Almost done, photos of mods

[emergpa1]

Ust about finished. Still need to troubleshoot trailer lights

Installed new and reinforced batteries and water tank, reinforced and new installation of stern and motor mount, compost toilet, powered vent, new trex instead of teak, new through hulls, reinstalled and reinforced bow cleats and roller, new instruments, cockpit light and cabin light, , trimmed sliding hatch with the old toerails to hide the overhead cabin light wire, and for looks. Also not shown new stern rail grill. Also fixed a leaky chainplate and rear cleat. Reinstalled and reinforced the anchor locker hatch. Buffed and waxed the hull, whew! Gotta do bottom paint next week.

 

[justsomeguy]

Nice work! I like the interior handholds!

 

[Siamese]

But why did you put the solar vent in a high traffic area?

 

[caguy]

Nice job I like the color of the non-skids. What color is that? If you get anxious to go and are still having difficulty with the lights, Harbor Frieght has some towing lights that attach magnetcially and are prewired. Just Zip tie the lights and the wire to the frame and go. They are only about $10 at the store. They show $15 online.

 

[Technodad]

Really nice work and I know it was a lot of work!
Love the anchor roller, new toilet, handrails and motor mount, actually I love it all.
Congrats.....

 

[RichBone]

Whew, lots of work, nice job on all of it. What kind of nav lights do you have on the bow?

 

[Jackdaw]

But why did you put the solar vent in a high traffic area?

I THINK thats the vent for his compost toilet. The toilet needs to be positively vented 24x7, and the hose run should be as short as possible to minimize pressure loss.

 

[OdayDave]

Keith -

Excellent work as always. I'm always impressed. Can you post more details on the internal hand rails. That would be great to have when moving around below in heavier seas.

Thanks,

Dave
s/v Lagniappe
O'Day 25

 

[Joe11688]

Great work Keith! It was fun, wasn't it? You're going to love the anchor roller believe me.

In regard to the trailer lights: I found out a few weeks ago that one of my trailer lights was out and after eliminating the light fixture and bulb as the culprit, I disconnected the wires at light and tied a string to the end of it. I also had to do the same thing to the marker light on that side of the trailer before I could pull all the wires out on that side. On careful examination of the wires I found two wires that appeared to be crushed or skinned out to the bare conductors.
Whoever assembled my trailer had left plenty of wire wrapped around the light bracket which was very beneficial to making the splice after cutting out the bad spots.

I connected my battery charger to the connector on the trailer and checked the voltage at the end of the wires which proved to be "A" OK.

Most of the time, if the problem isn't found in the light fixture or the connector, a visual check of the wiring is needed and the only way to do that is to pull the wires out of the frame on that side of the trailer. All it takes is some string, a meter, and some simple tools. I use a battery charger a lot for checking 12 Volt lights, even on my mast.

 

[Gaf]

Boy Keith you have really been busy. As always the work was well thought out, with excellent craftmanship. Like the trex idea. Thanks for the great ideas and posts.
George

 

[Ritdog]

Nice job! Curious: What is that terrycloth material up by the handholds for? ...and what is that red light in the cockpit wall, under a handle?.....

 

[onecoolair]

Ust about finished. Still need to troubleshoot trailer lights

Back when I had my m26 ....I modified and use a out door extension cord for my trailer wiring harness. I used a series of small bungee cords to hold harness run in place. For lights I used wing nuts and screws. Never left harness on trailer when not in use and always removed lights and coiled harness back to trunk when launching.

 

[justsomeguy]

Nice job! Curious: What is that terrycloth material up by the handholds for? ...and what is that red light in the cockpit wall, under a handle?.....

Knuckle-saver?

 

[Shoaldrafter]

giving up medicine

Keith,

So you are giving up medicine? Going into boat recycling?

Ed K

 

[emergpa1]

Wow guys! Lots of replies and questions. I'm up at fort Campbell visiting my daughter and son in law right now so give me a few days and ill sit down, answer question and tell what worked and what went wrong. There is a story and lesson behind those " terry cloth" strips, laugh! And those blessed hand rails.... Grrhhh

 

[emergpa1]

Hey that's a good idea! And what about using the black and orange plastic spring clamps from the hardware store attached to the trailer with screws, instead of bungees

 

[onecoolair]

Hey that's a good idea! And what about using the black and orange plastic spring clamps from the hardware store attached to the trailer with screws, instead of bungees

Those plastic clamps are a good idea....They just did not existed when I was trailer sailing. I use those now to hold shore power cord up off deck along guard boat railing now.

 

[OS2Dude]

Trex as Handholds?

I can see Trex as toe-rail, but it looked as if you used it for your handrail as well. Did you, Or did you use some other HDPE product?

I used TREX while making a 'ladder' base for my outdoor train layout, and it tended to snap if subjected to any lateral force. (I.E. Bending) With the thinness of the handholds where you actually would hold it, I'd be concerned that it would not hold if you REALLY needed it.

 

[Joe11688]

My friend Wayne used HDPE for his handrails and companionway slider moldings. I think the Trex is a little stronger. The floor on my farmer's porch is all Trex. That stuff is pretty tough. I've been using Trex for certain things on my boat and PVC trim board for other things.
I like PVC trim board because you can glue it with PVC cement and it can be spray painted with Krylon. It's a lot lighter than Trex.

 

[emergpa1]

Wow guys! Lots of replies and questions. I'm up at fort Campbell visiting my daughter and son in law right now so give me a few days and ill sit down, answer question and tell what worked and what went wrong. There is a story and lesson behind those " terry cloth" strips, laugh! And those blessed hand rails.... Grrhhh

Ooops, forgot about this thread, Let me answer one question now, then other replies later.

Regarding the padded strips along the top just above the handrails: that is a cover my wife and I fashioned to cover the holes cut in the cabin liner. I had to drill these holes to get access to the bolts that we are using to attach the hatch rails.

Initially, I thought I would be able to drill straight down through the deck into the cabin and simply attach the hatch rail with machine screws. But, as almost anyone else would have known, the interior is curved and you cannot tighten down the bolts without bending the bolts. And because when you tighten the bolt it pulls it sideways it breaks the seal underneath the hatch rail. So it did not work. To eliminate the curve I had to drill out a 1 1/4 inch hole, using a spade bit, until I got to the inner surface of the deck. It was flat there. So then I was able to fasten the hatch rail using machine screws.

Regarding the choice of a cover, I initially used some small round covers I made but it looked patchwork. When I used the padded strip it, almost, looks intentional.