Graham Wadeson’s advert, saying he is selling his boat because his wife gets chilly is what set me writing this. A truly torrential thunder storm one night when we were in Paglesham Pool found the chafed bit in the excellent tent Jane had made for Tethys, and a leak dripped onto Jane’s face in her berth. That set us thinking about a ‘lid’ for Tethys, our Drascombe Lugger.

In Practical Boat Owner for 1976 or 1977 there is an article about a lid for a GRP Lugger, by AE Storm-Bate, and meeting Charles Stock on DCA meets in his 16 ft Shoal Waters, about which he writes so attractively and evocatively, showed that cabins on even small boats can be comely and comfortable — and you can still be a DCA member!

STEP TWO

Those of you who recognise the name Tethys may recall that I wrote about the first set of modifications in July, 1980, Bulletin No. 87. Once Jane started talking about a cabin, out came the notebook into which to put all the thinking. It became full and was run-on into another book: ideas for details came as doodles on agendas in boring meetings, and on other scraps… gradually the lines evolved as the compromises involved were settled. Measurement was the next step, followed by a mock-up from huge sheets of ½” thick cardboard I was given. This enabled adjustments to be made to shapes, and the overall effect to be judged by jigging the cardboard shapes into place and looking from a distance. Inevitably there is a compromise, but I think we have a good one. The drawing at the top shows the sheer elevation.

BEFORE…

If you are unfamiliar with the wooden Lugger, you need to know that her major feature is a continuous deck from stem to stern, pierced, as it were, by the cockpit well, and with a bulkhead at the fore and after ends of that well, giving access to the forepeak locker and the quarter lockers. In the earlier modifications I have closed up the openings in the after bulkhead and fitted two watertight access hatches in the deck, but I had not had great success in making the forward opening watertight. The deck layout, with my hatches, is seen in Sketch A below.

The forward bulkhead is strengthened by a beam so that it supports the mast tabernacle, and the king plank abuts to it. Amidships there is the third frame, with knees above the bench side seating.

AFTER…

The fatal first saw cut was made by the forward bulkhead, but Sketch B shows the full extent of what I cut away (shaded). The midships frame, knees and everything aft of them were left, and the forward 15” or so of the foredeck were also left to become the bottom of the anchor well. All deck between was removed, and temporary strutting put across to hold the hull shape.

The new work consists of: a raised foredeck, at gunwale level, with a 4” camber (cambered to Ian Nicholson’s formula) with a modest cabin top aft of it, including side decks and, at the midships station, made onto the existing frame; a watertight bulkhead with midships hatchway and a ‘bridge’ some 6” above the top of the centrecase.

The effect of raising the foredeck is to raise the mast, but the cabin top required the same amount of lift to the boom to clear. The shrouds are now led to chain plates bolted on at gunwale level, the same rise as the mast, so that the same shrouds serve without adjustment. The biggest question was what were the mast loadings, and how to support them. Calculation by my engineer son Jonathon suggested that ½ tonne was on the safe side. Formulae for wooden beams proved elusive, but what did come our way was a nice piece of driftwood which had been drying in the workshop. We concluded that it was about the same dimensions as the original beam, and that in an epoxy sandwich between 6mm ply, it should be right — and so far it has proved so. This beam gave the foredeck its camber at the after end, and it also supports the forward ends of the carlings (beams) that shape and support the cabin sides. The beam was shaped like this:

so that the ends are, in effect, integral knees, pulling the boat’s sides in together, and also spreading the load down the sheer strake and on to the top of the original frame/bulkhead used for the mast support. This, we hoped, preserved the designed loadings with capacity to spare.

CABIN FITTINGS

Within the cabin there are two bunks, feet together in the bows, with lockers under each. The lockers are intended to be waterproof from below, and to divide the area which could flood in case of collision, up to a level higher than the centrecase slot. The watertight bulkhead amidships, and that aft, mean that we are really well on the way to a compartmented vessel in which stray water is contained locally. It is my intention to fill the sides of the well and use top-opening locker hatches as I have done aft.

A sliding hatch on rails supported on blocks at their forward end — to enable a straight slide over a curved top — washboards, hand-rails, halyard leading blocks, etc. complete the forward details, along with the Sampson post which was retained undisturbed in what is now the anchor well.

Within the cabin, simple canvas ‘lockers’ under the side decks hold small ready-use items, and two canvas, hanging ‘holdalls’ have pockets for flares, hand bearing compass, almanac, home-made forecast sheets, torch, and such. These need sewn eyes to hang them: they hold quite a lot of weight!

One design feature was to keep the midships bulkhead vertical, not raked, so that falling rain is kept out somewhat by the overhang of the hatch cover. Economics dictated the use of a 3mm thick plastic for the cabin ‘windows’, but having found it so helpful and interesting to have windows in our tent, we were loath to do without them in the cabin. Two round ports facing forward are planned for the next season — then one can see how the warp grows, and what’s afoot, whether it be wildlife or the wild antics of hired boats trying to ‘park’ which we saw in Tobermory.

Making a camber to the foredeck, the cabin sides and top has given added strength, as well as mellowing the effect visually.

CRUISING CHUTE

Having received Make Your Own Sails for Christmas, some ripstop nylon, several hours on the kitchen floor and clever stitching by my wife Jane resulted in our cruising chute. It helped, but was not really tested in Scotland last season, so there are adjustments to do still, but you really can DIY!

The bowsprit happened partly because of this sail, partly because it was a beautifully curved piece of oak driftwood 2” thick! We can set a flying jib on its traveller, and that helps, or we can set the light cruising chute. We still need to experiment with sail balance but it is interesting to experiment!

AND THE RESULTS?

We get less wet in a beat, nights are cosier and dry whatever the weather, and stowage is drier. Chartwork is easier out of the elements. We still need a tent aft to cook as the cabin is too small for a galley, but even without that we are more sheltered riding to anchor, and therefore head to wind…

… best of all, of course, is a dry, contented wife!