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Im planning a four adult trip this year and will have Captains sleeping in cockpit, Admirals and first officers below

I measure cockpit berths as roughly 72 inches by 16 inches, with another 14 inches to pedestal.

Does anyone have thoughts on how I could implement a hard surface width extension of about 14 inches wide by 60 inches long, on each side, to make these berths a bit more spacious? Im thinking starboard or plywood, which would slip under the cockpit cushions underway for stowage. I would use blowup mattresses for the beds.

I have a full enclosure for the rainy nights.

Ill percolate this one here for a bit, then move to Mods forum once its brewed.

The stock bench should be all right for getting some sleep. Think of which side you sleep on primarily and then position your pillow either fore or aft so that your knees are toward the center.

I mention this because Im 76" long and have to bend my knees on my back and on my side.

All this reminds me of a time my mate and I were shopping for a coffin for my mother in law. Shes quite well but I thought we should plan ahead.

Anyway, I noticed that all the cases were the same size. One size fits all. So I asked the undertaker lady what about tall people? She says they bend their knees up. Some relief. For a moment I thought they might remove them.

Great! Now I gotta dryout my keyboard!

Late last season we designed a DIY cockpit accessory that allows full use of the cockpit as a berth, without compromising emergency access or convenience. Plenty of room for two adults...even more for small kids. I will post the mod tonight. Check it out.
Allways cooler up top. If bugs are an issue, you of course would need a full enclosure....however, our mod will work fine...no conflicts. Happy to answer any questions. Tahoe Jack

Sloop John B wrote:All this reminds me of a time my mate and I were shopping for a coffin for my mother in law. Shes quite well but I thought we should plan ahead.

this thread may need to be moved...

wierd thought about to fit two body in a boxes...
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Need long narrow boxes on either side of cockpit...
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Some clever engineering maybe make a pair of slightly pointy ended cofin bottoms that can sit properly over the cockpit. When not resting in piece in the cockpit, clamp them together with a short length of rigid something and throw overboard and tow it, double as a catamaran dingly with a small outboard. Maybe even make tops that seal when closed for unsinkable / storage catamaran dingy.

this is morbid.

Check out the tent cot available from Cabalas. They are 7ft. x 32" wide, have rain flys & bug netting. I use one of these when I have guests on board. I took off the feet and placed the thing on my tender davit tubes (see Zeno's Arrow thread for how this works). This allows me to have a portable aft cabin that sets up abeam over the engines for total privacy and ease of access. I have a 12V electrical plug that allows me to use a fan and light for reading inside the tent. MM

Catigale-

I just saw an interesting mod in a book last night. (Can't sail yet, so the sailing and boat mod books are piling up beside my bed).

It was for a cockpit slat-syle grate that sits on the cockpit floor. Layout a grate using teak, redwood, cedar etc. to fill the entire cockpit floor area. Make it in two pieces so the they butt together at a cutout for the pedestal. Easy on bare feet and keeps the floor dryer and cleaner.

Added bonus: Install a 1x1 cleat about just below the level of the seats, then lift the grates up to rest on the cleats. Instant double berth.

This would obviously work better with a regular column pedestal and won't fit perfectly with our X pedestal due to the angle from the floor to the level of the seats, but it's worth a look. And you don't need space to stow anything since it sits on the floor. Those 1x1 cleats may rub a few legs while sitting but good shape and sanding will minimize this.

Beam's Reach......interesting concept. Any pics available? BTW, our cockpit berth mod (see earlier post) features only a few fuzzy Velcro strips along the bench seat edge....no sanding required Our late spring western US has us checking our batteries, messing with mods, and looking for sunshine. Jack

Unfortunately no pictures. But it's from 100 Fast & Easy Boat Improvements by Don Casey, published by International Marine, ISBN 007013402-2. I found an interesting and doable project on almost every page.

On my 1997 26x we too like to sleep in the cockpit on warm evenings. My main support needs were for my shoulders, so I made a 3/8" thick plywood insert to fill the gap between the pilots seat, the benches on port and stbd. and the steering console. It's sort of U shaped to fit arounfd the console. It's wide enough to overlap the seats by a couple of inches. I screwed a couple of wood strips underneath at the edges to keep it centered and prevent it shifting.There are no supports going to the floor. I wouldn't want to dance on it, but it's certainly strong enough for its designed goal. With this lightweight, easy to stow plywood sheet installed, and sleeping with my head to aft my pillow doesn't fall off, and I can comfortably roll over without feeling like I'm on the edge.