit floor is very soft an needs to be recored or replaced does anyone have any ideas on how to go about this seemingly daunting project many thanks to all and fair winds Alan

forums.sailboatowners.com

Thank you for the more detailed post on the process! I can tell from where I removed the helm that the core is in really bad shape. My backing plate had corroded so bad that one corner fell off when I removed it. I will replace the core completely with coosa board and rebed the helm after. Adding some photos for context. Before helm pic. Will post current picture soon.

 

[Jim Legere]

Almost none of the plywood 'bulkheads' in the Cherubini-designed Hunter 37 Cutter are tabbed-in or structural. The fiberglass floor pan, headliner, settees, cockpit locker bottoms, bottom of the V-berth, the shower seat, and pretty much anything covered with gelcoat on the inside of the hull forms a glassed-in grid that is structural. You might find the attached brochure interesting as you renovate your boat.

 

[monocerosin]

There are only 2 pieces of ply in my boat that were not fiberglassed to the hull, the one I mention here and the removable board separating the v-berth from the anchor locker.
I don't know how that 50 year old advertisement is supposed to help, but it is neat!

 

[monocerosin]

Almost none of the plywood 'bulkheads' in the Cherubini-designed Hunter 37 Cutter are tabbed-in or structural.

Caught me off guard early this morning, sorry for the snark. Here are all the places where the manufacturer tabbed ply to the hull.
1979 hull #52

 

[Jim Legere]

You are talking to a former owner who has done more poking around a Hunter 37 Cutter over a period of eighteen years than you have done in your short ownership. You might find it interesting to establish contact with @DianaOfBurlington, aka John Cherubini II, son of the designer of your Hunter 37 Cutter. He is a font of information about the early days of Hunter and the building of these boats.

There are almost no 'structural plywood bulkheads" in the sense of plywood tabbed to the hull and deckhead to form a transverse vertical partition. The H37C was designed with a structural grid glassed into the hull, as mentioned and shown in the old sales brochure. This 'grid is composed of partial vertical and longitudinal bulkheads and 'furniture' that are made of tabbed-in plywood, covered with fiberglass coated with gelcoat, in the V-berth area, the fixing points for the chainplates, the settees, and in the horizontal areas port and starboard of the engine bay, including the icebox. The shelves supporting the upper rudder bearing and above the Edson radial wheel drive or quadrant are also glass-covered plywood. The plywood bulkheads separating the aft cabin, the main saloon, the head, shower and forward cabin are not structural and can be (relatively) easily removed. The following links show just how wide open the interior looks with these partitions removed:

Hunter 37-cutter Owner Modifications and Upgrades
Hunter 37-cutter Owner Modifications and Upgrades
When you finally do sail your boat, you will be reminded of sailing in a wooden sailboat because the plywood partitions that are just slotted-in will creak as the hull works in a seaway. I'm glad you are addressing the mild steel plate that carries the steering sheaves. I had mine sandblasted and epoxy painted. The manufacturer (Edson) should have used SS plate. Looking at yours, I'm not surprised the cockpit sole is spongy. Don't forget to take care of the opening ports when you are repairing damaged plywood core; once removed, you will probably find water damage in the cabin sides too. Replacement OEM Gray ports are available from the SBO chandlery. Others have used Beckson and NFM (New Found Metals) ports. The Bomar hatches are pretty good quality and may only require re-bedding and new gaskets. The area around the the companionway also needs a look, and the dorade boxes are a know problem. But, overall, you will find you have a very solid boat, worth your time and effort.

 

[monocerosin]

There are almost no 'structural plywood bulkheads" in the sense of plywood tabbed to the hull and deckhead to form a transverse vertical partition. The H37C was designed with a structural grid glassed in

Now I am understanding. So basically I am removing and replacing anything rotten and putting new marine ply with fiberglass attached to the hull. Once the head partition is replaced and we rebed the chainplate, then we will move on to replacing the deck core, pretty much all of it.
Thanks for the explanation, I appreciate the information!