Relocate head compartment

[Ixneigh]

Re:flexing. I don’t really know. The boats entirely too flexible in my opinion though. The unsupported hull sides from the cockpit to the dagger board trunk have never sat well with me. I’d love to have another partial bulkhead on the other side, and will eventually, when I redo the sliding galley. The new galley will be anchored to similar partition but not as large. These partitions are glassed in with four to five passes of 10 ounce cloth and are intended to be as strong as the rest of the boat.
During the course of this project, I have certainly thought of improvements that might be possible, though. I would not recommend doing this project with the particular method I used here. I would instead make a mould for the bulkhead panel and bonding flanges, and then create a pre finished fiberglass panel that could be easily bonded into place with very minimal cosmetic collateral damage. This allows for all finish work to be completed outside the boat, and would offer a much more “factory” appearance. The last is not that important to me, but the former would be welcomed. Once the partition was ready, it could simply be glued in place with a good adhesive marine sealant and probably be as strong as needed. That would be lighter, and use no wood. It could be created and finished with much cheaper polyester based products instead of epoxy.
Better still, just get another boat with the layout you want. That’s the easiest. I only bother to do this stuff because the boats working well for my fairly narrow use case scenario, even within the macgregor class.

Ix

[Ixneigh]

Re:flexing. I don’t really know. The boats entirely too flexible in my opinion though. The unsupported hull sides from the cockpit to the dagger board trunk have never sat well with me. I’d love to have another partial bulkhead on the other side, and will eventually, when I redo the sliding galley. The new galley will be anchored to similar partition but not as large. These partitions are glassed in with four to five passes of 10 ounce cloth and are intended to be as strong as the rest of the boat.
During the course of this project, I have certainly thought of improvements that might be possible, though. I would not recommend doing this project with the particular method I used here. I would instead make a mould for the bulkhead panel and bonding flanges, and then create a pre finished fiberglass panel that could be easily bonded into place with very minimal cosmetic collateral damage. This allows for all finish work to be completed outside the boat, and would offer a much more “factory” appearance. The last is not that important to me, but the former would be welcomed. Once the partition was ready, it could simply be glued in place with a good adhesive marine sealant and probably be as strong as needed. That would be lighter, and use no wood. It could be created and finished with much cheaper polyester based products instead of epoxy.
Better still, just get another boat with the layout you want. That’s the easiest. I only bother to do this stuff because the boats working well for my fairly narrow use case scenario, even within the macgregor class.

Ix

[OverEasy]

Hi Ixneigh!

Nice work!
Getting something done the first time at all is always a challenge!
Finding better/easier is always a 20/20 hindsight by-product of the first time and sometimes the second time too!

That’s why good a experienced R&D Engineer does prototypes (Alphas and Betas) before going into a production design when coming up with a new product for market.

I think you’ve done a really ambitious one-off custom project that looks great as well as being wel thought out! Kudos to you!

Best Regards
Over Easy

[Ixneigh]

So this project is usable. The door took a lot of thought and now it opens to the back, so it can be left partway open to give a bit more space to undress. I am not proud of the carpentry work, it’s impossible to do decent quality with no shop. But it works. I did a fair imitation of a salty seal seaworld show and only a dash or two of the water got on the cabin sole. Everything was comfortable to use, with a battery operated bucket shower that can be found on Amazon. This little device uses a lot of water so my plan of just letting it recirculate a while was a good one. One minor annoyance was the shower head has very fine holes so it clogs quickly with a little stray sawdust. After the first use that should be less of an issue. Upon getting good and wet, checking the drainage from the seat to the floor sump (not perfect since boats down by the head on her trailer) I soaped up and rinsed off. Earlier in the day I had put the table in place, and put a lot of stuff away I had thrown into the forward part of the boat to get the project area clear.
I was going to give the epoxy pigment a bit of a wet sand but I decided it looked ok for now. I still need to install hinges on the seat cover, and maybe some way to block out the windows for privacy while at a dock. The door latch which is a two sided barrel bolt, needs the small chrome brass knobs I bought on eBay for the finishing touch. Lastly I need to install a vent to extract air from inside the locker where the toilet is. I’ve been wanting to ventilate the space between the hull and liner anyway and this will also accomplish that. I might use a solar vent if I can find one a like or a 12 volt muffin fan.

[Ixneigh]

Pictures

[Be Free]

Looking good!

[Russ]

Wow! Pictures tell a thousand words.

Your carpentry work looks great.

You have one of the coolest Macs with all your custom mods. You have truly customized this boat to work best for you which is awesome.

[OverEasy]

Hi Ixneigh!

Loo-e-Loo-e!

Awesome Job! Great work and a Truely Unique Mod!!!
You done great!

Best Regards,
Over Easy

[Jimmyt]

Looks fantastic! Excellent job!

[Ixneigh]

Thanks for the compliments everyone. And thank you for all the input and opinions. I used it again last night now that everything is finished. It’s more comfortable than at home. Two and a half gallons of water provides a nice amount of shower. I guess I’ll have to get that water maker going soon.
Ix

[pitchpolehobie]

Wow some of these guys wanna be so bad...




Looks great I bet it makes long duration voyages much more tolerable.

[Russ]

Wow some of these guys wanna be so bad...


Looks great I bet it makes long duration voyages much more tolerable.

I gotta agree. Why did Roger change that?

The X head seems so much smarter.

[NiceAft]

I am truly impressed with your conceptualization and your skill to achieve it. I must say that I still prefer the M interior to the X. The X is too austere for my tastes. Others feel differently.

When we take extended trips with our M, we are at marinas every night. The excellent facilities make the need for a shower on board not necessary. I do have an expandable shower head on the stern. If and when we are dropping the hook for the night, we can shower in the cockpit, and use the water from the 30 gallon bladder in the bow (under the bunk). Not heated water, but we are already roughing it I’m sure someone will need to say why they prefer their Mac over another; it won’t be something already stated over the last twenty years I have been on this forum. Just an opinion to an excellently conceived and completed Mod.

To those who may be sensitive, In no way am I disrespecting X owners. Just a personal choice in Mac’s. Too each his own. Sail on.

[pitchpolehobie]

I think its a bit of a case of "you want what you dont have" with the 26x/m... there are times i wished I had the salon layout of the M and I love the lower set of windows in the M for viewing out. But i do love my X big 4 person table.I think all X and M users that have ever tried to use their toilet for "serious business" would love ixneighs modification.

[dlandersson]

Wow some of these guys wanna be so bad...




Looks great I bet it makes long duration voyages much more tolerable.