Pearson 323 Nav table

[Mike G.]

The nav table on my 1977 Pearson 323 does not open very far. When opened it interferes with some of the molded fiberglass above. I have been thinking of cutting it through the middle and hinging the two sides so that it can fold back and then open all of the way.

Has anyone else ever considered doing that?

Mike
s/v Oasis
1977 Pearson 323 #2

 

[shorty]

Attached is a photo to give you an idea of what I did last year. This is the best I've got because I did not take an "after" shot. Anyway:
Cut top where shown, re-edgebanded, mitred the fiddles back so it could open just past 90d. Hinged with flush two pin table hinges for flat surface. I used the less expensive hinges from ABI (purchased at Hamilton). Next time I would use a better grade of hinge because the Chinese made ABI's are inconsistent in size so the router template I made didn't fit each hinge as cleanly as I would have liked. They still look good, just took extra hand fitting.
The back portion of the top is 4-5" wide and fixed down with a block supporting the seam where it butts the fixed existing portion, otherwise methinks it would flex downward when weight applied to surface. I also routed a hole for, and fixed in, along narrow plastic tray in the newly fixed 4-5" wide portion. It holds parallel rules, dividers, pencils allowing large chart to extend over the top.
I stayed the top with a Sugatsune SS lid stay (McMaster Carr - #11615A11-Type 304 Stainless Steel Lid Support).
Works well.

 

[Mike G.]

It looks great

Thank you for the photo and reply. It looks really nice.
What do you use for a finish?

Mike

PS It is nice to see a bit of action on this site. Seems as though Sailnet doesn't want Pearson owners. Many folks have migrated to Yahoo and Google groups, but I find this site so much easier to use.

 

[Ariel]

Mike,

I too have wondered about the low activity on the Pearson page. It took me a few days to find the page after the change to the web site and I almost gave up. It could be that many of the others did give up. Some are posting to the "ask all" page and that may be an indication that they can't find the Pearson forum. Anyway, I will usualy chime in when there is something I can contribute to constructively.

Dave
s/v ARIEL

 

[Mike G.]

Pearson activity

When the Sailnet Pearson email list was discontinued, I suggested that everyone come to this site, but as mentioned, they all chose to go either to Yahoo groups or Google groups.

 

[Phil Herring]

Not that this forum is the be-all end-all, but why anyone would voluntarily use Yahoo Groups is beyond me!

 

[Mike G.]

So Phil:

I was looking over all of the registered Pearson owners on this site. How do we get them to use it?

 

[shorty]

Rubbing varnish

I finished with a gel type satin rubbing interior varnish because this was a last winter project. I am 350 miles from the boat & I only had the removable top to rework & no way was I going to open the can of worms refinishing the whole desk. The satin rubbing varnish finished the new parts pretty close in color & sheen to the 23 year old stuff around it. I love working on the boat making & fixing things. I'm not a big fan of sanding & varnishing & sanding & varnishing & sanding & .........

 

[Neil]

MD11C replacement

I am replacing my MD11C with a Beta 28. Has anyone else done this repower? My old engine developed a major water leak into the oil and the entire engine is filled with grey mush - mixture of seawater and diesel oil. Maybe I should take pictures, what a mess. Anyway, it looks like I have to cut out the fiberglass column to get access for removal and installation. Any helpful hints or suggestions are welcome.

Thanks

Neil
sv Netanya
Hull #102