For two summers I hassled with the bimini frame over the cockpit. Parts were added, various tubing lengths were modified, make-shift canvas covers were fabricated and then tossed aside. So, over the winter, I began researching and then designing a full cockpit enclosure.
I had several design requirements:
- It had to be removable in case the ship ever needs to be transported over land
- It had to look like the original architect (Bill Tripp) would have designed it himself, but chose to leave it off the final design
- It had to be sturdy enough to withstand a Category 3 hurricaine
- It had to be tall enough to allow for a typical person to stand under it
- It had to be low enough to allow the boom to clear it by a few inches
- It had to be something I could manufacture at home port (Dallas) and transport for final assembly in the back of a typical truck or SUV
- It could not add substantial weight to the overall ship's tonnage
- The area over the helm station had to have a window for viewing the sails and rigging while underway
- The remaining area should be capable of mounting at least 500 watts of solar panels
After considerable research, the material chosen was HDPE. This stuff is tough, it is lightweight, it can withstand the pounding ultraviolet rays of direct sunlight, and it can be machined with typical woodworking tools. it does, however, have some drawbacks. It is difficult to paint. It cannot be glued, therefore it must be welded. Special welding tools had to be purchased and quite a bit of practice was required before I could form a strong welded seam. The raw materials were purchased in bulk (4'x 8' sheets). Those had to be transported as freight, so the shipping was not cheap. All in all, about $1500 was spent in materials and tools.
Many, many days were spent toiling in the workshop. First, milling lumber out of the raw sheets. Then, cutting them to length and creating mortise and tendon joints. Welding the various pieces together. Installing stainless steel bolts into certain pieces before final assembly. Et cetera.
Well, today is the first day where the assembled, but unpainted, pieces are now at the boat. Most of the day was spent fitting two panels on the starboard side. I also mounted the new radar sensor on the radar mast. That had to be done before I began fitting the cockpit enclosure pieces on the port side; the radar mast was laying in the way from my last visit, when I removed the old radar sensor (and pretty much every other piece of outdate junk) from the radar mast.
Tomorrow, I will continue fitting the port side cockpit enclosure. Two of the roof beams will need to be fabricated from some of the HDPE lumber I brought with me. Hopefully, I will be able to get the four main pieces I brought with me fitted before the end of the day.