Guiltless Remodel Job

Don was confirming with the manufacturer of C-Dory that the bulkhead is not structural. Also giving us appreciation for our advice too.

In my industry, the saying is; “trust but verify, no matter who they are.”Thanks for the feedback Don
 
Yes, and now verified. I'm so sorry that in my excitement to post Gregs answer I didn't realize that I posted something unreadable. The following from Greg Little is a copied version:


[b]Hi Don,

The bulkhead between the V-Birth and the settee in the galley is not structural so it can be removed.

Greg Little
VP of Operations, Owner.
Northwest Marine Industries LLC.
809 Harris Ave. Building 6
Bellingham Wa. 98225
Phone 360-389-5351
Cell 360-393-2447
www.nmiboats.com

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I was so impressed with the job that Mark & Yuka did removing their bulkhead. You literally can't tel it ever had a bulkhead there. I decided right then and there that I would do that some day to Thistle. But then I came up against the Wife who shut it right down stating "YOU WILL NOT BE CUTTING OUT A BULKHEAD ON MY NEW-TO-US BOAT". Though I assured her it was not structural She said she needed proof. Now Kim is simply not a difficult person and is normally easy to please...so what to do?

Last week I emailed Greg and you see his answer above. I also saw where Bob and others also removed their bulkheads. I went back and used the search bar and found a few more prominent members who also did the same. Most of their posts would start by saying that "I have heard it isn't structural, or I don't think it is structural, or so-in-so said it isn't structural. I have praise for their boldness but still I had no proof to comfort the wife.

The email above takes all the guessing out of the equation. I hope it remains available for all Doubters to see. Perhaps Tyboo will find a special place for it.

Mark, thanks for showing me this at Hontoon.
 
Thank you for clarifying. There are a number of clues that this bulkhead is non structural. The most important of these are that it is not tabbed, fiberglassed or fixed to the hull structure. The cut edge should be protected with the black material which surrounds the factory entrance to the V Berth area.
 
Once I purchased the boat and looked at it I realized that as well. Then I confirmed it with Mark when I met him two days later. It was the Admiral that needed to hear it from the owners words.
Thanks everyone for your patience as I learn ...
 
One thing to realize is that the bulkhead on the port side is also the backrest for the forward dinette seat. If you remove it, you have to figure out another means of support if you plan on using the dinette. This is not terribly difficult to do, but it is something that will need to be sorted out.

FWIW, I prefer the boat with the bulkhead intact. I like the segregation of the "bedroom" from the "living room" and it provides more seclusion when sleeping.
 
We're beginning to plan a trip and we will test the idea. I have Claustrophobia. I have it bad. I sometimes freak out when in the v-birth. As It is I'm a hair to big for the settee so this remodel may be nice but we want to travel a bit before making any changes.
 
My wife and I were also not comfortable in the V berth of the 22 cruiser. The issue was sitting up to get out the fo'c'sle. If we were to sleep with our heads towards the stern, one of us would end up kicking the other when trying to rotate around to get out. If we were to sleep with our heads towards the bow getting in and out would require slithering along the cushions until we could sit up in the entry way. This would have been a problem even if the bulkhead on the port side were removed. We are not as flexible as we used to be. Since we were able to purchase our boat new, we asked NMI to build the starboard platform (9" high) all the way back to the aft bulkhead. This let me build a platform for a berth on top of that. There are pictures in my album showing how that all worked out. The helm seat is removable and stored in the cockpit for the night.

We gave up the sink, stove, and work space but it makes sleeping much more comfortable. The berths on both sides are about 6'2" and 30" wide. We do our cooking and clean up in the cockpit. With the camper top and the opaque side panels it gets quite cozy.

Also, I was able to find an electric actuator to lower and raise the table when setting up the port berth. I got tired of getting under the table to lift with my back for day use. (picture in album).
 
Tom. Thanks for sharing your photos. I can sort of see how some of that will be nice. We will use the boat before making any changes and see just where it is that changes are needed.
 
I agree, you should absolutely try things out before making changes. We spent some time at the factory moving around and lying down in a boat that was almost finished with the standard package.
 
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