RE: [bolger] Pipe Berths (was San Francisco Pelican)
Jeff Blunck wrote:
dowel and save weight. Many years ago my family travelled
around europe in a Bedford van with two pipe berths.
Worked great until one of the plastic cups that hold the
end of the pipe broke and my sister fell on my parent's
heads.
Bruce Fountain
> The author recommends 1" ID aluminum pipe with a 1"If you go for about 2" pipe you can probably skip the
> OD hardwood
> dowel smeared with epoxy stuffed inside as a stiffener
dowel and save weight. Many years ago my family travelled
around europe in a Bedford van with two pipe berths.
Worked great until one of the plastic cups that hold the
end of the pipe broke and my sister fell on my parent's
heads.
Bruce Fountain
The book I have with a chapter on pipe berths is a book on boat cabinet and
trim work, I'll have to get the book title later and post it.
The style I'm going to make is very easy. Take two pipes not longer than 7
foot. The author recommends 1" ID aluminum pipe with a 1" OD hardwood
dowel smeared with epoxy stuffed inside as a stiffener. You can also use
iron pipe but it will be heavier. Use two pipes and canvas. Triple fold
the canvas over the pipes. In other words, decide the width (minimum
shoulder width should be 24 inches and foot end of 12 inches). Fold the
canvas or other heavy material in an "S" shape. About 2 inches from each
side is where the edges of the canvas should stop. One on top and one on
the bottom. Sew through all three layers full length with a seam on both
sides. If done right, the canvas layer will be one ply thick over the pipes
and triple ply between the pipes with a hole to slide the pipes in like a
curtain rod. You can also go with a hefty canvas with grommets laced
between the pipes. Use a 2" foam pad for added comfort and you've just built
a simple "stretcher" style cot.
If the bulkheads are close to 6' 6" apart as in many small boats, simply
make four hangers with two attached to each bulkhead. He shows an adjustable
one for a sailboat that may be on a long trip with different angles of heel
but I think a 3" by 1" thick piece of hardwood laminated to the bulkhead
would work. Make two with just a hole in the center to slip the pipe while
the other two would be slotted to drop in the pipe ends. Picture if you can
the round closet rod holders you can buy at the store. If you could find
metal ones, you could even use those!
If the bulkheads are further apart, make hangers for the end attached to the
bulkhead but drill a hole through both hanger and pipe to allow a pin to be
inserted so they can't slip back out. For the free end, make a spreader out
of 3" by 1 1/2" hardwood with a hole through both ends to accept the pipes.
If you hang the free end from the cabin roof, angle the chains towards the
side of the cabin and back to the attached ends to bias the load from
swinging. Or simply rig up blocks to insert under the spreader to support
it on the floor but attach it somehow to the cabin side to keep it in place.
This is my solution, I'm going to use a slip (gate) hinge on the spreader at
the cabin wall and have simple block to support the other end of the
spreader.
These berths can be take down in seconds and rolled up for storage leaving
the entire cabin free for storage or sitting. I also think they can be
built for a lot less than the plywood/glue/paint/padding need to build
permanent bunks in place and in half the time.
The Tennesse calls for these type of berths and doesn't rely on the plywood
box for berths to add structural strength to the hull bottom.
I'm not very good at this type of explanations but I hope it helps.
Jeff
trim work, I'll have to get the book title later and post it.
The style I'm going to make is very easy. Take two pipes not longer than 7
foot. The author recommends 1" ID aluminum pipe with a 1" OD hardwood
dowel smeared with epoxy stuffed inside as a stiffener. You can also use
iron pipe but it will be heavier. Use two pipes and canvas. Triple fold
the canvas over the pipes. In other words, decide the width (minimum
shoulder width should be 24 inches and foot end of 12 inches). Fold the
canvas or other heavy material in an "S" shape. About 2 inches from each
side is where the edges of the canvas should stop. One on top and one on
the bottom. Sew through all three layers full length with a seam on both
sides. If done right, the canvas layer will be one ply thick over the pipes
and triple ply between the pipes with a hole to slide the pipes in like a
curtain rod. You can also go with a hefty canvas with grommets laced
between the pipes. Use a 2" foam pad for added comfort and you've just built
a simple "stretcher" style cot.
If the bulkheads are close to 6' 6" apart as in many small boats, simply
make four hangers with two attached to each bulkhead. He shows an adjustable
one for a sailboat that may be on a long trip with different angles of heel
but I think a 3" by 1" thick piece of hardwood laminated to the bulkhead
would work. Make two with just a hole in the center to slip the pipe while
the other two would be slotted to drop in the pipe ends. Picture if you can
the round closet rod holders you can buy at the store. If you could find
metal ones, you could even use those!
If the bulkheads are further apart, make hangers for the end attached to the
bulkhead but drill a hole through both hanger and pipe to allow a pin to be
inserted so they can't slip back out. For the free end, make a spreader out
of 3" by 1 1/2" hardwood with a hole through both ends to accept the pipes.
If you hang the free end from the cabin roof, angle the chains towards the
side of the cabin and back to the attached ends to bias the load from
swinging. Or simply rig up blocks to insert under the spreader to support
it on the floor but attach it somehow to the cabin side to keep it in place.
This is my solution, I'm going to use a slip (gate) hinge on the spreader at
the cabin wall and have simple block to support the other end of the
spreader.
These berths can be take down in seconds and rolled up for storage leaving
the entire cabin free for storage or sitting. I also think they can be
built for a lot less than the plywood/glue/paint/padding need to build
permanent bunks in place and in half the time.
The Tennesse calls for these type of berths and doesn't rely on the plywood
box for berths to add structural strength to the hull bottom.
I'm not very good at this type of explanations but I hope it helps.
Jeff
I'm very interested in pipe berths, too. What book are you referring too?
Would you be see kind to outline the process for us?
I think they'd be the cats meow in my (almost done except for paint!) AF4.
Playing nice,
John Bell in Kennesaw <><
Would you be see kind to outline the process for us?
I think they'd be the cats meow in my (almost done except for paint!) AF4.
Playing nice,
John Bell in Kennesaw <><
----- Original Message -----
From: "Jeff Blunck" <boatbuilding@...>
To: <bolger@yahoogroups.com>
Sent: Monday, July 02, 2001 6:58 PM
Subject: Re: [bolger] Re: San Francisco Pelican
|
| Nothing fancy, in fact it think I may just go with pipe berths since they
| will swing up out of the way for storage. My guess is well sleep in the
| large cockpit more often than not. Especially if I get my side curtains
| done to keep the bugs out. The pipe berths will allow me to use the
entire
| cabin for storage. They are well described in a book I bought. They look
a
| lot easier to build that a plywood platform.
|