I will be getting my ducks in a row this winter and hopefully starting a Vacationer as soon as Boston becomes epoxy friendly next spring. One of the modifications I am interested in pursuing is a mast tabernacle that eliminates the mast box. I asked Paul for help and he had drawings for me within the week. (He gave me over the transom tiller plans and tips/tricks immediately.) The detailed drawings are great with lots of text for guidance.Â
One aspect of the tabernacle is a beefed up deck between the bits and the forward bulkhead using a king plank. One thing not addressed in the drawing - the foredeck hatch. Do I lose any benefit of having the king plank installed when I later cut access to the peak area?
I should have mentioned this in the text Kerry. You can have your foredeck hatch. It's treated the same way a door or window in a house is, with trimmers (carlins) and plates. Simply put, the hatch perimeter is boxed with a carlin, around it's perimeter. The king plank is lightly notched (1/4" deep) into the fore and aft carlins. Think of these as the rough opening framing. Inside the carlins are the trimmers, which usually stand up off the deck a bit, so the hatch has something to land on and to keep water on the deck from running below when it's opened.
The attached should help. The carlins support the edge of the deck at the opening and the trimmers are fastened to these. The idea is to allow the strains and loads to pass around the hatch opening. Conversely, the foredeck hatch could be two hatches, one on either side of the king plank. This permit the king plank to be continuous. If the king plank is hardwood, you can reduce it's size considerably.
Thanks, Paul. How much would it be reduced if going hardwood?Â
After thinking about it a bit, you could substitute two 1x2's (hardwood) and use these to bracket the hatch. They would run straight forward from the mast bulkhead, landing some place on the sheer stringer. This would allow the torsional loads to transmit through the deck to the stem area and dissipate into the hull. So, instead of a single king plank, you'd have a couple of 1x2's, the width of the hatch opening on the underside of the deck. I think a better and more diminutive option.
Paul: I've yet to install my tabernacle, but I have installed my forward hatch framing. Do you have a rough sketch of your tabernacle to post? I'd like to consider it if I can modify things to fit what's already installed on my Vacationer. Thanks.
Dave